{"id":2157,"date":"2023-08-23T11:09:45","date_gmt":"2023-08-23T11:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/?p=2157"},"modified":"2023-08-25T07:34:38","modified_gmt":"2023-08-25T07:34:38","slug":"true-colours-tomatoes-with-niall-radford","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/2023\/08\/23\/true-colours-tomatoes-with-niall-radford\/","title":{"rendered":"True Colours – Tomatoes With Niall Radford"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fancy a look at some truly stunning tomatoes, shapely as anything on earth, and full of indescribable, inimitable colour? Well come and see what Niall Radford<\/a> has been up to using our systems! He\u2019ll let you in on how the magic happens too – if you\u2019re very well behaved.<\/p>

\"Walk
Above: Walk this way, for Crushed Hearts and Kaledescopic Jewels of the Niall<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

Concentrating his efforts on a couple of small greenhouses for 2023, Niall has seemingly devised a perfect set up for his 25L \/ 6.6 gal AutoPot XL modules<\/a>. \u2018I only fill them to about 15L \/ 3.9 gal with a mixture of coir, compost, and perlite.\u2019 This grow media seems to have provided a winning combination of aeration and water retention in which Niall\u2019s beautifully niche heirloom tomatoes are thriving. <\/p>

\"Niall\u2019s
Above: Niall\u2019s greenhouses exhibit terrific variety, a real flair for growing, and some spic\u2019n\u2019span 25 L \/ 6.6 gal XL modules<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

Think fruity-fresh, Sart Roloise<\/a> with their gorgeous, ombre fades from purple shoulders to yellow\/green blossom ends. Admire Niall\u2019s perfectly formed, intensely flavoursome, indigo and green-mottled Kaleidoscopic Jewels<\/a>, dazzling little opal shaped fruit that absolutely live up to their moniker. Prefer something milder, yet dense and meaty? Niall\u2019s crushing that too with voluptuously shaped, crimson and black Crushed Hearts<\/a>. <\/p>

\"Crushed
Above: Crushed Hearts and Sart Roloise tomatoes thriving in Niall\u2019s coir \/ compost \/ perlite grow media<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

Yet more colour variety is on show with orange-black\/purple Lucid Gems<\/a>, a beautiful, sweet tomato that dials down on acidity. Like to get trippy inside? You\u2019ll love Niall\u2019s P20 Beauty King\u2019s<\/a> with their wildly structured, vibrant pink interiors. The list can, and does, go on, running the gamut of Ozark Sunrise, Midnight Sun, Black Beauty, Rebel Starfighter VT16, Pink Berkeley Tie Dye, and Blue Beauty, many of which are available via Niall\u2019s smart and informative seed shop<\/a>. Fed on Hydrosol<\/a> (a two-part, water-soluble, mineral feed) and a little Fulvic Acid the plants and fruit are exhibiting a robustness of form and colour that is quite extraordinary.<\/p>

\"Do
Above: Do not adjust your set – Rebel Starfighter VT16\u2019s producing their characteristic \u2018transmission-interference\u2019 patterns whilst the Crushed Hearts develop their wildly varied palette<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

The fruit are able to reach such astonishing highs thanks, in part, to the means by which they\u2019re supported. In their individual AutoPot modules the plants each draw water from a reservoir, via pipework to their own individual requirements. As the plants know the correct rate of intake better than any human they\u2019re always set fair to achieve their full potential. As well as being highly effective, the particular system setup Niall is using is also a great advert for the longevity and sustainability of AutoPot hardware. <\/p>

\"All
Above: All good stuff – Niall\u2019s AutoPot modules
may not be bang up to date but they remain incredibly effective<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Rather than opting for the very latest model trays, pipe, and fittings, Niall has made good with his existing, old-style 3mm aperture \/ 6mm outer AutoPot kit. Here and there the system has been extended and renovated using our still-available range of 6mm spares<\/a>. But essentially this is a excellent example of how the systems can provide exceptional results year-on-year, with minimal changes required. As Niall explains, \u2018I just purchased a few new AQUAvalves and extra pipe for this greenhouse as I had some spare pots and trays<\/a>. Although running on the original smaller aperture, I\u2019ve not encountered any blockages. As a matter of course I run off a litre daily just to make sure everything is moving, but other than that there\u2019s very little extra work involved\u2019. <\/p>

