Spring is almost here and many gardeners will be happy to finally get out into the garden to begin planting. One important plant that can be sowed now is tomatoes.
It can be extremely rewarding to get big red tomatoes on a vine in the summer, but this crop can often be challenging to grow.
However, Monty Don has shared that the best way to sow tomatoes is to plant them in February but then plant more later on in the year as a backup.
On his website, Monty said: “I like to sow tomatoes in two batches, the first in February and another in March or even April both to stagger the harvest and as an insurance against bad weather.
“I scatter the seed thinly on the surface of peat-free compost in a seed tray and then very lightly covering them either with a layer of more compost or of vermiculite.
“Water them well and put them in a warm spot to germinate.”
Tomatoes need the soil to be 18C to germinate, so get ready to plant them in late February if you have a greenhouse or late March if you plan to grow them outside.
It is also possible to put them in pots and place them on a warm windowsill but will need to be covered in order to make their environment as humid.
Once the seedlings begin to appear, make sure to uncover them and expose them to as much light as possible to make sure they get the best chance to grow.
The best way to ensure tomato seedlings grow properly is to ensure they get plenty of bright light, as if they do not get sufficient lighting they will grow weak with less fruit and be more susceptible to disease.
Monty said: “When the seedlings emerge make sure that they have as much light as possible.”
When the tomato seedling grows its first true leaves, which are the second set of leaves after their seed leaves, then it is time to transfer them to bigger containers.
Monty said: “When they develop their first pair of ‘true’ leaves – that is to say leaves, however small, that are recognisably a tomato rather than the ones that grow initially.
“You know that the have roots and should be pricked out into better compost and individual pots or plugs to grow on into young plants ready to plant out in May.”
It is essential to make sure to plan ahead so that your tomato seedlings have enough space, a warm environment and plenty of sunlight to ensure you get big bountiful harvests later on in the summer.