It's possible to find a decent-looking tomato in winter, but I'm not convinced that it's possible to find one that actually tastes good. Delicious, homegrown tomatoes are so important where I live that some of us celebrate the harvest with a Tomato Queen party. I know the harvest is a long way off, but now is the perfect time for gardeners to remember how good homegrown tomatoes taste because this is when we remind each other to order seeds. The best time to sow seeds is six to eight weeks before the average last spring frost.
Come Labour Day in my neighborhood, a group of partygoers choose the best-tasting cherry, paste, beefsteak and regular tomatoes. From those winners, they choose the best-tasting tomato of all, the one that will earn its grower, male or female, the title of Tomato Queen.
When my seeds arrive, I pregerminate them. That way I grow only viable seeds and don't have to thin seedlings. On a piece of paper towel I write in ballpoint the name of the tomato variety, then I press the paper towel into the bottom of a plastic sandwich box, dampen it, and sprinkle onto the towel the number of seeds I want, allowing a few extra for insurance. I can grow more than one variety in the same box by dividing the paper towel into sections with my pen. I don't cover the seeds directly, but do put the lid on the box, which then goes into a warm place, around 30°C. I check daily to make sure the towel is still damp. In a few days, a little white rootlet appears on the side of the first seed to germinate. When it does, the seed is ready to plant.
