ODLINGEN
All tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, chillies and spices sold in Tomatens Hus are grown in our own greenhouses. The cultivation is about 8000 m2, everything is chemical-free and the greenhouses are heated with wood pellets.
Early in January, the growing year begins with the sowing of tomato seeds in our seed chamber. Newly sown seeds need heat and light, so we maintain a temperature of approx. 24 degrees. When the seeds have developed and become a small plant (after about two weeks), they can be moved out into the heated greenhouse where they are replanted in a larger pot and given more space. Even here they get extra light because the light in Sweden during winter is not enough for the plants to become strong and healthy.
Five weeks old, the tomato plants are ready to move out into the "real" greenhouse, where they grow in trays of pumice. The plants are tied up to get support and now they start to grow for real, between 20 and 25 cm a week. Water and nutrients are added regularly and all excess water is collected and recirculated back into the fertilizer mixer where it is mixed with new water and returned to the cultivation.
Five weeks old, the tomato plants are ready to move out into the "real" greenhouse where they grow in buckets with pumice. They are tied up to get support and now they start to grow for real, between 20 and 25 cm a week. Water and nutrients are added continuously and all excess water is recovered and recycled back into the fertilizer mixer where it is mixed with fresh water and returned to the cultivation.
No chemical pesticides are used in our cultivation, unwantsed vermins is controled biologically. We use utility animals, which are small insects with good properties. The beneficial animals eat mites or feed on unwanted eggs and larvae. Pollination of tomato plants takes place with the help of bumblebees.