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Grow your own Tomatoes

Nothing beats a home grown tomato picked fresh from the vine and eaten while still slightly warm from the sunshine. I met my fiancé during the tomato growing season and every romantic dinner I used to cook for him involved tomatoes some way or another. From the bloody Mary cocktail to a basil and mozzarella beef steak tomato starter to a warm tomato tartlet or a main course of lasagne, spaghetti bolognaise or a salad tomato cous cous. It all involved tomatoes. My future mother in law used to live on a farm as a child, so every time I went to visit I took her a little bag of tomatoes too. When first courting, Charles my fiancé used to buy me lots of little presents on his visits and dates! One fond present which sits proudly on my book shelf is a tomato recipe book. So all in all tomatoes were a basis for a very happy future. So from my own experience and the love of tomatoes I urge everyone to grow tomatoes.

If you have a heated greenhouse tomatoes can be started as early as late January. If you are limited for space buy a small timesaver pack of tomatoes and you can prick your own out into little pots. Otherwise later in the season, March - May you can buy individual varieties of tomatoes. My favourites are some of the older varieties.

I find the best beefsteak is Big Boy, an F1 Hybrid, and Ideal for Outdoor Growing. I also rather like Tigerella another beefsteak which bears red and yellow stripes.

With all these tomatoes they are best eaten fresh straight from the vine when they have that slightly warm taste. All need regularly liquid feeding for maximum production. Why not give tomato growing a go?

For further information and tips on gardening visit Pot House Hamlet blog. www.pothousehamlet.co.uk

Good Traditional Salad Tomatoes

Ailsa Craig which is Greenback type.

Money Maker, gives a heavy and reliable crop, ideal for outdoors.

Shirley, an F1 Hybrid, heavy yielding and high disease resistance, ideally suited for medium and late crops.

The best plum I have found is San Marzano, an Italian Tomato with firm flesh, ideal for canning bottling and cooking.

Gardening Features

Autumn Gardening - pruning and tidying is required but this year more than ever there is a great deal of pruning to be done

Get green and weed free - The majority of us want a lovely lawn; its just getting it that is the problem!

Romantic Rose’s - Now we are into the Wedding season many ladies and indeed gentlemen start to think of flowers and colour schemes

Sowing Seeds - Now all the excitement of the snow is over one needs to think about more colour for the garden

Spring Gardening - Spring is a very exciting and busy time in the garden. It starts when the Galanthus Elwesii, (better known as the snowdrop) pop up

Hanging Baskets are Great Space Savers

With gardens generally being smaller a bush tomato in a hanging basket or pot makes good use of space; Tumbler an F1 variety is excellent, and Gartenperle often known as garden perle is another favourite for baskets and pots as it is an early copper and gives plenty of fruit all season.

Good Cherry Tomatoes

Gardeners Delight which is heavy cropper with a sweet flavour and ideal for outdoors.

Sun Baby is an F1 yellow cherry which is very sweet and does well indoors.