[GrannieAnnie]

I put my first tomatoes in 3" pots on 9th March, but nothing showing yet.  I can't remember how long they took to germinate last year  They are in greenhouse under fleece, but I ran out of gas in heater after only 2 nights and can't afford to get anymore.

Have i killed them?  My courgettes which I planted afterwards but are on kitchen windowsill are coming up nicely.

[Heather_S]

I had to check my calendar... I planted my tomato seeds on the 13th and they only came up a day or two ago and that was indoors on a windowsill. Maybe give it another day or two.

[John]

Can't you get them started in the house? I start my tomatoes in 3" pots and get more than enough seedlings from each pot (1 variety per pot)

Of course, I then cook the seedlings in the propagator and have to start again.. D'OH!

[becky]

Hi there, I put my toms in a propagator, and they germinated in just over a week!

[GrannieAnnie]

no spare money for propagators, unless I can talk OH into taking me to nearest Aldi to see if they've got any of those cheap ones someone was talking about, and now I've got a greenhouse, OH doesn't want anything in the house, unlike last year when they were on every windowsill!!!  Mind you, saying that, I do have my herbs, some courgettes and aubergines on kitchen windowsill!! lol

[GrannieAnnie]

PS, just spied the first little tomatoes popping up through the compost.  They are so tiny as yet.  Also my big pots with carrots and spring onions in are just coming up, 4 courgettes and I was wondering about the melons and cucumbers, so got a pot and just raked aside a little bit of compost, and there was a little green shot, so covered it up again quickly!!!

When we bought the cheap stuff from the nursery my friend worked in, she gave me some packets of lupins and Sweet Peas that they'd harvested themselves.  Well, both are doing well, I've put them in strips and hopefully will be able to sell some out the front if they do well, but I've just noticed that the silly so and so's have only mixed sweet peas and lupin seeds together, so in the sweet pea strips I've got lupins as well!!!!

[Rural Living]

Hi all, On the subject of tomatoes I was wondering what methods people are using to grow tomatoes. I mainly use ring culture, not because I have problems with diseases, but I find if I am away for a day or two the plants tend to be alright water wise, whereas with the grow bags they tend to need watering more often. Be interested to know what system other people use. John

[John]

Last year I grew in grobags in the greenhouse and plastic grow houses. Rather than plant directly into the bag, I use bottomless pots filled with compost on the growbag, which effectively doubles the soil.

I'm hoping to use my new, much more spacious greenhouse (when it's built) and go directly into the borders.

[GrannieAnnie]

The year before last I grew in growbags, not a bad crop, last year when I got my bigger greenhouse I grew in the border soil which hadn't been touched for years, got loads of tomatoes, chopped and froze over 40lbs for pasta sauces and lost the lot when our big freezer broke down!  This year, hopefully everything will go in the polytunnel if we move to the nursery!

[lentil987]

I usually grow tomatoes in big pots, one plant to a pot in grow more compost. I usually get a bumper crop. This year I am planting them in the soil in my new allotment so I hope to get an even better crop.

[GrannieAnnie]

Yippee, I was busy yesterday, so didn't get out into the greenhouse, but went out there this morning, and almost all of the first tomatoes I planted are through and growing as I watch them!!!  Well, seems that way!!  The plum tomatoes are not showing yet, but the spanish ones and the big boy and another one are through.   So I'm not so worried about them now!

[tublet]

:shock:  hi All,
I have toms seedlings in fibre pots on a south facing window sill, thats where i propogated them. They are begining to look rather pale,do they need feeding???
Also i`m finding the fibre pots are drying out very  fast any ideas. Thanks tublet

[John]

Well I don't know if I'm qualified to advise - my tomatoes are not doing well at all for some reason this year! I wouldn't use fibre pots for tomatoes - but now you have, plant the fibre pot into a larger pot and keep moist would be my course.

Good Luck!

[tublet]

hi, thanks for your reply will try out your advise. tublet

[lentil987]

I plant all my tomatoes in fibre pots. They do need alot of watering and plenty of light, I never feed the tomatoes until they start flowering. The fibre pots come in different sizes I use the biggish ones. If you have bought the smaller ones you might need to plant on into bigger pots. You can usually tell when you need to plant them on as their roots come through the bottom and side of the pot.