Perfect time to grow your own garden
Thoroughly moisten the seed-starting mix, and then fill the containers to within ½ inch (1,2 cm) of the top. Firm the mix but don’t compact it. Place two or three seeds into each small container or each cell of a seed starter. Cover the seed with about ¼ inch (0,5 cm) of soil and gently firm it over the seeds. Water to ensure good seed-to-mix contact. You can use a plant mister or just dribble a stream of water over the top. You don’t need to soak the soil, just moisten the top layer. Place the pots in a warm spot or on top of a heat mat. At this point, the seeds don’t need light. Keep the mix moist but not soaking wet. If your seed-starting system has a greenhouse top, use it to help hold moisture. Or, you can lay some plastic kitchen wrap over the tops of the pots. Check pots daily. As soon as you see sprouts, remove the covering and place the pots in a sunny window or under grow lights, keeping the lights just an inch or two above the tops of the plants. For the strongest, healthiest plants you’ll want just one seedling per pot or cell. Thinning (removing extra seedlings) – select the strongest, healthiest seedling and use a pair of scissors to snip off the others at the soil line. You can transplant the extras into different pots. Wait to transplant your tomato seedlings into the garden until after the average last spring frost date. Be prepared to protect the seedlings with season-extending garden fabric, row covers or plant covers) if a late frost threatens. If all goes well, you’ll be harvesting ripe tomatoes in eight weeks or less.
Tomatoes are not hard to grow; they’re incredibly productive, versatile in the kitchen, and so delicious off the vine. Tomatoes are long-growing, heat-seeking, sun lovers! These warm-season plants do not tolerate frost. Due to a relatively long growing season, tomatoes are most commonly transplanted rather than direct-seeded into the garden. For tomatoes use loose, well-draining soil. Tomatoes will grow in many different soil types, but it needs to drain well and never pool water. They prefer a slightly acid soil with a pH of 6.2 to 6.8. If you grow tomatoes from seed, start indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the average last spring frost date. Select a site with full sun. Transplant seedlings after the last spring frost when the soil has warmed. Two weeks before planting your tomato plants outdoors, dig into soil about 1 foot (30 cm) deep and mix in aged manure or compost. Set young plants outdoors in the shade for a couple of hours the first day, gradually increasing the amount of time the plants are outside each day to include some direct sunlight. For transplanting space tomato transplants 2 feet (60 cm) apart for small bush-type plants or larger plants that will be staked. Space larger plants 3 to 4 feet (90- 120 cm) apart if unstacked. Allow 4 feet (120 cm) between the rows. Pinch off a few of the lower branches on transplants, and plant the root ball deep enough so that the remaining lowest leaves are just above the surface of the soil. Be sure to water the transplant thoroughly to establish good root/soil contact and prevent wilting. Newly set transplants may need to be shaded for the first week or so to prevent excessive drying of the leaves. Tomatoes are available in a wide variety of sizes, from tiny grape-size types to giant beef steaks. The choice also depends on how you will use this verstaile fruit in the kitchen. Tomatoes do need vigilant care, as the crop is susceptible to pests and diseases. To avoid problems, choose disease-resistant cultivars whenever possible. Water generously the first few days that the tomato seedlings or transplants are in the ground. Water well throughout the growing season, about 2 inches per week during the summer. Water deeply for a strong root system. Watering in with a starter fertilizer solution will help get the roots off to a good start. If staking, use soft string or old nylon stocking to secure the tomato stem to the stake. It’s essential to remove the suckers (side stems) by pinching them off just beyond the first two leaves. If supporting tomatoes with a wire cage, suckers do not need to be removed. (This allows the plant to be more productive.) Where no mulch is used, cultivate shallowly to remove weeds while they are still small. The perfect tomato for picking will be firm and very red in color, regardless of size, with perhaps some yellow remaining around the stem. If you grow orange, yellow or any other color tomato, wait for the tomato to turn the correct color.
Never refrigerate fresh tomatoes. Doing so spoils the flavor and texture that make up that garden tomato taste.
Tomato cultivars can be classified according to their growth habit:
Here are a few varieties of tomatoes: