Growing Cherry Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes have become very popular and quite rightly so.
There are those who say that cherry tomatoes have a superior taste than the medium sized fruiting and large beefsteak tomatoes but perhaps that is just personal preference. There is little doubt that they are perfect for use in a lunch box but there is a downside – they are very handy to pick as you are passing a plant and popping the ripe fruit into your moth and eating like sweets!
Grow cherry tomatoes as bushes rather than using the cordon method. The cordon method entails removing side shoots from the leaf joints resulting in a single stem bearing clusters of fruit known as trusses along that stem.
Sow seed in a warm place, propagator, airing cupboard or warm windowsill but if using the airing cupboard make sure that you check for germination regularly for germination and bring out into the light otherwise the result will be weak and leggy seedlings. Growing tomatoes from seed is not too difficult but if you do not have the room or facility to do this buy in young tomato plant varieties that are described as cherry type.
The other thing to look out for when buying tomato seed or tomato plants is whether they are recommended for outdoor growing or just for greenhouse cultivation.
One thing that can be said about cherry tomatoes is that there are several ways to grow them and most people with a little space can achieve results. For earlier cropping a greenhouse is ideal but there are varieties of cherry tomatoes that you can grow in the garden soil, in containers on the patio or backyard or in hanging baskets. Growing tomatoes upside down was thought of as a bit of a novelty but for those with very limited space who prefer home grown tomatoes this has been a great innovation.
When growing tomatoes in pots, growing tomatoes in containers generally and especially in hanging baskets, do remember that they need frequent and regular watering and feeding. They cannot go searching for water and nutrients and are relying on you the tomato gardener.
Growing TomatoesGrowing tomatoes is so rewarding. Not only good to look at but delicious to eat picked fresh from the vine!
Growing Tomato | Questions and Answers | Hints and Tips
By far the largest postbag of questions received is about tomatoes. There are still many more questions in the bag and I will attempt to answer them here, it may take a while to get through them all!
Gardening Tips | Best Tomatoes - Growing Tips
I have grown my own tomatoes for 30 years now and my grandfather led the way for more years than that. My family would not forgive me if I did not provide a crop each year.
