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08-05-2006, 11:50 AM posted to uk.rec.gardening

wrote:
Cat(h) wrote:

Ron Clark wrote:
On 3 May 2006 08:36:50 -0700, "Cat(h)" wrote this
(or the missive included this):

Thanks for these words of comfort :-) I have visions of starting to
crop around the end of September... just perfect for a marvelous recipe
I have for green tomato relish :-)) Seriously, I have been discouraged
by cold weather and lack of time, but how soon should I have started to
germinate those seeds on window sills to be able to have a decent
summer crop? Am I as late as I think I am?

Probably. Save 3-5 weeks, buy some plants from a garden shed.

Good suggestion. I'll probably do a bit of both, and keep the rest of
the seeds for earlier planting next year.

I saw some Alicante tomtoes in Johnstown Garden Centre a few days after
Easter. I have 5 Sungold seedlings spare (I got 15 seeds in a packet
and needed 10 plants and managed to grow all 15) so I have 5 to spare
but do not know how to get them to you. I guess I would wait though
until June. The weather is dire just now and tomatoes need heat. To
be honest, I thijnk you need luck with teh weather to do them outdoors
here. Pick the sunniest and most sheltered corner you can find and
wait a bit. If you do it from seeds, start them indoors in a sunny
window.

Des in windy rainy Dublin

thanks Des, that's very kind of you.
I was in the Johnstown Garden Centre on Friday evening, and bought a
few plants - incidentally, I also hit a kerb rather hard trying to
negotiate my way back towards Kildare through the roadworks, and ended
up waiting for over an hour for the kindly AA man to come and get the
wheel off my car (why do they insist on welding them on???)
Anyhoo, I got a few different varieties, with emphasis on cherry size
tomatoes - which I love and eat like sweets. I got Gardener's delight,
Shirley, Pixie Orange, and Totem. I hope at least some of those will
give me good results. I planted them in grow bags and up against my
shed wall which will give them shelter and maximise heat reverberated
from the sun. I lovingly fed them tomato feed. When they're big
enough, I will tie them up with strings to the shed's rafters After
that, inch Allah!
As of this morning, they looked happy enough, after a very sunny week
end.
I haven't sown any of my seeds, because I dont have enough well
sheltered space to grow them on outside.
But I did sow salsify ( a fab veg to eat, and dead easy to grow, does
well in our climate), lambs lettude, radishes and planted some brussels
sprout plants!
Here's hoping I'll get edible and red tomatoes before November :-)!

Cat(h)