How do Bunnings get such great tomato plants?

barbs01

I noticed when i went to Bunnings how strong, healthy and vibrant the larger seedling plants looked in the pots. They had thick stems, green foliage and approx 500mm tall, in maybe 150mm pots. I was wondering what their gardeners do to achieve such healthy plants, is there a special soil mix or fertiliser they use? How are the seeds started, ie; what medium are they sown in? Are they grown in small trays then transplanted into the larger pots? Thanks

MitchellMc

Hi @barbs01,

Have you checked out @Adam_W's amazing series on How to grow tomatoes - from seed to harvest?

If the nurseries gave away all their secrets, we'd never buy from them again! Adam gives plenty of tips in his series that are worth following. Personally, I like to purchase plants that are already established. I find the amount of effort to grow from seed isn't worth it for me. In saying that, my tomatoes from last year have seeded themselves and are looking better than many that you see in stores. Go figure.

I think you'll find nurseries will germinate seeds in celled trays with coir mix and then slip pot them into their 150mm pot once they've established. That would generally be done in a hothouse to expedite the process. Once in the 150mm pots, they might be bought outside and regularly fed and watered until they reach the desired size for sale. They do this year after year on hundreds of thousands of plants and likely cull a vast number of the seeds that are sown as they don't meet the criteria for sale.

Mitchell