Sow What?

The north wind doth blow … but don’t despair about the snow!
The recent autumn and winter climate has been relatively mild but, as expected, we are now experiencing freezing temperatures and snow.  There are still many tasks that you can get on with over winter to protect and prepare your garden for the spring.

Listen to weather forecasts and remember to protect delicate crops.  Outdoor containers should be brought inside or wrapped in bubble wrap and placed off the freezing ground, perhaps on a polystyrene tray similar to those you find in pizza packaging.  There are always things lying around the house that can be recycled.

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We have managed to secure a small supply of the seeds of “Gran Brix” a very special tomato F1 variety from Spain with the sweetest taste.

Brix is a measure sugar content where  °Bx,  is equivalent to percentage of sugar in solution. This measure of sugar content is commonly used in the wine  and fruit industries, to give an indication of the quality of the fruit (it is also a handy guide to the potential alcohol content which may be achieved by fermenting the fruit – which is always useful to know!)

To give you an idea of what that means in tomato terms :- your typical mass produced (supermarket) tomatoes can range from 2-3 °Bx. As we all know, if you have ever bothered to try them,  they can be a bit short of  aroma and taste. Tomatoes which measure as high as 6-8 °Bx tend to be  known as the very sweet tomato varieties.

So when we tell you that the  Gran Brix tomato weighs in at a hefty 9.5 °Bx,  you will not be surprised at our claim that this an outstandingly sweet tomato variety. It follows then, that, at such high quality, it is very hard to find any other tomato that can come even close to its taste.

Not content with being the sweetest tomato known to mankind, Gran Brix is highly resistant to pests and disease. It also has very good keeping ans storage qualities. Gran Brix is a vigorous plant, quick growing and over a very long period produces bright red, firm cherry fruit that is resistant to cracking.  Average fruit weight 15 – 18 grams.

We are always on the lookout for new and interesting varieties for you to try,  so why not subscribe to our blog and be first to know when we write about them?. In the meantime – have a look at some recommended tomato seed varieties here.

The August winner of our FREE PRIZE DRAW is Mrs Gundel from Mansfield and the September winner Emma Cooper from Abingdon.  If you would like a chance to win some free seeds then why don’t you enter our free draw then you too could be enjoying some free vegetable seeds courtesy of us all at Original Touch.

We are pleased to announce that the winning school in our 2011 Ugly Pumkin Challenge  is Grange Lane Infant School in Scunthorpe. Read the rest of this entry →