There was no harvest on Saturday.
However, the gardeners came and pulled out plenty of tomato plants. The carnage included Sweet 100, Copper River, Big Bite, Carmello, Thessaloniki, Giant Syrian, German Orange Strawberry, Snow White(1), Black and Brown Boar(2), Purple Dog Creek, Delicious, Neves Azorean Red, Italian Heirloom, Amazon Chocolate, Amana Orange, Aunt Ruby's German Green, Watermelon and Pineapple(2) -- 18 plants in all. I might have kept one or two of those, but a vast majority were ready to go. We're left with 6 plants left but one of them was missed by the gardeners. We have 5 good ones remaining.
Both Husky Cherry Red tomato plants are still going even though they were planted in February. They're tough, rugged plants that take a licking and keep on ticking...
Yesterday got up to 101.9. The heat just will not let up for any appreciable period of time...
Today's harvest includes 4 Husky Cherry Red(2), SunGold and Husky Cherry Red(1) for a total of 6 tomatoes.
Showing posts with label Amana Orange. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Amana Orange. Show all posts
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Back Yard Harvest Twice Front Yard Harvest For 2012
Saturday's harvest includes 4 Delicious, 2 SunGold, 2 Amana Orange, 2 Big Bite, 2 Carmello, Copper River, Husky Cherry Red(1), Husky Cherry Red(2), Thessaloniki, Speckled Roman(3), Black and Brown Boar(2), Purple Dog Creek (6 ounces) and Neves Azorean Red for a total of 20 tomatoes.
Saturday my wife and I plus about 30 of our friends and family celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary at Castaways Restaurant in Burbank. It was a ton of fun for everyone involved.
I love you, sweetie!!
Today's harvest includes 5 Speckled Roman(3), 4 Delicious, 2 Neves Azorean Red, 2 SunGold, 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), Pierce's Pride(1), Oaxacan Pink, Husky Cherry Red(1), Thessaloniki, Snow White(1) and Amana Orange for a total of 21 tomatoes.
Several more tomato plants are ready to be pulled. We may be up to 10 more ready to come out.
The back yard harvest total is over twice the front yard harvest total (7201 vs 3597) for this year.
Saturday my wife and I plus about 30 of our friends and family celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary at Castaways Restaurant in Burbank. It was a ton of fun for everyone involved.
I love you, sweetie!!
Today's harvest includes 5 Speckled Roman(3), 4 Delicious, 2 Neves Azorean Red, 2 SunGold, 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), Pierce's Pride(1), Oaxacan Pink, Husky Cherry Red(1), Thessaloniki, Snow White(1) and Amana Orange for a total of 21 tomatoes.
Several more tomato plants are ready to be pulled. We may be up to 10 more ready to come out.
The back yard harvest total is over twice the front yard harvest total (7201 vs 3597) for this year.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Harvested Copper River!
Today's harvest includes 5 Snow White(1), 4 SunGold, 4 Delicious, 2 Copper River (new), 2 Amana Orange, 2 Aunt Ruby's German Green, 2 Snow White(2), 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Husky Cherry Red(1), Redfield Beauty, Speckled Roman(3) and Neves Azorean Red for a total of 28 tomatoes.
Well, it's good to see Copper River being harvested! The tomatoes are small but look pretty good. And today's two tomatoes for Copper River means it has rocketed past Italian Tree and tied with Chile Verde on the 2012 harvest totals. We've only harvested a single Italian Tree tomato. We got a second Italian Tree tomato, but it had too much blossom end rot to be usable when mature. Next up: Green Zebra with 3 harvested tomatoes.
I don't think I've harvested a first tomato with a longer maturity. It took 130 days to harvest the first Copper River tomato. It was planted on May 5 of this year.
Well, it's good to see Copper River being harvested! The tomatoes are small but look pretty good. And today's two tomatoes for Copper River means it has rocketed past Italian Tree and tied with Chile Verde on the 2012 harvest totals. We've only harvested a single Italian Tree tomato. We got a second Italian Tree tomato, but it had too much blossom end rot to be usable when mature. Next up: Green Zebra with 3 harvested tomatoes.
I don't think I've harvested a first tomato with a longer maturity. It took 130 days to harvest the first Copper River tomato. It was planted on May 5 of this year.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Pulled Five Front Yard Tomato Plants
Today's harvest includes 4 Snow White(1), 3 Snow White(2), 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Delicious, 2 SunGold, Porkchop(1), Ella's Pink Plum, Yellow Perfection, Husky Cherry Red(1), Husky Cherry Red(2), Carmello, Speckled Roman(3), Italian Heirloom (6 ounces), Amana Orange, Aunt Ruby's German Green and Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red for a total of 24 tomatoes.
My wife pulled out Jaune Flamme(1), Black Krim(1), Indigo Apple(1), Oaxacan Jewel and Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, all from the front yard. Indigo Apple(1) was a bit of a surprise, but it was clearly near the end anyway. Also, she watered the front yard, including the remaining front yard tomatoes.
We've now harvested over 50 Delicious tomatoes (51).
And we've passed the 10,700 mark for the year (10706).
On a somber note, on this date last year our Manchester Terrier was put to sleep. Buster's body failed him but he never failed us.
My wife pulled out Jaune Flamme(1), Black Krim(1), Indigo Apple(1), Oaxacan Jewel and Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, all from the front yard. Indigo Apple(1) was a bit of a surprise, but it was clearly near the end anyway. Also, she watered the front yard, including the remaining front yard tomatoes.
We've now harvested over 50 Delicious tomatoes (51).
And we've passed the 10,700 mark for the year (10706).
On a somber note, on this date last year our Manchester Terrier was put to sleep. Buster's body failed him but he never failed us.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Fourteen Plants Pulled...
Today's harvest includes 10 Snow White(1), 3 Amana Orange, 3 Indigo Rose, 2 Snow White(2), 2 Carmello, 2 Delicious (6 ounces), Husky Cherry Red(1), Thessaloniki, Nebraska Wedding, Japanese Black Trifele, Pierce's Pride(1), Porkchop(1), SunGold, Ella's Pink Plum, Big Bite (6 ounces), Brad's Black Heart, Italian Heirloom, Marianna's Peace (6 ounces) and Marmara for a total of 35 tomatoes.
The gardeners did come and pull tomatoes. A lot of them, all in the back yard. The list includes Black Cherry(1), Brad's Black Heart, Black From Tula, Japanese Black Trifele, Black Cherry(2), Marianna's Peace, Noire Charbonneuse(2), Indigo Apple(2), Earl of Edgecombe, Gypsy, Marmara, Red Boar(1), Indigo Rose and Red Boar(2)...14 plants in all. And the ones I listed yesterday need to be removed as well.
Having noted that, I wasn't expecting either Black Cherry to be pulled. But it's done. The raised bed is now cleared out with the removal of Indigo Rose and Red Boar(2). The ground will be prepared for winter crops.
Some of the pulled plants had salvageable tomatoes, which were added to today's totals.
Will we break our all time record? Perhaps, but the removal of the two Black Cherry plants puts it in some doubt.
On a bookkeeping note, Garden Peach was pulled a while ago. I guessed the date as August 22.
The gardeners did come and pull tomatoes. A lot of them, all in the back yard. The list includes Black Cherry(1), Brad's Black Heart, Black From Tula, Japanese Black Trifele, Black Cherry(2), Marianna's Peace, Noire Charbonneuse(2), Indigo Apple(2), Earl of Edgecombe, Gypsy, Marmara, Red Boar(1), Indigo Rose and Red Boar(2)...14 plants in all. And the ones I listed yesterday need to be removed as well.
Having noted that, I wasn't expecting either Black Cherry to be pulled. But it's done. The raised bed is now cleared out with the removal of Indigo Rose and Red Boar(2). The ground will be prepared for winter crops.
Some of the pulled plants had salvageable tomatoes, which were added to today's totals.
Will we break our all time record? Perhaps, but the removal of the two Black Cherry plants puts it in some doubt.
On a bookkeeping note, Garden Peach was pulled a while ago. I guessed the date as August 22.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
More Plants Going Soon...
Today's harvest includes 9 Black Cherry(1), 6 Snow White(1), 5 Indigo Apple(2), 4 Amana Orange, 4 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 4 SunGold, 3 Brad's Black Heart (6 ounces, 7.5 ounces, 8.5 ounces), 3 Indigo Rose, 2 Aunt Ruby's German Green, 2 Black Cherry(2), 2 Marmara, 2 Snow White(2), 2 Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, 2 Carmello, 2 Husky Cherry Red(1), Pierce's Pride(1), Black Krim(1), Oaxacan Jewel, Big Bite, Yellow Perfection, Thessaloniki, German Orange Strawberry, Japanese Black Trifele and Speckled Roman(3) for a total of 61 tomatoes.
The gardeners will come by again and pull out some tomato plants. The "fungusy" ones are likely to go with other random ones as well. In the front yard, Black Krim(1), Jaune Flamme(1) and Oaxacan Jewel can be pulled. The back yard has a few "fungusy" ones that can go.
Today's harvest was a little aggressive in anticipation of some of these plants being pulled.
No milestones were hit today unless you count 25 Brad's Black Heart tomatoes.
The gardeners will come by again and pull out some tomato plants. The "fungusy" ones are likely to go with other random ones as well. In the front yard, Black Krim(1), Jaune Flamme(1) and Oaxacan Jewel can be pulled. The back yard has a few "fungusy" ones that can go.
Today's harvest was a little aggressive in anticipation of some of these plants being pulled.
No milestones were hit today unless you count 25 Brad's Black Heart tomatoes.
Friday, September 7, 2012
Harvested Over 10,500 Tomatoes This Year!
