Self-Starting Winter Tomatoes

The keyhole garden continues to defy expectations even in the dead of winter

The Keyhole Garden on January 19, 2023 after 10″ of rain and freezing nights

I know I spend a lot of time boasting about my keyhole garden, but it’s really hard to overstate how awesome this raised bed is.

Over the past couple of weeks we received almost 11-inches of rain, and since it cleared out, nights have dropped below freezing. Along with the fact that this garden is currently only getting about five hours of sun a day, it’d be easy to assume the bed wasn’t doing much beyond waiting for spring.

But you know what they say about assumptions…

Not only do we have (way too much) lettuce, but cilantro, spinach, onions, garlic, broccoli, and even a few bell peppers from last fall are all growing.

Oh, and then there’s the tomato seedlings sprouting.

Tomato seedlings sprouting in the keyhole garden in January

I guess I didn’t clean up all the Tigerella tomatoes when I reloaded the bed in November. I overwintered a Tigerella tomato in the greenhouse a couple of years ago, so I guess they are cold-hardy.

Tigerella tomatoes in last year’s garden

It’ll be interesting to see if these guys make it. I’d love to have fresh tomatoes in March.