Tomatoes call for summer and its sunny salads. But when should you sow and plant tomatoes? And how can you enjoy abundant harvests for as long as possible?
Sowing, planting and harvesting periods: find out everything you need to know about the tomato season in this article.
When to sow tomatoes?
If you have a heated greenhouse equipped with a growth lamp, you can sow your tomatoes as early as February . In fact, tomatoes need 14 hours of sunlight, as soon as they emerge from the ground. A lack of light presents the risk that your plants will spin. In an unheated greenhouse, you can start sowing your tomatoes as early as March.
When to plant tomatoes?
Tomatoes are summer fruits. They are planted in the ground in the spring , once all risk of frost has passed. Beware of the famous Ice Saints! If you live on the Mediterranean coast or on the Atlantic coast, the risk is of course lower.
When to harvest tomatoes?
The harvests depend again on the regions and the planting period of your tomatoes. In a greenhouse, you can enjoy the first harvests from June. In open ground, you will harvest your precious fruits from July to October, or even November in a greenhouse or in the most southern regions.
But the harvest period also depends on the variety. Some, called early, can be harvested between 50 and 70 days after planting. This is the case for the Marmande tomato or the Orange Queen tomato. Mid-season tomatoes, like the Green Zebra and the Rose de Berne, can be picked between 65 and 80 days after being planted. Finally, expect 80 to 100 days before late tomatoes like Ananas and Noire de Crimée reach maturity. The ideal is therefore to grow several varieties to spread your harvests throughout the season!
Eating tomatoes in winter, really?
As you will have understood, the tomato season is relatively short . That’s what makes it so exceptional! However, if you are tempted to eat them during the winter, choose canned or dried tomatoes. In fact, the tomatoes you will find on the stalls during the cold season are most often imported and harvested before maturity to avoid being damaged during transport.
Result: their taste is bland compared to a tomato that has been allowed to ripen in the sun. The nutritional qualities are also altered: their vitamin C and polyphenol content drops drastically. The best thing is therefore to consume tomatoes in season or to prepare preserves with the surplus of your harvests.
