No tom to lose

Lift salads and sauces

SQUEEZE some tomato plants into your garden and enjoy super salads all summer long.

They hardly take up any space and can even thrive on a windowsill or in a hanging basket.

There are varieties to suit every taste, from sweet, cherry-size fruits to enormous beefsteaks that can be layered with mozzarella and basil.

Sow the seeds of outdoor varieties on a warm sill indoors and in six weeks, you will have young plants that are large enough to be put outside.

To serve all your needs, sow cherry-sized Losetto, Tropical Ruby – which produces baby plums – and the classic beefsteak Super Marmande.

If you want to wait until it is warmer and buy plants ready for the ground, check out mail order seed firms such as Marshalls, T&M and Suttons.

As well as popular varieties like Shirley and Moneymaker that garden centres tend to sell, you’ll find these specialists offer vintage or heirloom varieties that promise good flavour.

They come in a choice of colours, including yellow, brown and purple.

Sunny

Outdoor tomatoes need a warm sunny spot to do best but where there is no garden soil to plant, consider using growing bags. They usually hold two to three plants, which could produce a yield of 11-12 kilos of fruit.

A popular variety for growing bags is F1 Brandy Boy from Suttons that produces loads of large pink fruits up to 14cm across.

To be successful takes commitment. You need to be prepared to water them every day, often both in early morning and the evening.

Dry roots cause fruits to split and blossom end rot, which leads to black patches on the base of the fruits.

Tall cordon varieties will produce more than one shoot, so nip out any side shoots and pinch out the growing tip when five fruit trusses have set.

Only when the small fruits appear, is it time to start feeding.

Seaweed or comfrey feeds will help the fruits or you could use a feed that is rich in essential potassium.

Finally, before the fruits are ready to pick, remove any large leaves that are shielding them to increase airflow and minimise disease.