Shoppers across the UK have been struggling to get hold of tomatoes over the last few weeks, with supermarkets running out of stock.
Whether you're a vine, cherry or plum tomato fan, you will no doubt have noticed there are less of them on the shelves at the moment.
The shortage is down to a number of things, according to the Fresh Produce Journal, including flooding, heavy rain, cold temperatures and cancelled ferries.
If you're missing tomatoes, one thing you can do is grow them yourself at home – a cheap and convenient way of doing it.
Luckily, a couple of gardening experts have shared their best tips on how to grow the perfect tomatoes at home.
Now is the perfect time to grow tomatoes if you have somewhere warm, like a greenhouse – but if you're growing them outside it could be beneficial to wait until the end of May.
Author and expert gardener Sarah Raven shared another way of thinking about it. She told The Mirror: "A wise man once told me that tomatoes should be planted out when it's warm enough to eat outside without wrapping up in layers, and I've never forgotten this useful advice."
She added: "If you have space to grow tomatoes from seed under cover, sow them now in late February or early March, somewhere warm and cosy. Hopefully, this will give you decent-sized tomato plants that are ready and waiting to go into greenhouse beds or grow bags at the end of April, when very cold nights are unlikely.
"If you can only grow tomatoes from seed outside, I'd suggest waiting for another while until around the end of May. It's best to sow just seven or eight weeks before you can plant them out as you don't want your plants out when there is still a chance of night-time temperatures plummeting unexpectedly."
According to Holly Jones, plant expert at Garden Street, one of the main mistakes people make when growing tomatoes is planting at the wrong time.
She told The Mirror: "As tomato plants are warmer weather plants, the seeds need to be sown in plenty of time for them to grow in a warmer climate. Planting them too early or too late can be detrimental to their growth."
When it comes to planting them, you should use rich, fertile soil and position them in a sheltered but sunny spot.
Holly added: "Tomatoes need a sunny area with good draining and fertile soil to grow. Tomatoes can grow in a covered or sheltered area as long as they have plenty of sunlight ."
Sarah recommends using a "rich moisture retentive soil". She continued: "Tomato seeds can be sown in the usual way using a seed tray before pricking them out into individual small pots once they have two true leaves."
Remember you might need to use a stake or string to support the plant once it starts to grow properly.
At this point, you can transfer them outside, but Sarah says it's crucial to "gradually acclimatise" them to your "outdoor conditions before planting out".
She added: "Add plenty of compost or well-rotted manure prior to planting and create a shallow circular reservoir around the plant, this will help it to retain water. I'd recommend leaving 60-90cm (24-36in) between each plant and planting them deep, ideally sinking to a depth of 0.5cm below the seed leaves."
You also need to remember to water them regularly. Holly said: " For tomato plants to thrive and for the tomatoes to taste their best, the soil needs to be consistently moist."
Tomatoes generally take around six to eight weeks to grow from weeds, according to Holly – although this will be quicker if you have a greenhouse.
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