Hi everyone. I got the tomato bug again and joined the forum a week or two ago. I've been reading through threads for inspiration and there's some great advice on here.

It's about 8 years since I last had a go at growing tomatoes as I eventually got fed up with late blight. Then life just got in the way. But I'm ready to try again!

I'm just sown my seeds in a heated propagator and have them under an LED grow light. The varieties I'm trying are Black Brandywine, Black Krim, Brandy Boy and Sophie's Choice. I'm probably being a little ambitious with the Brandywine and Krim as the growing season here in the north-west of England is often cloudy and fairly wet. I'm hoping that if I find a way to protect them from the worst of the rain then I stand a chance of avoiding my previous issues with blight. That's the plan anyway. At least Sophie's Choice should in theory give me a chance at getting some decent ripe fruit

I also love chilis and sweet peppers and haven't grown those for years either. I may be a little late with my starts as they're just starting to poke through the compost but I'll enjoy growing them anyway. I've started Jalapeño, Birdseye Italico, Aji Amarillo, Fatalli Peach, Habanero Giant White, Habanada, Havana Gold and for the sweet peppers - Kalbi Round, Kapia and Sweet Spirals.

For those in the same hemisphere as me - I wish you all a happy and fruitful growing season. For those in the south - I wish you all a bountiful harvest!

Looking forward to learning a lot more from you all over the coming months.........

All the best,
moo

Hello @moochops, welcome to TJ from central Texas, USA. There is indeed lots of good advice here from generous folk. I hope you have an encouraging first season back.

Welcome from America's Dairyland!

The Gotch

Welcome from the very dry desert southwest!

Hello @moochops welcome to the Junction. I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying the forum. There is lots of knowledge here and we all love to help.

If you have excess moisture you might want to invest in some copper spray. We also use Daconil here and alternate between using them both against fungal attacks. I don't know if you have that there or not.

Hi Moochops,
Greetings from the other side of the Pennines!
There are now a number of blight resistant toms available. My favourite of the easily available ones is Primabella which is OP. (I object to shelling out every year for F1s.)

Tim DH

Welcome to the forum! Good luck in your battle with those blights!

Welcome to the Junction from Down Under @moochops

Welcome to the forum!

Welcome and good luck with your tomatoes!

Welcome and good luck with your tomatoes!

Hello from France

Hi, moo! I am not too far from you in Liverpool.

As Tim mentioned, there are a lot of blight resistant varieties available to us in the UK now. If you avoid the bigger name seed shops, you can get them for about 10p per seed from somewhere like Premier Seeds Direct.

Welcome and good luck with your season!

MissS wrote: ↑Thu Mar 13, 2025 3:07 pm Hello @moochops welcome to the Junction. I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying the forum. There is lots of knowledge here and we all love to help.

If you have excess moisture you might want to invest in some copper spray. We also use Daconil here and alternate between using them both against fungal attacks. I don't know if you have that there or not.

All we have available as home gardeners is sulphur or tebuconazole/trifloxystrobin/triticonazole (for ornamentals only).

Welcome from Central Texas.

rossomendblot wrote: ↑Fri Mar 14, 2025 6:44 am

MissS wrote: ↑Thu Mar 13, 2025 3:07 pm Hello @moochops welcome to the Junction. I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying the forum. There is lots of knowledge here and we all love to help.

If you have excess moisture you might want to invest in some copper spray. We also use Daconil here and alternate between using them both against fungal attacks. I don't know if you have that there or not.

All we have available as home gardeners is sulphur or tebuconazole/trifloxystrobin/triticonazole (for ornamentals only).

You have milk and baking soda too!

Welcome from Seattle.

Hello from Bristol!
This forum is an absolute gem!

Thank you all for the warm welcome!
@MissS I had a look online for Daconil but it appears that was banned over here back in 2019 when were were still in the EU. I'll have a look into copper sprays though.

@Tim DH & @rossomendblot Thanks for the tip regarding blight resistant varieties. The problem I have is that I bought Carolyn's book years ago and I'm determined to grow some of the varieties in there. I'm probably punching above my weight though and perhaps it would be more prudent to heed your advice and actually get some edible fruit. I'm sure I can find room for an extra tomato plant