Today's harvest includes 13 Black Cherry(1), 7 Snow White(1), 5 Indigo Rose, 4 SunGold, 4 Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, 3 Japanese Black Trifele, 2 Oaxacan Jewel, 2 Carmello, 2 Husky Cherry Red(1), 2 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 2 Amana Orange (6 ounces), 2 Speckled Roman(3), 2 Indigo Apple(2), German Orange Strawberry, Black Cherry(2), Marianna's Peace (7.5 ounces), Neves Azorean Red (6 ounces), Gypsy, Black From Tula, Big Bite, Yellow Perfection, Oaxacan Pink, Aunt Ruby's German Green, Red Currant, Marmara, Jaune Flamme(1) and Porkchop(1) for a total of 64 tomatoes.
I'm not sure why we harvested one less tomato than we did yesterday. Yesterday covered two days. I guess I didn't do as good a job of harvesting the ripe tomatoes toward in the "Far East", the far side of our back yard tomato plants.
My wife made sauce out of our harvested tomatoes, mixed it with Italian sausage and served it with ravioli. Good stuff!
We've now harvested over 10,500 tomatoes for the year (10529)! We're plugging along...
I'm not sure why we harvested one less tomato than we did yesterday. Yesterday covered two days. I guess I didn't do as good a job of harvesting the ripe tomatoes toward in the "Far East", the far side of our back yard tomato plants.
My wife made sauce out of our harvested tomatoes, mixed it with Italian sausage and served it with ravioli. Good stuff!
We've now harvested over 10,500 tomatoes for the year (10529)! We're plugging along...
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Harvested Over 2650 SunGold Tomatoes!
Today's harvest includes 8 Black Cherry(1), 7 Indigo Rose, 5 Husky Cherry Red(1), 4 Black Cherry(2), 4 Snow White(1), 4 Snow White(2), 4 Red Currant, 3 Red Boar(1), 3 SunGold, 3 Italian Heirloom, 2 Oaxacan Jewel, 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 2 Indigo Apple(2), 2 Thessaloniki, 2 Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, Pierce's Pride(1), Big Bite, Yellow Perfection, Amana Orange, Oaxacan Pink, Carmello, Marmara and Speckled Roman(3) for a total of 65 tomatoes.
No harvest on Wednesday. I had trouble getting to sleep on Tuesday night.
On Tuesday my wife pulled Black and Brown Boar(1) and Dr. Wyche's Yellow. Yesterday she pulled Crimson Cushion, Taxi, Tolstoi and SunSugar. Pulling SunSugar was a surprise because it still had some life but she indicated that she wanted the terra cotta pots for growing lettuce. She's the one keepting the plants alive with her watering so if she wants to pull it that's good enough for me.
Also, several plants were trimmed. And the back yard tomatoes were partially watered.
We've now harvested over 2650 SunGold tomatoes (2652)! Also, we've harvested over 50 Noire Charbonneuse(2) tomatoes (51).
No harvest on Wednesday. I had trouble getting to sleep on Tuesday night.
On Tuesday my wife pulled Black and Brown Boar(1) and Dr. Wyche's Yellow. Yesterday she pulled Crimson Cushion, Taxi, Tolstoi and SunSugar. Pulling SunSugar was a surprise because it still had some life but she indicated that she wanted the terra cotta pots for growing lettuce. She's the one keepting the plants alive with her watering so if she wants to pull it that's good enough for me.
Also, several plants were trimmed. And the back yard tomatoes were partially watered.
We've now harvested over 2650 SunGold tomatoes (2652)! Also, we've harvested over 50 Noire Charbonneuse(2) tomatoes (51).
Friday, August 31, 2012
Harvested Over 150 Indigo Rose Tomatoes!
Today's harvest includes 7 Thessaloniki, 6 Indigo Rose, 6 Yellow Perfection, 5 Black Cherry(1), 4 Husky Cherry Red(1), 2 SunGold, 2 Indigo Apple(2), 2 Snow White(1), Porkchop(1), Black and Brown Boar(1), Dr. Wyche's Yellow, Red Currant, Big Bite, Carmello, Japanese Black Trifele, Amana Orange, Marmara and Red Boar(2) for a total of 44 tomatoes.
It got up to 98.0 yesterday, still pretty hot.
We ended up harvesting 3240 tomatoes for the month of August. That's a very, very solid total considering how hot it was all month.
We've now harvested over 150 Indigo Rose tomatoes for the year (152)! Also, we ended up harvesting 200 Snow White(1) tomatoes and 50 Carmello tomatoes for the month of August.
More plants can be pulled when my wife can get around to pulling them. The August heat was murder on these plants...
It got up to 98.0 yesterday, still pretty hot.
We ended up harvesting 3240 tomatoes for the month of August. That's a very, very solid total considering how hot it was all month.
We've now harvested over 150 Indigo Rose tomatoes for the year (152)! Also, we ended up harvesting 200 Snow White(1) tomatoes and 50 Carmello tomatoes for the month of August.
More plants can be pulled when my wife can get around to pulling them. The August heat was murder on these plants...
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Harvested 100 Carmello Tomatoes This Year!
