Tomato - ring culture

It is at this time of year that any space in greenhouses or pots is at a premium. Many veggies have been carefully raised from seed and potted on. The trouble with tender plants is that you have to make a judgement as to whether you think there is going to be a late frost or not. Hmmm! I have taken a gamble, although I still have others in the greenhouse.

I started my aubergines, chilli and tomato in the greenhouse in a propagator in January. These veggies are the ones that can really benefit from a longer growing season. Consequently most of my tomato plants in flowerpots are over a foot tall and already setting several trusses of fruit. I took the plunge yesterday and planted some of them outdoors as they were getting pot bound and lanky. You will notice in the above piccy that I have used what appears to be a flowerpot inside a growbag. This is called a 'ring culture'. Plants have two separate root systems, the long tap roots which go straight down deep are responsible for fetching and seeking water. It does not really matter if they go down into sand, or anything as long as they find water. The second set of roots are near the surface and they are responsible for finding nutrients. So these flowerpots have their bottoms cut out, I water the bottom part and feed the top part.

Varieties I am growing this year are: Tigerella, Marmande, Marglobe, Gardener's Delight, Ildi and Jubilee.