Got tomatoes?

We had our first tomato last week. I had a salad of our Mesclun mix and sliced tomato. I was disappointed in our tomatoes this year -- it seemed like they stayed about 3' tall for weeks and just recently have grown taller and fuller with little green tomatoes on them. We have patio tomatoes in an earth box on our deck that is covered in green tomatoes and blooms as well as Brandywines in another earth box and also in 5 gal. buckets. The bucket tomatoes are still small but will hopefully produce some late season fruit.

Ken in Glassboro, NJ

Where did the tomato poet go? he was funny!

Well, I pulled most of my tomatoes today and pitched them over the fence. They were spent. Done. Finished. But I had a huge crop this year. The problem here in Charleston is that those suckers all come at once. So for 6 glorious weeks you are inundated with tomatoes (even donating 2/3rds to the squirells and the birds), and you do without for the other 46 weeks. But those 6 weeks are well worth it! Found a new really good one this year called "German Giant". It's as close as I can come to the taste/texture of Brandywine in this hot climate. Resembles "Arkansas Traveler" in size/shape/color, but I thought it had more "tomato" flavor than my old stand-by... Will definitely plant again next year! The Sweet 100 is still producing in an Earth Box, but nighttime temps are getting out of hand here, so that may bite the bullet soon...

Anitra, every single tomato that I bought from the store - when I saved the seeds, they always sprouted. I've never tried any type of tomato that never sprouted. It's WAY cheaper than buying baby plants or seeds for that matter. ;-)

I can eat tomatoes in any form except fresh. Fresh tomatoes are just nasty. Yuck!

Love em fresh or processed......we hit 122 F (heat and humidity combined) two days ago.....the plants are looking good (we sure weren't though ;)

Been getting one or two a day since July 4th. Now there are more. First four plants are the Italian tree tomatos, 5th one is Early Girl, 6th one is Better boy, the last one and all the volunteers from last year are the Roma's. Anyone want a tomato?

We have had cherries for a couple of weeks. Picked my first Patio Princess today but haven't tasted it yet. A Mr. Stripey is starting to turn as well as one "Pineapple" and one "Aunt Ruby's German Green".

The rest are just getting bigger and bigger; falling over; have to re-stake.

Here is a close up of one of the Italian tree toms. They hardly have any seeds and are really sweet.

I don't have any plants myself, but have friends that have been giving me theirs. I shared tips with them that I learned from this site and they are getting better results than they ever have. I miss growing them myself and hope to again, hopefully in the near future. I miss growing them.

I haven't had any but the ground hog and something else - maybe deer ? Are eating the green ones right off the vine. We have a fenced yard... so it's a leap for the deer. What can I do to discourage?

Janiejoy,

Several suggestions: If you have a dog, move him and his dog house closer to the garden. Also, ground hog, and smaller animals are afraid of the smell of coyote, and fox. Sporting good stores sell the scent of preditor animals. Sprinkle it or spray it around the garden. Also blood meal seems to deter them. So do loud noises, or the scent of humans. Irish Spring soap cut up in small pieces and placed in the rows. Some people have had success with human hair. They ask the salons for hair clippings, and place them around the crops. Finally, just cage or place chicken wire over the entire tomato plant. Hope these suggestions are helpful

Arias

We have lots of Jaune Flammee ripe and more green ones than I can count. Sadly, I had to remove one of the plants today. The whole thing wilted all at once. I suspect fungus. It's very depressing to rip up all those green maters.

I have to add a big thanks to Critter for the jaune flammee seeds, they've been great for two seasons.

This message was edited Jul 27, 2007 7:20 PM

Yes, we have gotten a lot of good tomatoes. The problem is that being new to heirloom tomatoes, I made the mistake of planting different kinds too close together. They sprawled out and ran together so I'm not sure which varieties we're eating. I'll know better next year, lol.

Karen

I've tried growing container tomatoes here at the apartment with decent success but I unfortunately had a difficult time actually getting a ripe tomato for myself as the neighbors plucked them while I was at work:LOL: I gave up but happily support the awesome farmer's market that we have here. I get to try a huge variety of tomatoes without the work. Once I buy a place I will again be tending to the tomatoes but for now I will definitely enjoy the fruits of our local farmer's hard work=)

I am eating tomatoes. This is my first real year growing maters. I bought seeds late last year and thanks to methods I've learned on DG, I have somehow managed to get a very small but successful little crop: Early Girl, Brandywine Red, Brandywine Sudduth, Stupices, Cherokee Purple, and Better Boy.

I planted early in the year and I've had a few ripen each week since late June. Starting this week, I should have more than I can eat. It's time to share and to do taste tests to see which ones I want to plant next time!



