Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Tomato Seedlings and Garlic Growing Update

Spring has Sprung! The days are getting longer and we are coming out of the dark and gloomy... I'm really excited about getting back into the garden! Here's a shot of my tomato seedlings at 13 days.


I am growing a number of heirloom varieties from seed and am hoping they turn out well. Last year I started seeds in late April and the tomatoes ripened too late in the season. I am re-using old containers from salad greens to sprout the seeds - this will be their home for about a month until they grow "true" leaves and are ready to be transplanted to their own pots.

Remember last October when I planted some Red Russian garlic with my Pyrex Delphite's help?


After five months in the soil, protected with leaf mulch, here's how they look now. In July they will be ready to be pulled up and dried for use. Did you know this hardneck garlic variety can keep for 3-6 months if properly stored??



If you would like to know more about how these humble plants started, make sure to check out my Growing Garlic tutorial from October!
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8 comments:

  1. ScarlettMarch 24, 2011 at 12:58 AM

    I really should get some seeds on the go, my tomato plants did well last year so need to get organised - or i may just cheat and buy some plants :o) Scarlett x

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  2. KylieMarch 24, 2011 at 1:41 AM

    nothing tastes better than home grown tomatoes ,ours are long gone but we are still cooking with our own garlic, only a little left though.
    next month is time to plant new crop I will check out your tute.

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  3. Loo xx from Jumbles and PompomsMarch 24, 2011 at 6:15 AM

    Oooh, will definitely check out the garlic growing tutorial!

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  4. pauladMarch 24, 2011 at 9:12 AM

    ok, i'm officially inspired! i am going to go out and get some soil and seeds today!!
    did you extract your own seeds for the heirloom tomatoes or do you get them at a store?

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  5. SixBalloonsMarch 24, 2011 at 9:28 AM

    Nothing wrong at all with growing plants from seedlings! I might be buying a few this year too to try different varieties...

    paulad, I planted 4 varieties, one of which I saved seeds from my Cherokee Purple tomato plant from last year. The others I purchased as seed. The Cherokee Purple plant was bought as a seedling and I loved it!

    Let me know if you enjoy these garden updates; if so, I'll keep you up to date on what's "growing" on. :)

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  6. beetreeMarch 24, 2011 at 12:28 PM

    I am growing Cherokee Purple too! :) And 2 other heirloom varieties. We must've started about the same time, because our little sprouts look about the same. We also have some purple bells and jalapenos started at the same time, but they are a lot more bashful- we have yet to see them. :( Do you have any tips for heirlooms- last year I failed miserably with them. Hoping this year will be my year!

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  7. ChelseaMarch 24, 2011 at 1:59 PM

    Very cool! I sometimes grow from seed, sometimes just rely on my volunteers from last year, and most of the time get lazy and buy heirloom starts. Cherokee purple is one of my favorites. I actually just blogged about my other favorites today...red zebra, sungold, silver tiger, etc.

    It must be that time of year when we have tomatoes on the mind!

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  8. SixBalloonsMarch 24, 2011 at 2:18 PM

    I planted the seeds on March 7th and aside from the Cherokee Purple, I have Sungold, Amish Paste Roma, Taxi, and Prudens Purple. The PP's are not cooperating but all others are ok. I have my fingers crossed! I'm excited to try Sungold.

    I also planted Gypsy Pepper the same day and they took much longer to germinate. They started to poke out on Day 14 I would say.

    Thanks for the comments!

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