We’ve had a reasonable first year for tomatoes. Plenty of fruit, but we were hit hard by fruit fly and caterpillars (who decided they preferred eating the fruit from the inside out, rather than just munching on leaves). This wiped out most of the Grosse Lisse (the first to fruit), and half of all the rest. In the end, it was the yellow tomatoes that were the star, juicy and even sweeter than the red variety.

Once we’d eaten them fresh, there was still 5-6kg of tomatoes left over. Having collected four different preserving books, I created:

• Roast tomato passata (orange and yellow, referring to the colour not the taste)
• Tomato ketchup (superb, a real crowd pleaser!)
• Tomato chilli pickle (also a winner, wonderfully fruity flavour)

I’ve cut back the plants, and hold out some hope for a second crop of fruit. We’ll see.

Many lessons learnt this year, including putting out the fruit fly baits from the outset. Next year I’m aiming for at least 10kg of tomatoes.