Thompson & Morgan announces another major horticultural breakthrough. Specially hand-grafted plants producing potatoes AND tomatoes are now available to UK home gardeners for the first time.
More than 500 sweet and juicy tomatoes on one plant!
Above the ground – gardeners can pick more than 500 cherry tomatoes with a Brix level of 10.2 – that’s sweeter than supermarket varieties. The fruits also have just the right level of acidity that only the very tastiest tomatoes can boast. They really are delicious.
And that’s not all!
Below the ground – gardeners will find a nice big crop of delicious white potatoes which are incredibly versatile. They can be boiled, mashed, roasted or made into chips.
It sounds incredible, but it’s true. Home gardeners really can grow tomatoes and potatoes on one plant. This concept has been worked on for over 15 years, but this is the first time that plants have been successfully produced commercially. Tomatoes are members of the potato family (Solanaceae) and are therefore naturally compatible with potatoes. Each plant is hand-grafted to create this unique double-cropping feature. There’s no genetic modification – it’s an all-natural and completely safe process.
Above ground – tomatoes, below ground – potatoes
As is the case with all of Thompson & Morgan’s plants, TomTato® is dispatched with full growing instructions. However these are hardly necessary as the plants are so easy to grow. TomTato® can be grown inside or outside, in a large patio pot or 40 litre bag, on the allotment or in the vegetable patch. Thompson & Morgan is expecting huge interest in its innovative new ‘veg plot in a pot’ , so place your order early to be sure to get your hands on these unique plants.
Paul Hansord, T&M’s horticultural director, is understandably excited about bringing TomTato® to UK gardeners: ‘When I first saw this plant, I was amazed! Potatoes and tomatoes on the same plant? You really have to grow TomTato® to believe it’.
Please note that TomTato® plants are only available to UK customers and will be sent out in time for planting in spring 2014.
Find out more about growing TomTato® by watching this tutorial video:
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TomTato® – best grown in a 40 litre pot
TomTato® – tomatoes and potatoes on the same plant!
Rebecca works in the Marketing department as part of the busy web team, focusing on updating the UK news and blog pages and Thompson & Morgan’s international website. Rebecca enjoys gardening and learning about flowers and growing vegetables with her young daughter.
Autumn planting is the big topic in this week’s gardening news!
Autumn is the best time to plant many bulbs including tulips
Plan it, plant it this autumn
The ‘Plan it, plant it this autumn’ campaign run by the Horticultural Trade Association is now in its second year. The campaign aims to highlight that autumn is a very busy time in the garden and the best time to plant fruit trees, berries and spring-flowering bulbs. According to the HTA, a large percentage gardeners think that fruit trees and spring bulbs should be planted in spring. Why not take a look at our autumn planting bulb and fruit tree ranges and get a head start? #planitplant
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Short-haired bumblebee – evidence of nesting and reproducing found in Kent
Short-haired bumblebee shows signs of a comeback
The short-haired bumblebee, declared extinct in the UK in 2000 and reintroduced from Sweden in 2012, . Queen bees were brought over from Sweden last year and, after a 2-week quarantine, released on to the RSPB’s Dungeness reserve in Kent. They struggled to survive, because of the cold, wet summer, so in spring this year more queens were released and have now produced offspring worker bees, which have been spotted carrying pollen. This means that at least one of the queens has started a colony, but the species isn’t out of the woods yet. There is still a long way to go to ensure the safety and viability of the population – according to the RSPB’s website, they are working with “farmers, conservation groups, small holders and other land owners to create flower-rich habitat within the release area of Dungeness and Romney Marsh.”
As we all know, many bee species are in decline for various reasons, including pests, diseases, pesticides and habitat loss. Leaving an area of your garden to grow wild means that you’re doing your bit to help bee and other wildlife populations.
Good news for butterflies – the hot summer has helped increase populations
Big Butterfly Count 2013 – the results are in
This year’s Big Butterfly Count attracted record-breaking numbers of participants – over 46,000 people took part, which is 72% more than in 2012! The results show that the hot summer helped butterfly numbers bounce back after such a dismal summer in 2012. A large number of species showed a year-on-year increase in numbers – amazingly, Peacocks were up by over 3,500% and Small Tortoiseshells by 388%! On the other hand, some butterflies that fared well in 2012, such as Meadow Brown, Marbled White, Ringlet and Six-spot Burnet saw their numbers dip this year, possibly caused by reduced survival rates of larvae in winter and spring.
Did you take part this year? Have you noticed more butterflies in your garden? Within the space of 5 minutes on one particularly scorching day in July, my daughter and I spotted three Peacocks, 3 Large Whites and a Comma! Even as late as last Sunday I spotted a Red Admiral and a Comma on my buddleja. We’d love to hear which of your plants butterflies visited most.
