Home

Tomato Tomaccio

May 13th, 2013

Grow the Sweetest Tastiest Tomato – Tomaccio

If you enjoy growing Tomatoes and are looking for something unique and different try growing the Tomato ‘Tomaccio’. This grape sized Tomato have an intense, sugary flavor when picked fresh or dried at home. Tomato aficionados love them as a sweet snack or a gourmet ingredient in pastas, pizzas, salads and other dishes.

For more information about this great variety visit the website at www.tomaccio.com.

Mighty Mato Grafted Tomatoes

May 13th, 2013

Mighty Mato Grafted Tomatoes – Have Arrived!

One of the easiest and most rewarding vegetable crops to grow on your own are Tomatoes. Now they are even easier with the new Mighty Mato grafted Tomatoes. Mighty Mato Tomatoes are like superheroes they are stronger, faster, more able to fend off pests and diseases than regular tomato plants. They are also most drought so you can miss a watering or two. They are also more cold tolerant so they can begin producing earlier and continue producing later in the season. But most importantly they produce bigger crops of tomatoes.

How do they do this? They are better because they are “grafted”. Grafting is where the top part of one plant is attached to the root system of a separate plant (the rootstock).  The top part of the plant fuses with the bottom part of the plant and combine the rootstock’s vigor and disease resistance with the  exceptional fruit quality of the top plant.  These are NOT genetically modified in any way. They are some of the same great varieties that have been grown for many years including several Heirloom varieties. One important difference between grafted and non-grafted tomatoes is that the graft must stay above soil level, and you should prune lateral suckers for best fruiting.

The Mighty ’Mato line-up includes twelve heirloom and four hybrid varieties. For 2013 you can choose from the following varieties at our stores:

• Amish Paste
• Beefsteak
• Black Cherry
• Black Krim
• Brandywine
• Cherokee Purple
• Early Girl
• Green Zebra
• Mortgage Lifter
• Stupice
• Sun Sugar
• Sweet Million
• Yellow Pear

For more information about the varieties please click here. To see the picture below please click on them.

Tomatoes

May13th, 2013

Taste the flavour of home grown Tomatoes!

The weather is finally warm enough to start thinking about putting tomatoes outside in the garden. It is still recommended that you provide some protection from the cold night temperatures. You can do this by covering your tomatoes with plastic or a white cloth like our “Crop Cover” or “Frost Blanket”. When the night time low is above 10 degrees Celsius, or 50 degrees Fahrenheit, you can leave them uncovered.

Whether you are a seasoned tomato growing veteran or a new gardener here are a few tips to help you grow better tomatoes:

1. Tomatoes are heavy feeder, they are the teenage boys of the plant world. You should add manure and fertilizer to the soil before you plant.
2. When you plant the tomatoes plant them deeper as new roots will develop along the stem helping your plants grow faster and stronger. (Except ‘Mighty Mato’ grafted Tomatoes, do not plant them below the graft)
3. Water regularly all summer, twice a week early in the season and daily during the summer months. Tomatoes that do not get regular water are more likely to develop diseases and are less likely to produce as much fruit. They also develop thicker skin if not watered properly.
4. Fertilize weekly with a water soluble fertilizer like Miracle Gro Tomato Food 18-18-21 or monthly with a granular fertilizer like Evegro’s Vegetable and Tomato Food 10-15-19.
5. Add Lime to your soil before you plant and every month during the growing season. Lime helps balance the pH and provides Calcium and Magnesium to the plants.

With so many varieties of Tomatoes to choose from here are a few varieties that perform well in our climate:

• Ball Extra Early – a medium sized tomato that produces early
• Beefsteak – one of the largest tomatoes with lots of meaty flesh
• Early Girl – a medium sized early producing variety
• Sungold – a golden cherry tomato
• Sweet 100 – an excellent small cherry tomato
• Sweet Million – a smaller version of the sweet 100 that produces an abundant crop
• Tumbler – a great cherry tomato for hanging baskets that produces all summer until frost
• Tomaccio – a super sweet grape type tomato that is great for making Sun Dried Tomatoes

In addition to these varieties you can choose from a selection of Heirloom Tomato varieties including:

• Bloody Butcher – a medium sized tomato that is great for slicing
• Brandywine Black – a large heirloom tomato
• Latah – an early producing medium sized tomato
• Nyagous – a medium to large early to mid season tomato
• Prudens Purple – a medium tomato great for slicing

Be sure to stake your tomatoes as they grow to give them support as the fruit matures. You can stake them up with a basic bamboo or cedar stake or buy a “Tomato Cage” that provides support for the leaves as well.

Click here to download our information brochure on Tomatoes.

Hydrangea Endless Summer

May 10th, 2013

Summer Never Ends for the Endless Summer Hydrangeas!

If you have ever had a Hydrangea that did not flower and did not understand why this is the variety for you. The Original ‘Endless Summer’ Hydrangea is a mophead hydrangea that can bloom on both old and new wood. So no matter how you prune them they flower every year. There are now four varieties in the Endless Summer Collection to choose from:

• Hydrangea ‘Endless Summer’ - The Original, flowers can be Pink or Blue
• Hydrangea ‘Blushing Bride’ - pure white blooms with semi-double florets that mature to pink
• Hydrangea ‘Twist N Shout’ - a Lace-cap type with vivid colour and sturdy stems
• Hydrangea ‘Bella Anna’ – the newest addition to the endless summer collection this is a beautiful pink

The repeat blooms of the Endless Summer® Collection truly offer gardeners an endless summer of incredible colour. These hardy plants are perfect for everything from foundation planting to container gardening. They even make an ideal floral arrangement or table setting as cut flowers.

The colour of the Original Endless Summer can be altered from pink to blue. For more information visit www.endlesssummerblooms.com.

Easy Elegance Roses

May 10th, 2013

All of the Beauty and None of the Work!

If you are looking for a Rose that has all of the beauty with none of the work you should try the new Easy Elegance Roses. For more information click here.

Gone are the days of high-maintenance roses. With Easy Elegance®, you can have hardy, disease-resistant, chemical free roses without all the effort and attention. Let it be known – these are not your grandmother’s roses. You don’t have to spend all day in the yard to make them last. All you have to do is plant them and enjoy the beauty. And there’s nothing easier than that.

You can choose from six varieties including:

• Easy Elegance ‘All the Rage’ – opens coral and turns apricot with a yellow centre
• Easy Elegance ‘Champagne Wishes’ -
• Easy Elegance ‘Como Park’ – red flowers
• Easy Elegance ‘Coral Cove’ – dark pink double blooms
• Easy Elegance ‘High Voltage’ - yellow double blooms
• Easy Elegance ‘Kashmir’ - dark red
• Easy Elegance ‘Macy’s Pride’ – lemon yellow buds open to a creamy white flower
• Easy Elegance ‘Paint the Town’ – red hybrid tea shaped flowers
• Easy Elegance ‘Yellow Submarine’ – bright lemon yellow flowers

Click here for more information about Easy Elegance Roses.