Did Henry VIII die without having tasted a tomato ?
If only they’d been discovered and made it to England in time .
What relief it would have been for the royal wives to have him pottering in the greenhouse instead of plotting their demise, too preoccupied with pinching out to worry about their pretty ( or not so pretty) unfortunate heads.
All this and more to consider at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show. My first, very enjoyable visit. Large in scale but friendly, a village show on steroids.
I managed to take in most of it but was of course on the look out for all things tomatoes.
First, container gardening: 
Is this what happens when you buy a packet of seeds at a show and forget to take them out of your bag when you get home !
This Sungold in a non regulation growbag is from the quirky fun but functional display for Sea Spring Seeds. I bought a packet of Apero for next years sowing . Described by their grower as fantastic flavour, wonderfully sweet and a strong tomato taste. We also discussed the work involved in tomato growing which is why Sea Spring Seeds only sell varieties that in their own trials, really deliver flavour. The ultimate reward for all that work !
And just for the fun…. some more unconventional growing containers from Sea Spring. 
Which I enjoyed a lot more than the RHS bra-skets and plant-pants washing line. For me, there was something unappetising about the mix of (hopefully clean but muddy) underwear with strawberries , tomatoes etc dangling from them. I didn’t think the tomatoes looked too happy about it either. They may not have been ripe but blushing !
Traditional but pleasing was the profusion of Garden Pearl in this handsome container. I would love to trade up from a Wilko pot to this next year. But still, I was thrilled that the actual Garden Pearl toms didn’t look so different from mine right now.
Hampton Court, part two . Head and Heart….I lose both …….
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