This message was edited Jul 29, 2007 10:34 PM

We have lots of green ones.
Sometimes it's hard for them to get ripe... our sun is fleeting here in the NorCal coast.
Fog doesn't help much!
We've had ONE red little guy - and my almost 2 -year-old was so hapy that he ate it on the spot!

This is just one day's harvest. And the better boys are huge but not red yet.....

This message was edited Jul 30, 2007 11:48 AM

They look delicious nobbiegardener, enjoy!

dmac085. Are you talking about the market between G'boro and K'ville? If not, which one are you talking about? I get down that way once in a while and enjoy shopping at those markets.

free

WOW, noobiegardener, your harvest looks fantastic!

Thanks guys! They are yummy!

Great harvest noobiegardener. I thought I was doing great but can you are doing fantastic. You'll have to post your recipe for growing.

free

Thanks free. My secret is horse and llama manure that I put in the soil before I planted everything. Hubby tilled it all in thoroughly and everything is just growing like crazy. I have to take some more pictures. The corn is almost reaching the top of my garden cage...and my garden cage is SEVEN feet tall. I have four huge honey dew melons that I just can't wait to get at. I even have eggplants that are about the sizes of plums right now.

Hey free!

It's the one of of I-40 at Sandy Ridge Road. The Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market. It's a bit outside of Gboro. I get great produce, baked goods and great deals on plants.

Dmac where is this again? I will be in NC for a week starting saturday. My parents live in King, right outside of W/S. My mom has been looking for a good farmer's market.

noobiegardener: The Triad Farmers Market is just off of I-40 at the Sandy Ridge Road exit. If you are comming from King, follow Highway 52 South to I-40 East toward Greensboro. Don't take Business I-40 close to downtown Winston-Salem. That would cause problems when you get to Sandy Ridge Road. Follow Highway 52 for about another two miles to the main I-40. Follow I-40 toward Greensboro and when you pass exit 203 (Highway 66) get into the right hand lane. About three miles further Business I-40 and I-40 come together. Just after the merger you have to exit to the right. This is why you need to follow I-40 instead of Business I-40. You will not have to cross all of the lanes of traffic. Go to the top of the ramp and turn right. Go for a couple hundred yards and the entrance to the market will be on your left. I hope this helps Noo. Happy shopping.

free

Thank you ! I was trying to find a link to the info/MapQuest and closed the screen and couldn't figure out where this thread was:)

This message was edited Aug 3, 2007 5:27 PM

Thanks, Free! I'll tell my mom about it tomorrow when we arrive in NC.

Dmac...I used to live in Greensboro for about a year back in the early 90's. My cousins went to NC A&T, met their hubbies in G'Boro and, well, never left.

I moved here on a whim back in 1994 and haven't left:) Oddly enough though I still call NM home:lol:
Hope you both have a great time--try to stay cool, it's supposed to hit around 95 tomorrow-blech!

Hey dmac: Where in NM do you call home? I'm leaving this coming Wed., the 8th, going to Albq. My older brother lives in Rio Rancho and my son lives in Belen. Going to see my GRANDDAUGHTER for the first time. My only grandchild. I'm going to spoil her till she can't stand it and then leave her with her parents. lol

free

dmac: You know of any good markets out in NM? I would love to get some good chile peppers.
I picked some tomatoes today but, I am having some go bad. They are turning white while still green. I,ll ask about it over in another thread.

This message was edited Aug 4, 2007 1:13 PM

My home town is Alamogordo NM which in down in the southeastern part of the state, about 4 hours from the Albq. area. The Albq. and Santa Fe area is usually full of great shopping and places to see so I'm sure that there is a wonderful farmer's market in the area. I found this site with google, maybe it will help pin down a good location.

http://www.farmersmarketsnm.org/locations.htm

My hometown in about 2 hours from El Paso TX and the US/Mexico border. Right down the highway from us is Las Cruces and a small town named Hatch which has the best green chilies anywhere:) I'm pretty sure that you'll be able to find them all over the state. One of our local grocery stores would have huge bins of them and outside the store they had a giant roaster and they would roast them for you on site. They also sell them peeled, chopped and frozen or fresh in 1 qt plastic tubs in many locations.

Well, of course you're going to spoil her=) That's exactly what you're supposed to do;) Hope you have a wonderful time!

demac: Thanks for the site. It will save me a lot of time. Dmail me if you want me to bring back some chilie peppers. I have to come through Greensboro on the way back from RDU. Can meet you somewhere like the Triad Farmers Market or Four Seasons.
If not HAPPY GARDENING.

free

Ooops!

I was looking for this thread to post a picture of my
Black Krims. They are finally doing something!

Teresa, they sure are. Is the Black Krims a cooking tomatoe or a sandwich tomatoe. How many plants do you have?

free

Free, I have 4 plants of the Krims. They are sandwich toms. This is my first year with them and I hear that they are pretty sweet.