Today's harvest includes 15 SunGold, 10 Carmello, 9 Snow White(2), 7 Black Cherry(1), 6 Red Currant, 3 Oaxacan Pink, 3 Indigo Rose, 3 Big Bite, 3 Yellow Perfection, 3 Husky Cherry Red(1), 2 Dr. Wyche's Yellow, 2 Oaxacan Jewel (7 ounces), 2 Redfield Beauty, 2 Red Boar(1), 2 Thessaloniki, Indigo Apple(1), Pineapple(1) (8.5 ounces), Nyagous(1), Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, Brad's Black Heart (6.5 ounces), Pink Furry Boar, Snow White(1), Black and Brown Boar(2), Purple Dog Creek, Delicious, Black Cherry(2), Amana Orange, Noire Charbonneuse(2) and Tolstoi for a total of 86 tomatoes.
My wife pulled Pineapple Pig, Yellow Furry Boar, Red Boar(2) and Porkchop(2). My wife spotted the tomato on Yellow Furry Boar but declared it as not worth saving and pulled the plant.
If you'll notice, all four tomatoes were developed at Wild Boar Farms. Wild Boar Farms has some tremendous varieties and we will always grow tomatoes developed there, but the plants simply do not last in the heat of the San Fernando Valley.
Carmello is going through a second wind, as well as Red Currant to a lesser degree.
Also, my wife watered all of the back yard tomatoes.
We've now harvested over 700 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (706) and 100 Carmello tomatoes this year.
My wife pulled Pineapple Pig, Yellow Furry Boar, Red Boar(2) and Porkchop(2). My wife spotted the tomato on Yellow Furry Boar but declared it as not worth saving and pulled the plant.
If you'll notice, all four tomatoes were developed at Wild Boar Farms. Wild Boar Farms has some tremendous varieties and we will always grow tomatoes developed there, but the plants simply do not last in the heat of the San Fernando Valley.
Carmello is going through a second wind, as well as Red Currant to a lesser degree.
Also, my wife watered all of the back yard tomatoes.
We've now harvested over 700 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (706) and 100 Carmello tomatoes this year.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Harvested Over 7500 Tomatoes This Year!
Today's harvest includes 32 SunGold, 12 Husky Cherry Red(2), 11 Snow White(2), 10 Black Cherry(1), 8 Snow White(1), 7 Redfield Beauty, 7 Husky Cherry Red(1), 4 Creme Brulee, 4 SunSugar, 3 Pink Furry Boar, 3 German Orange Strawberry (8 ounces, 9 ounces, 6.5 ounces), 3 Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, 3 Garden Peach, 3 Speckled Roman(3), 2 Nyagous(1), 2 White Zebra, 2 Red Boar(1), 2 Black Cherry(2), 2 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 2 Pineapple Pig (7 ounces), 2 Indigo Apple(1), 2 Aunt Ruby's German Green (6 ounces, 11.5 ounces), 2 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 2 Sweet Baby Girl, 2 Gypsy, 2 Sweet Million, 2 Ella's Pink Plum, 2 Jaune Flamme(2), 2 Indigo Rose, Kellogg's Breakfast, Chinese Tea, Pierce's Pride(1), Noire Charbonneuse(1), Dr. Wyche's Yellow (7 ounces), Sweet 100, Red Currant, Brad's Black Heart (14 ounces), Black Krim(2), Black From Tula, Nebraska Wedding (8 ounces), Yellow Furry Boar, Black and Brown Boar(2), Delicious (8 ounces), Amazon Chocolate, Amana Orange (12 ounces), Indigo Apple(2), Earl of Edgecombe, Marmara, Ramapo, Red Boar(2) and Green Grape for a total of 162 tomatoes.
This is being written just after the tomato tasting party at Loteria Grill but I'll save that for tomorrow's post.
Yesterday my wife completed watering the back yard. She also made fig jam. However, she said she used the wrong pectin so it's more of a fig sauce/syrup than a jam.
In the evening we tried Aunt Ruby's German Green and it was delicious!
We've now harvested over 7500 tomatoes this year (7576) and we're still going strong. This could be a tremendous year. Also we've harvested over 650 Husky Cherry Red(2) tomatoes (657) for the year.
This is being written just after the tomato tasting party at Loteria Grill but I'll save that for tomorrow's post.
Yesterday my wife completed watering the back yard. She also made fig jam. However, she said she used the wrong pectin so it's more of a fig sauce/syrup than a jam.
In the evening we tried Aunt Ruby's German Green and it was delicious!
We've now harvested over 7500 tomatoes this year (7576) and we're still going strong. This could be a tremendous year. Also we've harvested over 650 Husky Cherry Red(2) tomatoes (657) for the year.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Harvested Neves Azorean Red and Aunt Ruby's German Green!
