Rain, Progress and Tradition

The last few days have brought both sunny and wet weather - but mainly wet!

If this were last season my plants would be suffering from blight by now but the shelter that they have has definitely made a difference.

Balancing organic against conventional methods, that is, spraying with anti-fungicide or not is something that I think most gardeners are aware of, and like to ere on the organic side of growing whenever possible.

The best varieties to grow, when using organic methods, are the ones that are most resistant to disease. These varieties are usually recent F1 hybrids that have been developed for their resistance to disease and other tomato problems.

However, there is something rather reassuring about growing heirloom or heritage varieties but sadly many of these need more protection against disease than their more recently developed counterparts.

Many would call F1 hybrid tomatoes progress, and I suppose that if we were making a living from growing tomatoes I would be relying on these to pay the bills, but I think that real tomato growing is about growing traditional, open pollinated varieties and keeping alive the taste and traditions of the past.