newbie gardener

savingmummy

On 12th April we are moving to a brand house which is also our first:j
I am VERY keen to grow my own tomatoes and hopefully progress to other things once i get the knack!

This morning i recieved a pack of salad leaves seeds and am wondering what size pot i will need for these?
On the pack it does not state what size container or anything but does say they can be used as pot growers.

Also i would like to start tomatoes asap and was wondering if there any varieties of plants that are easy to look after (ie, for dummies):D

Farway

Salad leaves are normally "cut & come again" That is you do not pull them up to eat, just cut the tops off and let them grow more. You will find them as "living salads" in some grocer shops

Just sow a some in any pot, if you have a family of 15 who love salads then a huge pot, if only 2 people & one hates "rabbit food" then a small pot [say 6 inch]

Sow some more in a fortnight to keep a crop always to hand

Tomatoes, as a beginner you should stick to "bush" type, they need no staking or thinning of side shoots, just water & warmth generally. The seed packet may refer to them as "determinate". The other taller ones are referred to as "indeterminate" so avoid these for this year

As to variety, for me Tornado is fool proof [but not cheap], or you could keep your eyes open for what are often called "patio" ones, these are mostly small cheery toms, can be grown in hanging baskets or pots, but if in containers then watering could be a problem when you go on holiday

Really just look at the seeds and choose what you fancy, red, yellow, large or small fruit

evie451

Savingmummy you will really enjoy it, i just started off with wanting make my own salads and now i do chillis, toms, aubergines, leeks, potatoes, straws, blueberries, rasps etc etc......hehe its pretty addictive......

i got salad planters my first year which are only about 5/6inches deep and theywork great seems to be fine for lettuce leaves although you might need a bit deeper for the ones that heart up like an iceberg, i dont find them very tasty so i just go for leaves.....

Straws are really hardy and its brilliant for kids to see how they grow from the pretty white flower, my DS was fascinated......Peas were good for that too and had the plus of the fussy eater wandering the garden stuffing his face!

Toms are not too hard, they come in 3 sorts (plese correct me here experts!) cordon, bush and indeterminate i think, I find that the bush sort are a bit easier on time as they remain pretty low growing and you dont need to remove foliage etc but i think they are mainly cherry toms. I didnt do any tall toms last year as i was moving house and no one moaned about not having 'normal' sized tomatoes I am trying a few different varieties but i always have some Tumbling Tom, decent size pot and keep feeding once they set fruit......

Folk are really helpful on here and will give you advice more expert than mine but just make sure you enjoy it

savingmummy

Thank you so much both!
I am so excited and can`t wait to get started now

I was having a look on bbc gardener site and saw on there about cut & come again with the leaves. They are then available all summer which is fantastic! I will go for a 6-8" pot i think.

I will definately try the strawberries and toms. Hopefully one i build some confidence i will also widen what i grow.

Thanks again x

heynonnynonny

I've got my dig in leaves in a similiar size pot, no sign of them coming through though yet. Have learned so much from this part of the forum, especially the veg growing newbies thread

Davesnave

Salad leaves are best grown in troughs. If you start cutting at one end and work your way down, then in theory, the ones at the beginning will be back by the time you reach the other end..... Or you could have a disorganised family, like mine, or eat them too fast...:(

A 6" to 8" pot won't keep you in salad leaves very long. We rotate two troughs 2' x 6" and still run out. In fact we are just finishing the first one now, but the second is ready to go.

British seed companies are a bit tight with the amount of seed in a packet for this sort of thing, so I go with Franchii Italian seed for the basic lettuces and chuck in a bit of rocket & mizuna for variation.

chelms38

You will have your hands full settling into your new home,but as regards your vegetable growing you have a blank canvas to make a plot in your garden.

Good luck in your new home and happy growing.