Saturday's harvest includes 52 SunGold, 25 Black Cherry(1), 16 Husky Cherry Red(1), 14 Snow White(1), 13 Husky Cherry Red(2), 12 Black Cherry(2), 7 Indigo Rose, 6 Yellow Perfection, 6 Snow White(2), 6 Garden Peach, 5 SunSugar, 4 Jaune Flamme(2), 4 Black and Brown Boar(2), 3 Indigo Apple(1), 3 Speckled Roman(2), 3 Indigo Apple(2), 3 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 3 Delicious, 3 Matt's Wild Cherry, 3 Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, 2 Aunt Ruby's German Green (new) (14 ounces, 7 ounces), 2 Green Grape, 2 Gypsy, 2 Marmara, 2 Amazon Chocolate (7 ounces), 2 Persimmon (13 ounces, 14 ounces), 2 Black Krim(2) (7 ounces, 11.5 ounces), 2 Black and Brown Boar(1), 2 Marianna's Peace (9 ounces, 6 ounces), 2 Pink Furry Boar, 2 Speckled Roman(3) (6 ounces), 2 Oaxacan Pink (6 ounces, 9 ounces), 2 Jaune Flamme(1), 2 Noire Charbonneuse(1), 2 Chinese Tea, 2 Berkeley Tie Dye, Neves Azorean Red (new) (17.5 ounces), Big Bite (7 ounces), Ramapo (10 ounces), Amana Orange (12 ounces), Speckled Roman(1), Black From Tula, Vorlon (9 ounces), Watermelon (9.5 ounces), Porkchop(1) (10.5 ounces), Redfield Beauty, Yellow Furry Boar, Taxi, Carmello, Crimson Cushion, Dr. Wyche's Yellow (7 ounces), Sweet Million, Big Zebra (9 ounces), Pineapple(1) (18 ounces), Thessaloniki, Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, Creme Brulee (6 ounces), Noire Charbonneuse(2), Red Boar(2) and Earl of Edgecombe for a total of 245 tomatoes.
Today's harvest: Nothing, I didn't harvest.
Saturday we invited family and friends over for a tomato party! However, there was a death in the family on my wife's side so none of her relatives made it -- totally understandable. We're truly sorry about uncle Raymond's untimely passing.
We ended up with about 25 people or so at the party. My wife had started preparing for this party starting on Wednesday and continued to put in a tremendous effort right through the party. Best we can tell, everybody had a great time.
Everyone gravitated toward the Indigo Rose tomato. Coincidentally, there was a story in the Saturday Los Angeles Times about the Indigo Rose tomato. A Persimmon was cut and shared and a couple people just adored the meaty taste.
The people that made it to the party was a good cross-section of Los Angeles, people from all walks of life. It makes me proud that people from disparate backgrounds can come together, mingle and have a great time. My wife deserves tremendous kudos for putting it all together. She's the best!
For those that visited, thanks so much for coming!
My wife started cleaning after the party -- I helped but she did a majority of the cleanup -- but we weren't able to clear the counter of plates, pans and such. We were both utterly exhausted this morning, let alone when we went to bed.
This evening we tried one of the Aunt Ruby's German Green tomatoes. My wife really liked it, I liked it less so, but I clearly liked it. Two thumbs up!
We've now harvested over 1900 SunGold tomatoes (1935), over 700 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (707), over 300 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (308) and over 100 Snow White(1) tomatoes (109).
We've now harvested over 2500 tomatoes in the front yard (2512) and over 5500 tomatoes in July (5571).
Monday's total should be artificially high, assuming I complete it.
Today's harvest: Nothing, I didn't harvest.
Saturday we invited family and friends over for a tomato party! However, there was a death in the family on my wife's side so none of her relatives made it -- totally understandable. We're truly sorry about uncle Raymond's untimely passing.
We ended up with about 25 people or so at the party. My wife had started preparing for this party starting on Wednesday and continued to put in a tremendous effort right through the party. Best we can tell, everybody had a great time.
Everyone gravitated toward the Indigo Rose tomato. Coincidentally, there was a story in the Saturday Los Angeles Times about the Indigo Rose tomato. A Persimmon was cut and shared and a couple people just adored the meaty taste.
The people that made it to the party was a good cross-section of Los Angeles, people from all walks of life. It makes me proud that people from disparate backgrounds can come together, mingle and have a great time. My wife deserves tremendous kudos for putting it all together. She's the best!
For those that visited, thanks so much for coming!
My wife started cleaning after the party -- I helped but she did a majority of the cleanup -- but we weren't able to clear the counter of plates, pans and such. We were both utterly exhausted this morning, let alone when we went to bed.
This evening we tried one of the Aunt Ruby's German Green tomatoes. My wife really liked it, I liked it less so, but I clearly liked it. Two thumbs up!
We've now harvested over 1900 SunGold tomatoes (1935), over 700 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (707), over 300 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (308) and over 100 Snow White(1) tomatoes (109).
We've now harvested over 2500 tomatoes in the front yard (2512) and over 5500 tomatoes in July (5571).
Monday's total should be artificially high, assuming I complete it.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Harvested Over 200 Black Cherry(1) Tomatoes!