Growing vegetables in space
Growing veg in space could soon become a reality, as Nasa prepares to start growing food for astronauts in the next few months as part of the Vegetable Production System (VEGGIE) project. Extensive and long-running tests have been undertaken on Earth, with Nasa claiming that the zero-gravity conditions have no adverse effects on the plants. To start with, romaine lettuce will be grown under LED lamps on the International Space Station. Once they’ve been harvested they’ll be sent back to Earth to test for bacteria. Nasa hopes that this will eventually allow them to grow a number of crops on the ISS, the moon and even Mars, cutting down on the phenomenally high food transport costs and increasing the health and well-being of astronauts. And not forgetting the prediction that, at some point, we will exhaust the Earth’s resources and need to rely on space farming for the survival of our species.
Rebecca works in the Marketing department as part of the busy web team, focusing on updating the UK news and blog pages and Thompson & Morgan’s international website. Rebecca enjoys gardening and learning about flowers and growing vegetables with her young daughter.
Sue Sanderson and Colin Randel, two of Thompson & Morgan’s experts give their top 5 flower and vegetable seeds for the new season…
Flowers
Sue Sanderson is Thompson & Morgan’s Horticulturist and has 11 years of gardening experience.
Rudbeckia ‘Cherry Brandy’
When this was first seen in the T&M breeding trials we were all excited as this was the first time a red rudbeckia had ever been bred from seed. Not only is the colour stunning, but so is the plant – it’s bushy and robust with many burgundy red blooms adding height to annual displays and blooming all summer into autumn, whatever the weather.
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Marigold ‘Durango Tangerine’
When we first trialled this variety ‘Durango Tangerine’ stood out against all others – its habit, colour and flower power were, and still are, truly outstanding. This is the only French Marigold I grow in my own garden because the colour is so vibrant, the plants are bushy and free-flowering all summer, making the perfect edging plant to my borders.
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Busy Lizzie ‘Divine’
A breeding breakthrough and the answer to many gardeners’ prayers. A Busy Lizzie that does not get mildew unlike traditional varieties. ‘Divine’ is versatile – it grows well in borders, containers, flower pouches™ or window boxes. Flowers all summer until the first frost of autumn.
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Cosmos ‘Sweet Sixteen’
Every garden should find a place for a few cosmos, and ‘Sweet Sixteen’ is one of the best. Easy to grow, tall plants with attractive bicoloured blooms add height to bedding displays or look attractive when interplanted amongst shrubs and perennials in the border.
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Sweet Pea ‘Erewhon’
A breeding breakthrough from Keith Hammert, the world’s leading sweet pea breeder. An attractive and unusual reverse bicolour that’s full of fragrance and adds beauty to the garden or the home when used as a cut flower. ‘Erewhon’ was introduced to our range in 2013 and has become a customer favourite.
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Vegetables
Colin Randel is Thompson & Morgan’s vegetable new product manager and what he doesn’t know about vegetables simply isn’t worth knowing!
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Dwarf bean Laguna
I assessed Laguna in commercial breeder trials in 2010 and 11 and it stood out for its performance through a wide range of weather conditions and having a strong root system for vigour in a range of soil types. The pod quality, yield and taste remained consistent throughout the harvesting seasons. My notes included ‘ideal variety for all gardeners’ and it is.
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Beetroot Rainbow Beet
Modern beet breeding and selections provide gardeners with virtually ‘eat all’ varieties, just cut off the taproot. Just wash young roots, stems and leaves and eat raw in salads. Leaves and stems can also be steamed, roots boiled and don’t waste the water as beet juice is good for you. Adding some peeled apple when boiling will reduce the ‘earthy’ taste of the juice if preferred. Our 5 variety mix is visually stunning. Successional sowings throughout spring to midsummer will give bountiful crops, and some roots can be left to full maturity and lifted and stored in your shed or garage overwinter. Twist tops off the roots instead of cutting to prevent ‘bleeding’ with the red beet and Bull’s Blood beet. The golden Boldor, Albina vereduna and Chioggia do not ‘bleed’. Our picture was taken from roots lifted at the end of October.
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Courgette Goldmine F1
I assess a huge number of courgette varieties every year in the breeders trials, and British breeding in recent years has provided us with outstanding introductions for compact and ‘open’ plant habit, vastly reduced spines on stems and leaf petioles which allow easier picking, and good yields over a long harvesting season. You need to pick 3 times a week during peak season. Breeding for parthenocarpic habit (setting fruit without pollination from insects) has now resulted in our exclusive launch of Goldmine. The stunning gold skinned with narrow white stripes certainly catch the eye.
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Lettuce Mazur
This variety which proved outstanding, with its red leaved counterpart Mazurosso, in our 2010 and ’11 trials. Both varieties were weatherproof, not bothered by incessant rain or periods of heatwave, and each plant made a voluminous heart of crunchy leaves which remained crunchy and bitter-free when washed under the tap and added to the salad bowl. Leaves do not go ‘limp’ like some picking varieties. The hearts just remained in perfect condition for 3 months and then rotted away without bolting (running to seed). A heart could be cut and washed and excess water shaken off and will store in the fridge for over a fortnight.
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Tomato Rosella
The eye appeal will win you over. The ‘cherry sized’, 15g fruits have a rich rose-pink colour with smoky overtones especially around the crowns of the fruit. The flesh is also a deep red, and the taste gives an instant hit of balanced acid/sweetness which lingers in the mouth and the thin skin melts away. Absolute joy. Best grown in the greenhouse as an indeterminate (needs support and sideshooting) but can be grown in a sunny, sheltered spot outdoors as a cordon (supported and ‘stopped’ after 4 or 5 trusses). British breeding at its best.
