«Mountain Vesuvius» - Organic Tomato Seeds

This is a very interesting variety that has circulated around some farmers markets in the SF Bay Area. The variety appears to have similarities to the famous Piennolo tomatoes grown on the slopes of Mt. Vesuvius.

Detailed Mountain Vesuvius Tomato Info:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Most gardeners want to get the most out of these delicious heirloom tomatoes and therefore give them a head start on the growing season.  Start these vegetable seeds indoors in sterile potting mix being sure to keep the temperature above 70 degrees.  Some people prefer to use a grow pad but the top of the fridge has been known to be quite effective as well.

Once the first true leaves appear on your tomato seedlings, transplant into 4" pots until you have completely hardened them off in the garden.  Hardening is a process of exposing the plants more and more to outside temperature until they are hardy enough to tollerat a complete outdoor move.  Generally speaking, by early summer heirloom tomatoes should be transplated into the garden.

Most heirloom varieties are quite productive and will greatly benefit from sturdy supports.  It may also be advisable to add blood and bone to the worked soil to help ensure healthy productive heirloom tomatoes.
 

Heirloom seeds are hardy but always take care with your garden seeds to give them the appropriate amount of moisture - not letting the vegetable seeds dry out prematurely or overwatering and possibly having them rot.