Today's harvest includes 66 SunGold, 37 Black Cherry(1), 22 Husky Cherry Red(1), 16 Husky Cherry Red(2), 11 Black Cherry(2), 7 Yellow Perfection, 7 Snow White(1), 6 Indigo Apple(1), 5 Garden Peach, 5 Indigo Rose, 4 Chinese Tea, 4 Snow White(2), 4 Amazon Chocolate (7 ounces, 10 ounces, 6.5 ounces, 8.5 ounces), 3 Redfield Beauty, 3 Pink Furry Boar, 3 Yellow Furry Boar, 3 SunSugar, 3 Ramapo (8 ounces, 8.5 ounces, 8 ounces), 3 Creme Brulee (6 ounces), 3 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Brad's Black Heart (10 ounces), 2 Black Krim(2) (6 ounces, 6 ounces), 2 Green Grape, 2 Black From Tula (11 ounces), 2 Thessaloniki, 2 Gypsy, 2 Marmara, 2 Pierce's Pride(1) (7 ounces, 11 ounces), 2 Marianna's Peace (10.5 ounces, 11 ounces), 2 Amana Orange (12.5 ounces, 9.5 ounces), Noire Charbonneuse(1), Berkeley Tie Dye (6 ounces), German Orange Strawberry, Paul Robeson, Black Krim(1) (10 ounces), Nyagous(1), Dr. Wyche's Yellow (6 ounces), Persimmon (13.5 ounces), Oaxacan Jewel (13 ounces), Sweet Million, Sweet 100, Ella's Pink Plum, Oaxacan Pink (9 ounces), Speckled Roman(3), Indigo Apple(2), Delicious (9.5 ounces), Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, Taxi and Jaune Flamme(2) for a total of 256 tomatoes.
I realized yesterday afternoon that I had missed the second to back row in the back yard cutout. I made it a point to go there today and found some good Amazon Chocolate, Black Cherry(2) and Ramapo tomatoes.
My wife watered some of the front yard tomatoes yesterday.
After today's harvest I told my wife that Paul Robeson was done. She pulled it out about 20 minutes later.
Other than that, Black Cherry and Snow White are keeping our numbers high. We like both tomatoes, so this is great!
A Big Zebra tomato is maturing. And I need to take a look at Neves Azorean Red, I don't know what the heck is happening with that plant. I know we haven't harvested anything for this one.
We've harvested over 200 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (220) and 100 Garden Peach tomatoes. Also, we've now harvested over 2000 front yard tomatoes in July and over 5500 tomatoes for 2012 (5739).
I realized yesterday afternoon that I had missed the second to back row in the back yard cutout. I made it a point to go there today and found some good Amazon Chocolate, Black Cherry(2) and Ramapo tomatoes.
My wife watered some of the front yard tomatoes yesterday.
After today's harvest I told my wife that Paul Robeson was done. She pulled it out about 20 minutes later.
Other than that, Black Cherry and Snow White are keeping our numbers high. We like both tomatoes, so this is great!
A Big Zebra tomato is maturing. And I need to take a look at Neves Azorean Red, I don't know what the heck is happening with that plant. I know we haven't harvested anything for this one.
We've harvested over 200 Black Cherry(1) tomatoes (220) and 100 Garden Peach tomatoes. Also, we've now harvested over 2000 front yard tomatoes in July and over 5500 tomatoes for 2012 (5739).
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Harvested Over 600 Husky Cherry Red(1) Tomatoes!
Today's harvest includes 60 SunGold, 42 Black Cherry(1), 26 Husky Cherry Red(1), 14 Husky Cherry Red(2), 7 Garden Peach, 6 Snow White(1), 6 Indigo Rose, 5 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 4 Black Krim(2) (8 ounces, 11 ounces), 4 SunSugar, 3 Black From Tula (6 ounces, 7 ounces), 3 Thessaloniki, 3 Amana Orange (13 ounces, 11 ounces, 14.5 ounces), 3 Persimmon (21 ounces, 16.5 ounces, 13.5 ounces), 2 Pierce's Pride(1) (6 ounces, 10 ounces), 2 Oaxacan Pink (10.5 ounces, 11 ounces), 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Big Bite, 2 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 2 Japanese Black Trifele, 2 German Orange Strawberry, 2 Red Currant, 2 Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, 2 Delicious (6 ounces, 6 ounces), 2 Berkeley Tie Dye (11 ounces, 6 ounces), 2 Italian Heirloom (12.5 ounces, 7.5 ounces), 2 Black and Brown Boar(1), 2 Yellow Perfection, Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(2), Porkchop(1) (16 ounces), Noire Charbonneuse(1), Indigo Apple(2), Redfield Beauty, Snow White(2), Green Grape, Speckled Roman(1), Speckled Roman(3), Yellow Furry Boar, Oaxacan Jewel (16 ounces), Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg (6 ounces), Nebraska Wedding (7 ounces), Red Boar(2), Omar's Lebanese (20 ounces) and Purple Dog Creek (8.5 ounces) for a total of 230 tomatoes.
