HeatToday will be hot in the south of the Netherlands: up to 33 degrees! Check whether your reservoir is still full, whether the mix is still moist, shade vulnerable plants around midday, and wait with sowing until it cools down.
Sow tomatoes indoors between March 25th and mid-April. I will show you how we do it and give you some handy tips for the MM-mix.
Tomorrow it is officially spring. It really feels like it: sunny every day. And the coming week will only get better 😀
I can already imagine it: a mild spring and a warm summer. With the occasional shower, because that saves on watering.
And summer means tomatoes. Those delicious sweet ones, that you can pick straight from the plant and pop into your mouth 😋
August 1st last year: Sweety cherry tomatoes on the climbing frame
But to get those, you still have to do something: pre-sowing.
We only pre-sow when it's really necessary. You can't avoid it with the real summer vegetables, but we always do it as late as possible.
That's why we only sow our cucumbers, zucchinis, and pumpkins from the end of April. But because tomatoes need a little longer, you start with them a bit earlier: between March 25th and mid-April.
And now it's almost that time 😉
Pre-sowing tomatoes
Today I’ll show you how I sow my tomatoes.
“No need, Jelle, the app explains that. Besides, you show it every year.”
True, but because I enjoy it so much, I’m doing it again this year. And every year there are new MM gardeners doing it for the first time.
Pre-sowing in a mix of half seed-starting mix and half MM-Mix
From 25 March onwards, the app guides you step by step.
I’ll show you the first level here with photos. I’m using our cherry tomatoes for the trellis, but it works the same way for bush tomato and yellow snack tomato.
You can start a Makkelijke Moestuin at any time of year. Whether you begin early or late in spring, in midsummer or even in autumn, every month is possible and has its own advantages and disadvantages.
To prove it, I sow the raised beds in Den Andel at intervals.
Our vegetable garden at the end of June 2021, started on 1 May
This year I started the first garden box on 1 March, and the seedlings are now coming up. Some are still so tiny you almost need a magnifying glass to see them.
Today I sowed the second garden box. Because now carrots, lettuce, and bok choi can go in too. The second round of snow peas went into the mix as well, along with the sugar snaps.
I’m also leaving a few squares empty for the vegetables that can go in from 1 April, such as beet, chard, Asian salad mix, and NZ spinach.
By the trellis I’m sowing a few radishes and arugola. I’ll harvest those squares empty when it’s time to put the summer vegetables there.
Sowing the second MM-Hero
I’ll start the third on 1 April, the fourth on 1 May, and so on.
In between, I’ll show how I immediately re-sow squares that have been harvested, and every now and then I’ll add a few MM-Minis or an MM-Air grow bag too.
Nice, right?
Meanwhile in the community
We’re all doing such lovely things together.
For example, Sonja-MM shares a look back at her beautiful garden, where it can get pretty windy. That’s why she also has two MM-Heroes in her garden room.
Two MM gardeners went up onto the roof: Eipie on a large scale, and the son of ElisetteS on a small one.
And Gerard even goes out to his garden boxes late in the evening, to tuck them in under the moonlight.
Photos by SonjaMM, Eipie, ElisetteS and Gerard
Oh, and because we enjoy all those lovely photos so much, I sent the people behind the best ones a small gift card. Just because I felt like it.
Tips for using MM-Mix
Especially for everyone using MM-Mix for the first time, I made a page with some useful tips.
How to get started with it, how to sow and plant in it, and how to keep it topped up all year round, so you get the most out of it.
Good luck pre-sowing your tomatoes, and enjoy the lovely weather this coming week!
PS:
Are you also going to start pre-sowing soon, is your Makkelijke Moestuin in a special place, and/or would you like to respond to this blog? Share your story (and photos) in our super-active community. I’m looking forward to it!