\"Minor
Above: Minor tweaks and the odd replacement part keep Niall\u2019s systems running perfectly<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

Making the greenhouse as user friendly as possible is key, especially when you\u2019re looking to maximise floorspace. Niall has some sound advice on this front too. \u2018If I was setting this up again, I\u2019d run the main feed line round the front of the pots (outside perimeter of the greenhouse) rather than down the middle of the floor. Down the middle lends itself to inevitably standing on the joints and potentially causing small leaks.\u2019<\/p>

\u2018Plumbing in the pipe work for this 12Pot XL<\/a> set up took less than 30 minutes, it\u2019s always handy to have some warm water to dip the pipe in before pushing on to the connectors. I\u2019ve found from experience that this makes the job a whole lot easier and quicker.\u2019<\/p>

\"Riding
Above: Riding the wave – Niall\u2019s plants just keep on producing, the latest fruits being these pear-shaped Sea Horses (Left) and a host of fresh hierlooms (Right)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

When you think how often you see great plants in a well maintained space you realise how much of growing isn\u2019t rocket science. Keeping kit in good nick<\/a> really can help you get great results, a theory Niall extends to his water supply. \u2018I probably don\u2019t need to, but I fully drain the reservoir every third filling, give it a good wash out and also give the main feed line a good flush with water. Purely precautionary but good practice that probably stems from a prior life in the hospitality industry – cleaning beer lines!\u2019<\/p>

\u2018The twelve XL\u2019s in the small greenhouse are running off a 225 L \/ 60 gal FlexiTank<\/a> which is a bit excessive as they\u2019re only getting through about a third of a tank a week – handy if I had a 3 week holiday though!\u2019 And who wouldn\u2019t want a little getaway given the conditions we\u2019ve all been enjoying of late!?<\/p>

\"Because
Above: Because they\u2019re worth it – it\u2019s no accident that plants thrive in well-kept growing spaces<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

The weather, whatever. On every conceivable level this summer\u2019s squibs have been almost exclusively damp for Niall and most U.K. growers alike. That has eased some of the usual pressures of excess temperatures, but it also complicates matters considerably. In the heat growers can set up for extended hot spells and (almost) predict when they\u2019ll need to deploy climatic controls. <\/p>

\"Enough
Above: Enough said! Ah, go on then, you twisted our arm – Midnight Sun ripening beautifully in Niall\u2019s ultra-responsive, water efficient systems<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

Instead, with fluctuating but generally sub par temps and rain aplenty, it\u2019s a fine balance to be struck between maintaining airflow and maximising warmth, such as it is! Consistently inconsistent, there\u2019s often a seasonably hot day to throw into the mix too. In Niall\u2019s experience of 2023, \u2018the weather has been a hinderance with fruit slow to ripen, it has also meant that I\u2019ve had to pay a lot more attention to ventilation\u2019. The general health of the plants has not been too bad though and at least responding to variable watering requirements is entirely taken care of with his XL modules, minimising workload on the irrigation front. <\/p>

Still can\u2019t get enough of these beautiful tomatoes? Neither can we, that\u2019s why we follow Niall\u2019s continuing adventures via his insta feed @niallradford<\/a> – as should you, hasten there at once, there\u2019s something new to see practically every day!  <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fancy a look at some truly stunning tomatoes, shapely as anything on earth, and full of indescribable, inimitable colour? Well come and see what Niall Radford has been up to using our systems! He\u2019ll let you in on how the magic happens too – if you\u2019re very well behaved. Concentrating his efforts on a couple […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[88],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-autopot-news-august-2023"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/08\/True_Colours_Main.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2157"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2159,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2157\/revisions\/2159"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/autopot.co.uk\/garden\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}