It’s time to sow tender veggies
It’s time to shine for beans and tomatoes, says Ruth
The sowing season is well underway and we are now at the stage when it’s safe to start your less hardy vegetables. So this week I have been preoccupied with French and runner beans and tomatoes which are set to go outside on a sunny patio, rather than in the greenhouse.
Sow seeds for tomatoes for the garden later than those destined for the greenhouse or polytunnel because the few weeks of extra time gives the soil and air temperature time to warm up for them.
Remember that the ancestors of our modern toms came from South America, while runner beans hail from Central America, so the cold, wet start to our growing season does them no favours.
Tomatoes are easy to start (though they can be beset by pests and blight later in the season) and this year I’ve been using a mixture of commercial seeds and homesaved seeds from a few flavour-packed heritage fruits we’ve bought locally and loved. In the column, right, I show you how to save and sow tomato seeds. Once the seedlings have grown to 2-3in (5-7cm) high and developed their first ‘proper’ leaves they can be moved to individual pots or large modules.
Grow them somewhere cool and light before hardening them off and planting them in growbags or large pots in a sunny, sheltered spot outside.