Good morning Hampton Roads, Kregg here, from K&J Lawn and Garden Service, with your Garden Tip of the Week.

It’s that time of the year when I start preparing my vegetable garden, so thought I would share some tips on growing a favorite vegetable………or is it a fruit?

Now, before you run out to your local nursery or garden center to pick up some plants, I recommend you preheat the soil by covering the planting area with black plastic a couple of weeks before you intend to plant.  Preheating first will result in an earlier crop of tomatoes.

So once you’ve preheated your garden, bury the plants deep, about two thirds of it should be in the ground.  Tomato plants are able to develop roots all along their stems, so bury them for stronger, healthier and more fruitful plants.

And here are just a few of the many benefits from both tomatoes and gardening:

• Eating tomatoes can help improve skin texture and color,
• protect your liver and dissolve gallstones
• The Tomato is a natural antiseptic and gives you vitamin K, which helps to prevent hemorrhages
• Tomatoes contain Lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that can fight cancer.

Gardening is also a great way to relieve stress, get some physical exercise and be rewarded with healthy food. 

So get outside this weekend and start your own garden.

Kregg Deur
K&J Lawn and Garden Service LLC
E-mail:  KandJ_Lawn@cox.net
Mobile: (757) 630-4122   Fax: (757)351-1010
www.KandJLawn.com