NB: It seems that this
variety is not completely stabilized because some differences were observed in
fruit size from one plant to another
INFO:
CULINARY USE: Salad
FLAVOR PROFILE: Sweet
DESCRIPTION: Technicoloured pointy
crazy colours
FRUIT COLOR: Anthocyanin/striped with
green inside
FRUIT SHAPE: Small/medium pointed grape
MATURITY: 75 Days – Mid Season
PLANT TYPE: Indeterminate
BREED: Heirloom/ Open Pollinated
SEEDS: 20
SPECIES: Solanum Lycopersicum
Tomato
Growing Instructions:
1.
Select
Your Preferred Tomato Seed
It's
fairly easy and inexpensive to start many tomato varieties from seed, so
experiment with the types you like best. Here are some factors to take into
consideration:
o
Look
for organic seed if you prefer organic produce.
o
If
you know your area is prone to a particular disease, choose a hardy tomato
variety.
o
If
you want your tomatoes all at once to preserve them, look at determinate
varieties. Indeterminate types bear fruit over a longer period, with some
starting later in the season than others.
o
Note
the mature size of the plant. In general, determinate plants tend to be smaller
than indeterminate ones
o
Which
size of tomato do you want and/or what use?
Cherry sizes are small for salads or beefsteak are large for slicing
o
Flavor
Profile, some are sweet and some are tart.
Consider what you want to use the tomato for: saucing, slicers, salads,
relish, decorative/colourful
o
2.
Prepare
the Containers for Planting
It's
often more efficient to dampen the potting mix before you put it in the
containers. Add some water, and work it through the soil. Keep adding water
until the mix stays compressed in your hand but is not dripping wet. It should
break apart when you poke it with your finger.
Then,
fill your containers with potting soil. Gently firm the soil, so it's about 1cm
from the top.
3.
Plant
the Tomato Seeds
Make
a 1/2cm furrow in the potting mix. Then, sprinkle two to three seeds into the
furrow, and cover them with a sprinkling of potting mix. Gently pat down the
mix, so the seeds make good contact with the soil. You can spray the surface
with water if it doesn’t feel moist.
At
this point, place your containers somewhere warm. Check them daily to make sure
the soil is moist—but not wet—and watch for germination. Tomato seed
germination typically occurs in about five to 10 days
4.
Care
for the Tomato Seedlings
Keep
your tomato seedlings warm and moist, and provide them with light—preferably
grow lights. Rotate the plants if they seem to be leaning in one direction.
Once your tomato seedlings have true leaves, it's time to start feeding them.
Any good liquid fertilizer can be used once a week but dilute it to half the
label's recommended dose.
Tomato
stems grow sturdier if they are tossed about by the wind. You can simulate this
indoors by putting a fan on your plants for an hour a day or by gently running
your hand through them each time you pass.
5.
Pot
the Tomato Seedlings
When
the seedlings are 2 to 3 inches tall and have a couple sets of true leaves,
it's time to pot them in larger containers. In general, 7.5cm-10cm containers
are a good size, though you might have to move them to larger pots
later if you can't plant them outdoors.
Fill
the new pots with moist potting mix just as you did when you started the seeds.
If more than one seed germinated in the same container, you will need to thin the
seedlings. Either gently jiggle
entangled roots apart, or simply snip off unwanted seedlings at soil level.
This ensures that you won't damage the seedling you want to keep.
Plant
each tomato seedling in its new pot a little deeper than it was in its original
container. If it's tall and leggy, you can plant it right up to its top-most
leaves. Then, firm the soil gently around the seedling.
6.
Transplant
the Seedlings Outdoors
When
you're finally ready to plant your tomatoes in the garden, choose a cool or
overcast day. Once again, plant them deeper than they were in their
pots, so new roots will form along the buried stem.
You
can plant them all the way up to the top couple sets of leaves. This is
especially ideal if your plants have gotten too tall indoors, and you want them
to become stockier and stronger. If you can’t dig deep enough, you can always
plant them sideways in a furrow. The top of the plant will find the sun and
grow upright in a few days.