They take time to mature, so get a move on, says Ruth
One of the easiest (and most satisfying) ways of saving money is, of course, to grow your own fruit and veg, so this week I’m starting to sow tomatoes and chillies. The tomatoes will come from some heritage variety seeds I saved last year, and the chilli seeds will come from chillies bought from our local market for cooking purposes.
I’m also experimenting by planting a whole tomato in a pot of compost. It is a homegrown ‘Tigerella’ that lay forgotten and over-ripe in a drawer, and I’m hoping for lots of seedlings in one fell swoop! The reason we sow tomatoes and chillies this early in the year is to give them plenty of time to grow and crop, because they are both slow to mature - indeed, some of the hottest chillies take months to ripen. Another Try growing from supermarket chilli seeds bonus is that if sown over several weeks from late winter, you will get an extended harvest period.
However, because they are tender plants and hate our cold climate, we need to germinate the seeds somewhere warm. I have used a sunny, south-facing bedroom window with great success, as well as a simple electric propagator with bottom heating.
The main things to remember are to keep the compost damp, but not sodden, and once seedlings germinate make sure they have adequate ventilation to avoid fungal diseases such as damping off, which can wreck an entire batch of plants. Once the seedlings are large enough to handle they can be potted on individually, and I will be covering this when my plants are ready!
Growing tomatoes and chillies
1Sow a few chilli seeds into pots of damp seed compost. Seal the pot in a plastic bag and place it somewhere light and warm until seedlings appear, keeping the compost damp throughout.
2 Grow your tomato seedlings on a warm, light windowsill and pot them on when they are large enough to handle safely.
