5 Tips For Growing Your Own Tomatoes, According To A Gardening Expert

Supermarkets in the UK are limiting their stock of fresh fruit and vegetables due to shortages of items such as tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers.

Lidl, Tesco, Aldi, Asda and Morrisons are among the supermarkets to ban shoppers due to empty shelves.

Retailers believe that the problems are related to low production in the continent and North Africa, and that inventory levels will improve in the coming days or weeks. Meanwhile, Tom Bradshaw, vice-chairman of the National Farmers Union, said dependence on imports had left the UK vulnerable to "climate shock".

According to Bradshaw, England has come to "control the products we make".

With that in mind , The Independent asked Alice Vincent, author of the critically acclaimed How to Grow Plants: Easy, Stress-Free Gardening for Beginners and Roots , Reclaiming Life, tips on how to speed up your own growth at home. . Tomato. .

Before you start, you should consider whether you want to grow bushes or tomatoes. Tree tomatoes are suitable for small plots or if you plan to grow them in a container - they work well with scooters and do not need a lot of pruning; You can even teach people who are left behind. Cordon tomatoes are tall - they grow up to two meters - and have particularly long stems. They are great if you have a greenhouse, a sunny back wall, or limited floor space, but they require more effort.
If you want to grow tomatoes from seed, now is the time to start. Tomatoes are used when they start a small head, and as the vernal equinox approaches, the days are getting longer, so they will appear soon. If you don't have a seed pot, you can use small flower pots or yogurt cups. If possible, cover well with peat-free seed compost, compost and water, placing three or four seeds on top of the soil if possible. Then place the items or containers in a clear plastic bag to protect them from heat and moisture. If you have a heated diffuser, you can use that instead. Tomatoes need warmth to germinate or sprout and germinate, ideally around 18ºC and good daylight. A sunny window is a great place.
After a few weeks there will be seedlings, and if you sow the seed in a container, you need to plant it in a pot or place it in a large container. This is best done when the plant has two true leaves - large, ribbed leaves rather than small rounded cotyledons. The most important thing in tomatoes is not to damage the stem. Prepare large compost bins as before, water well, then make a hole in the center with your finger. Use a pencil to gently touch the bottom of the seedling to dig out the seed and root, then carefully lift the seedling from one of the right leaves and place it in the hole in the new pot. Cover and water well. Place them in a clear and sunny place and water well. They need a temperature of around 16ºC, so if necessary, keep them in a plastic bag greenhouse.
Your seedlings will be full plants next month. When you start to notice the appearance of flower buds, you can move it to the last place. Tomatoes are soil demanding plants. As a rough guide, two plants make a lifetime bag (lifetime bags are great for growing edible plants because you can reuse them later). Whether planting in the ground or in a container, be sure to use the best peat-free compost you can find, this will encourage growth and keep the plant in a well-watered, sunny location. If you are growing cordon tomatoes, prune them and start pulling out the side shoots. Tree tomatoes do not need to remove side shoots, so pinch them when you need them or when the plant seems to need support.
As soon as your plants have finished flowering, they will begin to produce fruit, which is a critical time for fertilizing. Use a high potassium feed or tomato feed every few weeks and always feed into moist soil when using liquid feed.

Alice Vincent's new book Why Women Grow Up: Stories of Land, Sisterhood and Survival is now available through Canongate Books.