Eating Healthy for Life

Here are your 10 top tips on how to plant tomatoes.

1. It's all in the ground work so they say, a good hint is to rotate your soil during January and February. You will be surprised at how many insect eggs have been hidden in the ground during the winter and if you expose them to the frosts you hopefully will have fewer pests throughout the year.

2. Groundwork of your earth is essential. You can go the whole nine yards and test your soil for PH and insert chemicals or supplements correctly or you can insert some well rotten compost which typically is just as effective at balancing the soil out

3. Mulching your dirt is the best way of reducing the weeds surrounding your plants in addition to adding nutrients, keeping the soil warm and retaining moisture

4. If you are growing tomatoes from seed it is a good plan to choose an assortment so you have late and an early crop. In addition you can have cherry and plum ones These are ideal for creating sauces which will give you a magnificent crop which will see you through the season

5. Seedlings require sunlight and warmth to mature into healthy plants. Leggy seedlings can be planted deeply when planted up as this will allow them to produce stronger stems

6. When growing tomato plants do not fertilise your plants either too early or too much as you can set off a build up of chemicals in the plants leading to problems with leaves and fruit production. Simply start to add fertiliser after the plant starts to blossom and then only 1 each week

7. Diseases can certainly affect your vegetation if they are kept too moist or become infested. "Know the enemy and be prepared". Companion planting will stop some pests and is environmentally friendly

8. Supporting your tomatoes as they grow is important as tomatoes which aren't tend to become damaged leaving fruits trailing on the ground. Using either cages or stakes and strong but gentle ties will prevent damage and ensure a well supported and productive plant

9. Watering accurately is always a crisis, too much can lead to fruiting troubles too little can lead to fruiting troubles. Try not to allow the plants to dry out if they are in either pots or grow bags as when you do water them it will simply run off

10. When thinking of the finest tomato growing tips the most practical is probably the storing of your wonderful stock of tomatoes. This is worthwhile as well as cost effective. You can simply make sun dried tomatoes and thick rich sauces which you can freeze and utilize throughout the winter months reminding you of summer and tasting so much better than those bought at your local shop