Even though today's harvest has lower numbers than yesterday's, it's clearly a heavier harvest. There's plenty of beautiful large tomatoes today's harvest, including Omar's Lebanese, Persimmon, Oaxacan Jewel, Porkchop(1), Oaxacan Pink and Amana Orange. Today's harvest was a really nice one.
My wife pulled out Yellow Currant yesterday.
We've now harvested over 1700 SunGold tomaotes (1733) and over 600 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (623). Also, we've now harvested over 4500 tomatoes in July (4618).
Even though today's harvest has lower numbers than yesterday's, it's clearly a heavier harvest. There's plenty of beautiful large tomatoes today's harvest, including Omar's Lebanese, Persimmon, Oaxacan Jewel, Porkchop(1), Oaxacan Pink and Amana Orange. Today's harvest was a really nice one.
My wife pulled out Yellow Currant yesterday.
We've now harvested over 1700 SunGold tomaotes (1733) and over 600 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (623). Also, we've now harvested over 4500 tomatoes in July (4618).
Monday, July 23, 2012
Harvested Italian Tree!
Today's harvest includes 70 SunGold, 25 Black Cherry(1), 24 Husky Cherry Red(2), 19 Husky Cherry Red(1), 12 Snow White(1), 9 Garden Peach, 7 SunSugar, 6 Yellow Perfection, 4 Japanese Black Trifele (6 ounces), 4 Black From Tula (7 ounces, 9 ounces, 7.5 ounces), 3 Black Krim(2) (7.5 ounces, 6 ounces), 3 Black Cherry(2), 3 Redfield Beauty, 3 Carmello (6 ounces), 2 Persimmon (14 ounces, 23 ounces), 2 Creme Brulee (7.5 ounces), 2 Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg, 2 Earl of Edgecombe (6 ounces, 7 ounces), 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Italian Heirloom (13 ounces, 7.5 ounces), 2 Amazon Chocolate (10 ounces, 9 ounces), 2 Speckled Roman(3), 2 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), Italian Tree (new) (13 ounces), Green Grape, Pineapple Pig (9 ounces), Brown Berry, Marianna's Peace (9.5 ounces), Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red, Red Boar(2), Jaune Flamme(2), Amana Orange, Pierce's Pride(1), Paul Robeson, Oaxacan Pink (8.5 ounces), Indigo Apple(2), Matt's Wild Cherry, Indigo Rose, Indigo Apple(1), Noire Charbonneuse(1), Gypsy (7 ounces), Ramapo (8 ounces), Nyagous(1), Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(1), Kellogg's Breakfast (11 ounces), Black and Brown Boar(1), Dr. Wyche's Yellow, Berkeley Tie Dye, Porkchop(1) (9.5 ounces), Pink Furry Boar for a total of 237 tomatoes.
The Italian Tree tomato is a nice looking thing but the trouble is that this may be the only tomato to come off this plant. I don't see any others.
Speaking of which, it's been 3 weeks since we've harvested from Sweet Baby Girl but it's making a comeback.
Again, the Persimmon tomatoes look beautiful.
Finally, the Black Cherry(1) harvest starts to get heavy.
We've now harvested over 3000 tomatoes from the back yard this year (3095).
The Italian Tree tomato is a nice looking thing but the trouble is that this may be the only tomato to come off this plant. I don't see any others.
Speaking of which, it's been 3 weeks since we've harvested from Sweet Baby Girl but it's making a comeback.
Again, the Persimmon tomatoes look beautiful.
Finally, the Black Cherry(1) harvest starts to get heavy.
We've now harvested over 3000 tomatoes from the back yard this year (3095).
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Harvested Ramapo and Kellogg's Breakfast!
Today's harvest includes 80 SunGold, 29 Husky Cherry Red(1), 23 Husky Cherry Red(2), 13 Jaune Flamme(1), 9 Black Cherry(1), 9 SunSugar, 7 Indigo Rose, 7 Garden Peach, 6 Black and Brown Boar(1), 6 Pink Furry Boar (9.5 ounces, 6 ounces), 5 Yellow Perfection, 5 Snow White(1), 5 Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(1) (8.5 ounces, 6.5 ounces, 7.5 ounces), 5 Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(2) (6 ounces, 6.5 ounces, 8 ounces, 6.5 ounces), 5 Dr. Wyche's Yellow (19 ounces, 12 ounces, 9.5 ounces), 4 Green Grape, 4 Yellow Currant, 4 Red Currant, 4 Redfield Beauty, 3 Black Krim(2) (10.5 ounces, 8 ounces, 10.5 ounces), 3 Carmello (6 ounces), 3 Indigo Apple(1), 3 Marmara, 3 Noire Charbonneuse(2), 3 Matt's Wild Cherry, 3 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Black Cherry(2), 2 Speckled Roman(2) (7 ounces, 12 ounces), 2 Oaxacan Pink (14 ounces), 2 Japanese Black Trifele, 2 Crimson Cushion (6.5 ounces), 2 Persimmon (12 ounces, 24.5 ounces), 2 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 2 Big Bite (10.5 ounces, 9.5 ounces), 2 Chinese Tea, 2 Purple Dog Creek (9.5 ounces, 13 ounces), 2 Delicious (7 ounces), 2 Thessaloniki (6 ounces), Kellogg's Breakfast (new) (7 ounces), Ramapo (new) (6 ounces), White Zebra, Pierce's Pride(1) (9 ounces), Porkchop(1) (6 ounces), Creme Brulee (8 ounces), Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg (9.5 ounces), Porkchop(2), Noire Charbonneuse(1), Sweet 100, Black From Tula, Sweet Million, Pierce's Pride(2), Brown Berry, Amazon Chocolate (13.5 ounces), Brad's Black Heart (11.5 ounces), Speckled Roman(3), Amana Orange, Indigo Apple(2) and Gypsy for a total of 295 tomatoes.
