Has anyone started their toms yet?

[smallblueplanet]

.... I want some action !
...

I think I know what you mean mrskp.


But yeah - me too! I know that its more difficult to keep the little ones going this early in the season (unless you've got heated ghouses) but thats half the fun too! It wouldn't be any good if they could just grow without us!

[mrskp]

i do have a heated g/h, but all the toms are still inside lol, i'm not sure i trust them on their own out of the house!!! lol

[bramble]

I started mine about 10 days ago, a whole mixture of varieties, but there are only 5 up so far. I put them in the conservatory in the daytime and bring them at night and lay all the trays down on the threadmill which i should be using in other ways. Anyway, its only for a short time.

[roitelet]

Iv'e sown Ledgend, Cerise (cherry toms) Moneymaker and Ferline. The Cerise are just showing and as the seed was pre-germinated I don't think that it will be long before I see the others. They are in the house for the moment and will have to be 'put and took' (in and out) when I run out of space inside.

[mrs Q]

i read with interest!!!!!

well,well! what a lot to take in!
this is my first time as a veggie grower & boy have i got a lot to learn! PHEW!
i shall read with interest on a daily basis and follow in other veggie growers footsteps.
however my tomato seeds are in and all is crossed! two days now and nothing! patience mrs Q.

[shirlthegirl43]

Welcome to the vine mrs q. Look forward to reading about your gardening experiements!

I have 3 brandywine seedlings just getting their first proper leaves on the kitchen windowsill. I have one Bolivian Rainbow pepper seedling with first true leaves too. No success with my Big Jim's for the competition though.

[bramble]

hi Shirl, would'nt worry about your Big Jims. theres plenty of time yet. When did you sow them? pepper seed can take an awful lot of time to germinate especially if they do not have enough heat. Anyway, you have plenty of time to sow more. once the spring gets really started and there are more sun and daylight hours you won't be able to stop them.

[wellie]

I guess we all get that 'little bit more adventurous' every year ! And isn't it lovely?! I find it really exciting to try out different varieties of tomatoes. And when you cost it out, I know a packet of seeds does actually cost pennies, but in the wider scale of things, it's not anywhere near what a decent supply of real/tasty tomatoes from a proper vegetable shop (not supermarket) would cost you through the growing season.

I'm afraid I must be in the minority here, because my Tigarella's haven't germinated TWICE now, and so I'm going to 'bin them'. They were free, and I'm way to busy to try a third time because I've got lots of healthy seedlings to attend to.
On a different scale, I've only had one other casualty: one Caro Rich seedling, which keeled over when about 2" high in its own 3" pot. All the other varieties are looking extremely healthy.

I sowed one seed of each variety in January, and in about 2 weeks time, I'm going to sow one more seed of each variety, so I've got a bit of successional cropping going on, or not if they catch up with the first lot, which sometimes happens ! (One seed of each because I've cadged 'a veritable buffet of seeds' off a client of mine so that I've got a real diversity of form and variety this year).
I find it really interesting to see the different varieties growing side by side, and they are so beautiful in their own rite.... Why should flowers just be the pretty ones?!

[shirlthegirl43]

hi Shirl, would'nt worry about your Big Jims. theres plenty of time yet. When did you sow them? pepper seed can take an awful lot of time to germinate especially if they do not have enough heat. Anyway, you have plenty of time to sow more. once the spring gets really started and there are more sun and daylight hours you won't be able to stop them.

Did 2 a few weeks ago in the propogator, got them to sprout then planted them but nothing further happening. Planted 2 more singly in 3" pots last week and they are sitting on the kitchen windowsill. They will either grow or not grow - I have more to try anyway. Glad I started early or I would have been getting worried!

When I re-pot my brandywines, am I right saying I hold them by the seed leaves and bury them to the seed leaves too? Never grown toms from seeds before.

[Biscombe]

Gone crazy here a usual!! dont know where im going to put these beauties!! I re potted half of them yesterday!

Tomato Black Prince
Tomato Black Marv
Tomato Monkey Ass
Tomato Speckled Roma
Tomato Ace
Tomato Alsia Craig
Tomato Amish Paste
Tomato Bananna Legs
Tomato Big Rainbow
Tomato Big White Stripes
Tomato Bulls Heart
Tomato Bulls Heart Orange
Tomato Cherokee Green
Tomato Cherokee Purple
Tomato Fuzzy Peach
TomatoGerman Red Strawberry
Tomato Hungarian Italian Paste
Tomato Italian Giant Pear
Tomato Polish Ellis
Tomato Principe Borghese
Tomato Reif Italian Heart
Tomato Rio Grande
Tomato Roma VF
Tomato Roman Candle
Tomato Pink Ping Pong
Tomato San Marzano
Tomato Striped Cavern
Tomato Sungold
Tomato White Wonder
Tomato Zomok
Tomato 42 Days
Tomato Mule Team
Tomato Alicante
Tomato Rose Beauty
Tomato Heinz

[shirlthegirl43]

Hmm, I get the impression you like tomatoes!

[wellie]

no.... THAT'S a veritable buffet Biscombe !
What posessed you to grow quite so many varieties?!

[Hazel at the Hill]

Can I confess that I've only ever HEARD of 3 of biscombe's list?!

[Jan]

As a newby I've gone for the 'demure approach' and am growing just 3-4 plants each of a yellow and red salad variety, 3 tumbling toms in hanging baskets and 6-8 plants of roma since we like them for soups/sauces. Have started them off yesterday in pots and found a wonderful deep polystyrene box which flowers were delivered in to use with shredded newspaper as a 'hot box' to germinate toms, peppers, and aubergines - hope it works OK

[Jan]

what a great job - getting paid to name varieties like monkey's ass! I'd love to get my hands on some of the more exotic ones next year just for the fun of writing up the labels - well done Biscomb