I have to admit that I’m not a great tomato grower and so to improve my knowhow and to find the best tasting tomato to grow next year, I headed off with fellow tomato lover, Lucy, for an afternoon of tomato tasting at Victoriana Nursery near Ashford in Kent. And what a great afternoon we had. Not only did we get to sample 30 different varieties, but we picked up some incredibly useful tomato growing tips from the nursery too.
Stephen Shirley (above) was a great host and talked through the many aspects of growing tomatoes at Victoriana Nursery. Although all of the tomatoes at the nursery are grown in Polytunnels, many of the seeds they sell can be grown both indoors and out.
So onto the tasting….Lucy and I loved ‘Egyptian’, a lovely rich tasting plum tomato, but I was disappointed to find that this variety could only be grown indoors. Stephen pointed out that Isabel from Fennel & Fern, has her own recipe for sun-dried tomatoes, using this variety, so I may have to coax my Dad to grow these for me next year in his greenhouse!
More up my street was ‘Shirley’s Pixie’, a tomato that Stephen described as idiot proof. Good grown inside or out and also a short day tomato variety, which means it can be bought inside in autumn and will continue to crop until Christmas. Amazing!
Extremely tasty too were the bush variety ‘Outdoor Girl’-a very early small salad size fruit, ‘Sungold’– a very sweet and delicious orange coloured cherry tomato (which I’ve grown successfully before), ‘Harry’s Italian Plum’– a tasty plum variety that I can grow outdoors, and the chunky ‘Black Krim’ (above)-with a very rich and meaty flesh inside this cracking exterior – fruits can weigh upto 8 oz each!
Unless a bush variety, all tomatoes are grown in the nursery as cordons (above) for optimum fruiting. For cordon growing, the central stem is encouraged to grow, tied into a tall post and most of the side shoots (except the ones forming flowers for fruiting!) are pinched out. Stephen removes all lower leaves to reduce the risk of the plants developing tomato blight, and drenches the plants with water once a day, after lunchtime as the temperature rises. For more detailed information on bush and cordon growing, watering, removing side shoots, tying in, collecting seeds etc, Stephen has a few short (10 mins) films which are really worth watching. No. 1 is here, no. 2 is here and lastly no. 3 is here
Popped round to see a neighbour, and enthusiastic tomato grower, David soon after my visit to the nursery, and he grows all his tomatoes outdoors in the ground as cordons to great effect. Definitely will give this method a go next year.
Back at the nursery, I asked Stephen why some of my fruit had developed ‘Blossom end rot’ in my pot grown outdoor tomatoes. Was this down to my poor watering habits (sometimes watering no-times a day regime)? Stephen cheered me up by saying that it could well be down to the nutrient make up in the tomato growbags I use. Not a fan of bought growbags, most need lime added to reduce the acidity of the soil. Acidity of the soil has a huge effect on fertility because it controls how available nutrients are to your crops and ‘Blossom end rot’ is down to a lack of available Calcium during the growing process. My poor watering habits don’t help either, so next year I think I’ll stick to my own home-grown compost, grow plants in the ground to reduce the risk of the roots drying out and train the plants as cordons for a larger crop. Could this be the end to my tomato growing problems?
P.s. Have a look at the Chateau de la Bourdaisiere for some more exciting tomatoes. A veritable tomato heaven with 630 varieties growing!
P.P.S Favourite tomato varieties in 2015
Your background of beans prompts me to report that we ate beans from our Blackstock Triangle Gardeners bag, beside my London front door, for dinner last night, and they were delicious. The bean plants grew into a beautiful tower with orange and white flowers and all I did was water what I was given. I feel more than rewarded, and inspired by the ease of it all, and by the scrumptiousness of the crop. More vegetables here we come! Maybe tomatoes next.
What a great day! Would have loved to go to Tomato day. Always good to taste varieties to decide on which to grow next year. Interesting that they remove all the bottom leaves of the plant. If anything, growing tomatoes for the first time this year, I was not prepared for just how tall they become. I need better supports, as mine are tumbling. Especially now with the weight of the fruit. Watering is a constant battle. They lap it up almost immediately. Stephen’s daily watering is probably absolutely correct though not always possible…!
Thought I’d cracked the blight issue this year by cutting off growing shoot early to get the tomatoes growing and ripening before blight struck. Have harvested at least half successfully so far. Went to West Dean Gardens near Chichester at the w/e and was speechless with admiration at the 100% perfect veg gardens there. Exemplary specimens of all types of veg and fruit. Well worth a visit.
Hi Petra, Nicolette, Rosey and Mo. Yes, it was a great way to choose the varieties I plan on growing next year, rather than just leafing through a catalogue (although I rather enjoy doing this too!). West Dean Gardens is somewhwere I’ve wanted to visit for years, and Rosey, you have just inspired me to get my act together and see if I can’t make it down there this week.Thanks for all your comments. Naomi
It sounds like a great day out, although the tasting would be lost on me as I don’t like ‘raw’ tomatoes 🙂 We grow ours much the same way.
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Does anyone know of anyway I can obtain seeds of “Shirley’s Pixie” tomato?
I live in the states.
[…] at Out of My Shed goes to the most exciting-looking tomato tasting […]
[…] always worthwhile seeking out local nurseries who hold tasting days at the end of summer. A visit to Victoriana Nursery back in 2011 (in Ashford in kent) was a great way to find out which varieties I might like to grow, and […]