Early Tomato Sowing and Growing thread - poll added please vote

[Flummery]

Good! 'Cos I can't think of an equally witty reply!

[bobleponge]

2nd T+M Sungold appeared this morning. 6 out of 16

[maytreefrannie]

Result!

Just saw the first tiny tiny piece of green showing!!!

[bazzaboy]

so far so good...

Prompted by this early thread I've sown stuff much earlier than usual but with some success so far:

Not the best photo below - sorry, none too sure of this part of the process at the mo - but with the assistance of heated window-sill propagator and a few hours per day of added electro-light the following currently look healthy:

Toms: Herald, Pearl, MoneyMaker, BigBoy
Peppers/Chillies: Sunnybrook, Ring O Fire, California Wonder

The challenge is now to keep 'em alive and growing until the temperatures and daylight hours increase...

No show yet, despite identical administrations, from: Habanero, Twilight, Japapeno.

No show yet either from unheated greenhouse modules planted immediately after Christmas but it has been exceptionally cold so I simply protected them from freezing and they can do their own thing as and when (includes onion, sweetpea, early pea, broad beans etc).

Meantime sprouting seeds on indoor windowsills offers all the seedling and greenstuff I need just now for stir-fries etc.

So it seems to be working OK and I stand the chance, with the extra heating, lighting, time etc, of cropping tomatoes in the summer for under £100 each....

b.

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

1 Pigletwillie French Black tomato germinated today. No sign of chillis/peppers

[jimbojetset]

So what next? I've got some germinated tomato seedlings, how warm do i need to keep them? Can I get them into the cold frame? At least tomorrow when this cold snap mercifully ends!?

[pigletwillie]

A minimum of 10 degrees C. Dont get them much warmer though otherwise you will just have spindly plants due to poor light levels.

Mine get sown in mid February and once germinated go into the home greenhouse at 10 degrees C till they go into the tunnels in mid April bearing the first truss of flowers and or small fruit..

[di]

Ooooh...I'm all excited.Just as I was about to give up hope,this morning noticed 2 little Beefsteak,1 Gobstopper &the most surprising 1 Moneymaker(I must make a confession to committing the worst of all growing sins & having a little search around the soil for signs of anything happened...but only with the MM!!)

Going to start off some strawberries either Tues or Weds.

[starloc]

I planted some tomatoes back at the end of november, planted in root-riot coir cubes , kept under 600w of metal halide and 600w of sodium lights, in 28C room
The seeds germinated rapidly, i have no photos of back then, when the roots came out of the cubes, i planted the cubes into 2 Litre plastic bag pots with 30% perlite mixed with BQ compost

This is what they look like now, they are kept 2meters under the lights, fed with fito tomato feed, now just a foot tall

Im not sure what variety they are as when i repotted i lost the tag for them, i planted 4 of each, these seeds are all the same type, either yellow pear/cherry bell or costoluto fiorentino or riesentraube , no idea which

picture taken today so there about 45 days old, should they be bigger? i have never grown tomatoes ever as i dont eat them!

[smallblueplanet]

...I planted some tomatoes back at the end of november, planted in root-riot coir cubes , kept under 600w of metal halide and 600w of sodium lights, in 28C room...

Blimey that's 1.2kw per hour of electricity? Seems a lot of kit for a few early toms!?

[BrideXIII]

well if the kits is being used for other stuff too, i don't think its a problem, besides, i am sure Starloc pays their own electricity bill

some people are actually interested in growing things all year round, to see if it can be done, and if its worth it, .

they look pretty good to me starloc, but then this is my first year growing from seed too, the proof will be in the eating when they set fruit and ripen i guess, how much earlier/ still as tasty ?

keep us up to date on them won't you?

[bramble]

He4althy looking plant but very advanced for this time of year. You are going to make sure they get as much natural light as possible. Let us know when the first flower buds appear, and good luck.

[starloc]

It is a lot of electric for a few tomatoes, especialy when i dont eat them!

The police came to visit me most weeks between august and november as they didnt believe it was just normal plants in the house! , i would imagine they will come back again as it does look a little suspicious!, especialy in Liverpool

Its mainly for the citrus plants ,i have loads of citrus plants

Theres also a good number of strawberry ,pepper and chilli plants as well, i just grow most things with the lights as they are there so i might as well squash things in between them, it is too warm during the day for a lot of seed grown plants i think , 28C down to 15C at night, ive been having a few problems with growing seeds of normal non tropical plants.

[smallblueplanet]

It is a lot of electric for a few tomatoes, especialy when i dont eat them!

it is too warm during the day for a lot of seed grown plants i think , 28C down to 15C at night, ive been having a few problems with growing seeds of normal non tropical plants.

Have you tried aubergines, they'd like the heat.

[maytreefrannie]

All the early tomatoes sown on 27th December now showing little shoots.