Q: Last year, all of the cauliflower heads in my garden were a yellowish-white color. I didn't realize they weren't going to turn pure white until it came time to harvest them. I planted more heads this year, and I want to know how to blanch them. What I have read so far is confusing. Some are self-blanching and some are not. What do you suggest?

A: Blanching is the gardening term for blocking a vegetable's flower head from light. Many people are surprised to find out that the flower buds on cauliflower are not white on their own. They will be pink or yellow if they are exposed to a lot of sunlight.

The normal way to blanch cauliflower heads is to pull several leaves up over the top of the flower head while the head is only an inch or two wide. Hold the leaves in place with a clothespin, a rubber band, a piece of string or a piece of tape. As the flower head grows, you may need to rearrange the leaves to keep the flower head covered. Don't fasten the leaves too tight, or they may restrict the flower head's growth. The head may only need to be covered for a week.

If you do not blanch the flower head, the cauliflower can taste strong or even bitter. Self-blanching cauliflower plants have leaves that naturally curl over the top of the plant and block the flower head from light exposure. If the weather is too warm for these varieties their leaves may not curl, and you may have to do it for them.

There are varieties of cauliflower that have orange, purple or green heads. They do not have to be blanched. Since cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage all come from the same ancestor, you may actually see the orange or purple varieties listed as varieties of broccoli.

Q: My friends have always had tomatoes earlier than everyone else. I know they plant them in their garden early, but when I tried to do that the plants didn't grow well. What can I do to get my tomatoes to grow faster?

A: Growing the first tomato of the season is something I have heard other gardeners boast about, too. For gardeners in the northern U.S., the freshest tomatoes grow in summer. But for some gardeners who live in the south, like southern Florida, tomatoes are planted in the fall and harvested all winter so they can have tomatoes in January and beat all the gardeners in the north by six months.

To grow tomatoes in your garden, you need to know what the soil temperature is a few inches below ground. Tomatoes will sulk for several weeks if planted in soil that is below 55 degrees Fahrenheit. And if the air temperature drops below 55 degrees at night the roots won't grow and any flowers will fall off.

Soil will warm up sooner if it's in a warm part of the yard than if it's in the shade. Covering the garden with a layer of clear or black plastic can warm up the soil faster. However, tomato plants that are planted in a location that warms up fast in the spring may get too hot in the summer. They will not bear fruit if exposed to temperatures over 85 degrees in the daytime and 75 degrees at night, hence why they are not grown in Florida during the summer.

Tomatoes should be planted around the time of the last frost. You can plant them earlier if you can keep the plants warm in temperatures below the 50s, if you plant them in a warm location or if you plant them in a location where you can warm the soil with a plastic.

Email questions to Jeff Rugg at [email protected]. To find out more about Jeff Rugg and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.