Terrific Tomatoes (Indoors)

Here is our easy to follow guide to growing great tasting tomatoes in a greenhouse or conservatory…

  1. There are lots of wonderful tomatoes to choose from. There are salad types such as Moneymaker, Alicante and Ailsa Craig, then there are delicious sweet cherry types such as Gardener Delight, or huge beefsteak tomatoes such as Big Boy and Marmande. You can even grow varieties like Tumbler in a hanging basket.
  2. The can be easily grown in a heated greenhouse, or conservatory, it is important to make sure the greenhouse is kept frost free.
  3. Large 10 inch pots are best, filled with tub and basket compost. Plant your tomatoes a little deeper than they were in the pot (unless you are trying our new grafted plants) and add a cane or a string to grow them up.
  4. If you prefer they can be planted in large grow bags, hozelock do a great grow bag watering system, which makes looking after them so easy.
  5. Only plant your tomatoes when the first flowers are opening on the little bunch of flower on the stem, which is called a truss.
  6. Either twist the string round the plant, or tie them to the cane to support them, and remove any side shoots.
  7. When you see the first tomatoes starting to form then it is time to start feeding your plants, we recommend Tomorite.
  8. Tomatoes are quite thirsty plants and should be kept moist, but never soaking wet. If you get cracked or split fruit then you are not watering often enough.
  9. When the fruit has fully formed carefully snap leaves off the plant to let the sun reach the fruit and help them to ripen.
  10. Make sure that you give your plants plenty of ventilation when the temperature is over 28C, they will also enjoy a good misting early in the morning to help set fruit.

Then enjoy your own tomatoes, we love ours picked fresh from the plant, still warm from the sun, sliced in a sandwich with butter, salt and black pepper… Delicious.

Never store tomatoes in the fridge as this destroys the flavour, they are better kept in a bowl to ripen fully.