To get the best from your tomato plants you need to be aware of one or two tomato dilemmas and what you can do to resolve them.

Good Growing Practices
Many of the problems that occur in tomatoes are not initially caused by pests and diseases, but may simply be the result of the way that you care for and tend your plants. To get the very best results you need to provide the ideal growing conditions. This means everything from using the right growing medium to regular food and water. Plants that are deficient in certain trace elements display symptomatic problems such as chlorotic leaves, split fruit, green patches and blossom end rot. Almost all of these are avoidable with proper care and attention, which means the right compost and the very best in plant fertilisers. If you are serious about growing tomatoes then choose the very best compost to suit their needs. Westland is an expert in growing media and has produced a definitive range of top quality composts to suit the needs of all your plants. For tomatoes choose Westland organic Tomato Instant Planters that have a generous depth of compost well suited to growing tomatoes. This compost is specially formulated to support strong healthy roots and vigorous, sturdy plants. If you are investing time and effort into growing good tomatoes then it makes sense to give them everything that they need. When it comes to fertilisers only the best will do. Tomato plants have very specific requirements to keep them healthy and strong. For example, if you feed them with a normal feed for flowering plants they are much more susceptible to a disease called Blossom End Rot. This disease is usually caused by a deficiency in calcium, which normal flowering plant foods do not contain in sufficient amounts to satisfy tomato plants. Westland’s specially formulated Nutri Tomato Plant Food has just the right levels of NPK to promote and sustain healthy green plants with trusses of tasty fruit, and it also contains trace elements to ensure the plant has access to every additional requirement to keep it healthy. More than that it is enriched with added calcium and magnesium to give your plants the best possible chance to avoid common tomato diseases including Blossom End Rot. In essence it contains everything tomatoes need for strong, healthy growth.

Little Bugs
When plants become stressed and lacking in certain essential elements they are less able to perform to their full potential and quickly become susceptible to all kinds of pests and diseases. Sap suckers such as aphids and whitefly are a menace indoors and out. When growing edible crops it is essential to ensure that any pest controls you use are approved for use on fruit and
vegetables.