Story: Tomatoes
Episode: 7
Presenter: Trevor Cochrane
Air Date: 26th September 2020

Tomatoes are incredibly good for you and having one of them in your diet daily can make a massive difference to your overall health. What better way to get them into your diet than to grow your own?

• The red substance in tomatoes is a phytochemical called lycopene which is believed to have antioxidant and cancer fighting properties.
• Tomatoes grow best in full sun with free draining soil. Make sure you’ve enriched the soil with compost to improve microbial life and moisture retention.
• A range of varieties with different coloured and different sized fruit makes for an interesting basket every time you go to harvest.
• Each colour has different phytochemicals in them, all of them being incredibly good for cellular health.
• After your tomatoes have started to grow, you should select the two strongest seedlings and remove the rest.
• Add some fertiliser within a week of planting them. A liquid feed fortnightly using Powerfeed will do them the world of good.
• Control insects using yellow sticky traps. Hang them strategically around the plants and any thrips, mites and fruit fly will be caught before they get to your tomato plant.
• In about 6 to 8 weeks, you’ll see fruit coming through and you’ll be able to start harvesting. In cooler locations, the plant will continue to produce fruit until February or March.