TOMATO, OR LOVE-APPLE 



709 



posure. Pot off either singly or two 

 in a pot, standing at opposite sides 

 of the pot, so that when the time 

 conies to plant out the ball may be 

 divided through the middle, each 

 plant taking its share; and but 

 little check need be given. After 

 the plants are potted off they may 

 either be taken back to the hot-bed 

 for a few days, or be kept in a 

 warm, close house till the roots 

 begin work again, when they should 

 be moved to a light place, in order 

 to give strength. Plants that are 

 well cared for in their youth begin 

 to blossom and bear fruit weeks 

 before those which are dragged up 

 in vineries or in situations away 

 from the full light, and in our 

 short, often sunless, summers this 

 is a very important matter. If ne- 

 cessary, the plants should be shifted 

 on into larger pots, though a very 

 little check when they have made 

 some progress will do them no 

 harm. It will simply have a hard- 

 ening effect upon them. As soon 

 as the weather is settled in May, or 

 say about the third week, plant out. 

 In the south of England Tomatoes 

 will succeed in any warm position, 

 but they cannot have too much heat 

 in our climate, and though we may 

 plant in any warm situation, even 

 away from a wall, it must not be 

 forgotten that the warmest positions 

 at the foot of a south wall are the 

 best. 



"That mode of training is the best 

 which ensures early ripening rather 

 than heavy crops that will not ripen, 

 and this early ripening can be best 

 attained by confining the growth to 

 one or two main stems, and these 

 main stems should have been started 

 when the plants were young, by 

 pinching out the leader. A two- 

 stemmed plant will require 2 ft. of 

 space or a little more; a plant having 

 only one stem will not require more 



than 15 in. As soon as planted, 

 and the soil settled round them by 

 watering, a tie should be placed to 

 each stem. If against a wall, a nail 

 and shred may be used, but the 

 latter should be placed loosely round 

 the stem to allow space for swelling, 

 which it will do considerably. If 

 planted on the open border, a strong 

 stake 4 ft. long should be placed near 

 each stem, and a piece of matting 

 placed round the stake and fastened 

 to it first, and then the stem of the 

 plant should be loosely fastened 

 also. In the after-training all side 

 shoots should be rubbed off as they 

 appear (this will involve weekly at- 

 tention), and all the strength of the 

 plant directed upwards into the 

 main stem. Sometimes the leaders 

 are pinched when the first cluster 

 of flowers appears. This throws 

 strength into the blossoms and the 

 next shoot, which breaks away from 

 the leader and grows on till another 

 cluster of blossoms is put forth, 

 when another pinching of the leader 

 takes place, and so on, a check to 

 growth being given as each cluster 

 of fruit is formed. I do not think it 

 really matters much whether these 

 pinchings or checks are given or 

 not, for I have proved that a plant 

 which is allowed to grow straight 

 onwards, unstopped, will bear as 

 much fruit as the one that is pinched. 

 All that is gained by the pinching 

 is the confining of the growth to a 

 smaller space, and if the wall or the 

 fence on which the plants are to 

 be trained is a very low one, then 

 pinching may be useful, but other- 

 wise it is not of much value. 

 Beyond the pinching and training 

 the summer culture is almost 

 nothing. Weeds, of course, must 

 be kept down, and if the summer 

 should be hot and dry, mulching 

 and watering may be beneficial. In 

 cold, wet districts the plants must 



