We put a lot of time, effort, and care into growing our Speciality Tomatoes, which is – we believe – why they’re so delicious! From San Marzano to Green Tiger, we have a wide variety of Tomatoes, all grown right here in Britain. In this post, discover more about our process, from planting to picking!
November
Planting starts in November of each year. As we grow our Speciality Tomatoes inside our glasshouses, we don’t need to worry about cold temperatures disrupting growth as we have full control of our climate! At this stage, we add our unique mix of nutrients to the water, ensuring each seedling has just the right amount.
December
We introduce bees into our glasshouses, who pollinate the plants and help them to grow. By the end of this month, we start to see the first fruits setting!
January
As the days begin to get longer, the plants start to grow. We love this stage as we can finally see how the tomatoes are turning out! During this time, we encourage the plants to grow upwards by taking off the side shoots.
February
By Valentine’s Day, we start to pick our first crop of fruits. This is where very important taste-testing comes in; we can adjust the feed if needs be. We continually measure the ‘brix’ (or sweetness) level of the tomatoes – this makes sure we are growing the most delicious produce! Did you know, our Baby Plum Tomatoes are sweeter than strawberries?
The picking process carries on through to the beginning of November.
March / April
It’s Tomato season! By springtime, we are ready to sell our Speciality Tomatoes; they are available to buy via our online shop or at our stockists around the country.
August
It’s time to take the tops off of the plants to stop them from growing any longer. This encourages any remaining fruit on the plant to colour up.
October
We will have almost finished picking all of the fruit by the end of October. At this stage, the plant will be more than 40ft long – which is longer than an articulated lorry! We remove all old plants from our glasshouse and completely wash down and sterilise everything, ready for re-planting in November!