Rebecca works in the Marketing department as part of the busy web team, focusing on updating the UK news and blog pages and Thompson & Morgan’s international website. Rebecca enjoys gardening and learning about flowers and growing vegetables with her young daughter.
It’s been quite a week for gardening news, read our update here…
New Facebook game aims to get to the bottom of ash dieback
New Facebook game aims to protect ash trees from ash dieback
A new Facebook game has just been launched, in which players have to match coloured leaves that represent genetic ‘letters’. Scientists are hoping that by using the power of social media, Fraxinus will help them to understand more about ash dieback and the genetics of the fungus, enabling them to identify resistant ash trees to grow in the future.
Provide food for bees
Keeping bees? Make sure there’s a good food supply
The plight of the UK’s bee populations is almost constantly in the news at the moment and with good reason. Nearly 34% of Britain’s honeybee colonies have been lost because of last year’s bad weather. Many homeowners and businesses have turned to beekeeping to help restore populations, but new research shows that there isn’t enough food to support the new colonies. Growing wildflowers helps and the advice is, if you have space, to grow bee-friendly flowers such as borage, lavender, cornflowers and catmint to provide forage for bees.
The furthest travelled T&M plants?
Furthest travelled T&M plants?
We occasionally hear stories of postcards and letters making their way around the world and being delivered years later. But what about plants? Some time ago we received a letter from a customer in Perth, Scotland advising us that her plants were in a terrible condition. The 36 begonia postiplugs she had ordered were very dry and she didn’t expect them to survive.
However, she then noticed that there was a letter attached to the parcel – from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry in Western Australia! The plants had somehow been delivered to Perth, Australia and the DAFF was returning them to her. Considering the long journey the plants went on, our customer thought it was marvellous that 26 survived and grew on!
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Bumper berry crops expected
Bumper harvest for berry plants
If you’re growing blackberries and are wondering if they’ll ever bear fruit, then fear not! The late start to spring is likely to cause a delay in fruiting, but the recent heatwaves should mean that a bumper crop is just around the corner! This is great news, not just for those of us looking forward to freezers full of tasty berries, but to wildlife too. 2012 saw a dismal crop, but this year fruit-eating mammals and birds will be able to enjoy an autumn feast.
Rebecca works in the Marketing department as part of the busy web team, focusing on updating the UK news and blog pages and Thompson & Morgan’s international website. Rebecca enjoys gardening and learning about flowers and growing vegetables with her young daughter.
In this week’s gardening news we’ll be talking about National Allotments Week, the effect of weather on butterflies and a new technique to enable plants to source nitrogen from the air.
National Allotments Week 5th-11th August
The National Allotment Society’s yearly celebration of allotments is back and, in their own words, they want allotment societies and associations to “dust off their bunting and BBQs, spread the word and hold a jolly good knees-up!” The aim of the ‘Party on the Plot’ is to show the local community why allotments are so important, not just for the people who garden them, but for families, schools and wildlife too. Visit the National Allotments Week website for more information.
Our expert Sue Sanderson says “Allotments are a great source of information for gardeners wishing to grow vegetables. Whilst looking around a site you will spot different ways crops are being grown or protected. All plot holders are always happy to give help and advice. Many sites, including ours, also have a wildlife area with a dipping pond that is always of interest to children who visit the site. Plus they can see the crops growing on site rather than something on a supermarket shelf or served on a plate.”
Butterflies affected by bad weather conditions
Big Butterfly Count helps to determine state of butterfly populations
If you haven’t taken part in the Big Butterfly Count yet, there’s still time. It runs until 11th August and you can download and print an ID chart to help you. Simply sit in a sunny spot for 15 minutes and count how many butterflies you see. Last year’s survey showed that 15 of the 21 species included in the count had declined, which is a massive blow for butterflies in the UK. The cold, wet spring hasn’t helped, but experts are hoping that July’s hot weather has helped populations bounce back, which is another reason why the Big Butterfly Count is so important.
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Tomatoes need nitrogen for optimum growth
Bacteria to fertilise plants?
All plants need nitrogen for optimum growth. Some like peas, beans and other legumes manage this themselves, but others rely on the addition of manure or synthetic fertilisers to provide the correct levels of nutrients. A bacteria found naturally in sugar cane juices traps nitrogen and could be the end of synthetic nitrogen fertilisers, which are made from fossil fuels. Scientists at the University of Nottingham have developed a way of introducing the bacteria into plants’ roots by coating seeds or inoculating seedlings. The plants are then able to convert nitrogen from the air, taking away the need for additional fertilisers. Field tests are being carried out on tomatoes, wheat, maize, oil seed rape and grasses and the experts behind the project claim that the technology could become commercially available within three years.
Rebecca works in the Marketing department as part of the busy web team, focusing on updating the UK news and blog pages and Thompson & Morgan’s international website. Rebecca enjoys gardening and learning about flowers and growing vegetables with her young daughter.
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