Gardening By Month:
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January Gardening - Tomato
Tomato.—Of the immense value of the Tomato as an article of diet we need say nothing, but we may confidently affirm that its merits for decorative purposes have not as yet been fully recognised. Long racemes of brilliant glossy fruit are sometimes employed with striking effect in épergnes, and there is a natural fitness in using them for decorating the dinner table.
All the Tomatoes can be grown and ripened under glass in almost any fashion which may suit the cultivator's convenience. Pits, frames, vineries, and Peach-houses will bring the fruit to perfection, either in pots or planted out. Magnificent crops are also grown in the manner usual with Cucumbers, but in a lower temperature; and those who have an early Cucumber house at liberty during the summer may turn it to good account for Tomatoes.
The soil should be prepared and laid up in the autumn. It must not be too rich, or there will be much foliage and little fruit, and the flowering will also be late. A compost of leaf-mould and loam with an addition of sand suits Tomatoes admirably; but raw manure should be regarded as poison.
Sow thinly in well-drained pots firmly filled with soil, and place in a temperature of 60° or 65°. When large enough to handle, transfer the seedlings to small pots, and, if necessary, shade them for a few days. Keep them near the glass until the roots are established, and allow them to suffer no check from first to last.
Source: The Culture of Vegetables and Flowers From Seeds and Roots, 16th Edition 1921, Sutton and Sons