Wow, another great harvest! It took a couple of hours to get them all. Highlights include Persimmon, Amazon Chocolate, Dr. Wyche's Yellow and Noire Charbonneuse(2) with beautiful tomatoes.
My wife watered portions of the back yard. One of the plants watered was Black Cherry(1), which promptly fell into Brad's Black Heart again. I resupported it again this morning. Also, I added fertilizer to the back yard containers. Speaking of back yard containers, I asked my wife to pull Yellow Currant.
Kellogg's Breakfast was not a surprise, I forgot to mention it in the maturing tomatoes list. Now add Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red to that list.
Last night my wife and I taste tested Noire Charbonneuse(2) and Chile Verde. Noire Charbonneuse was my favorite tomato in 2007 and I hadn't seen it again until this year. Now my wife knows why I like it so much. The taste was "cleaner" than I remember but you could still taste the buttery undertones and the good flavor. Chile Verde was excellent as well. A green tomato that was "cool" and mellow was quite surprising to me, better tasting than when we grew it before. My wife definitely preferred Noire Charbonneuse(2), as did I, but were quite pleasantly surprised by Chile Verde.
The 12 ounce Speckled Roman(2) is an anomaly. It's a "fat" tomato not unlike Brad's Black Heart. And as you know, Speckled Roman is a long tomato like a classic Roma tomato. I've asked my wife to save the seeds from that tomato. Maybe we'll get an image of it at some point...
We've now harvested over 1300 SunGold tomatoes this year (1374) and over 500 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (518). Also, we've now harvested over 1500 tomatoes in the front yard for July (1525) and over 2500 tomatoes in the back yard for this year (2517).
Wow, another great harvest! It took a couple of hours to get them all. Highlights include Persimmon, Amazon Chocolate, Dr. Wyche's Yellow and Noire Charbonneuse(2) with beautiful tomatoes.
My wife watered portions of the back yard. One of the plants watered was Black Cherry(1), which promptly fell into Brad's Black Heart again. I resupported it again this morning. Also, I added fertilizer to the back yard containers. Speaking of back yard containers, I asked my wife to pull Yellow Currant.
Kellogg's Breakfast was not a surprise, I forgot to mention it in the maturing tomatoes list. Now add Clint Eastwood's Rowdy Red to that list.
Last night my wife and I taste tested Noire Charbonneuse(2) and Chile Verde. Noire Charbonneuse was my favorite tomato in 2007 and I hadn't seen it again until this year. Now my wife knows why I like it so much. The taste was "cleaner" than I remember but you could still taste the buttery undertones and the good flavor. Chile Verde was excellent as well. A green tomato that was "cool" and mellow was quite surprising to me, better tasting than when we grew it before. My wife definitely preferred Noire Charbonneuse(2), as did I, but were quite pleasantly surprised by Chile Verde.
The 12 ounce Speckled Roman(2) is an anomaly. It's a "fat" tomato not unlike Brad's Black Heart. And as you know, Speckled Roman is a long tomato like a classic Roma tomato. I've asked my wife to save the seeds from that tomato. Maybe we'll get an image of it at some point...
We've now harvested over 1300 SunGold tomatoes this year (1374) and over 500 Husky Cherry Red(1) tomatoes (518). Also, we've now harvested over 1500 tomatoes in the front yard for July (1525) and over 2500 tomatoes in the back yard for this year (2517).
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Harvested Gypsy, Paul Robeson, Omar's Lebanese and Amana Orange!
Today's harvest includes 87 SunGold, 21 Husky Cherry Red(1), 19 Husky Cherry Red(2), 11 SunSugar, 9 Black Cherry(1), 8 Jaune Flamme(1), 8 Yellow Perfection, 7 Yellow Currant, 6 Garden Peach, 5 Crimson Cushion (7 ounces, 6 ounces), 5 Pink Furry Boar, 5 Japanese Black Trifele, 5 Matt's Wild Cherry, 4 Nyagous(2) (not Nyagous), 4 Green Grape, 4 Speckled Roman(3) (6 ounces), 3 Gypsy (new), 3 Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(2) (9.5 ounces, 6 ounces, 7 ounces), 3 Noire Charbonneuse(1), 3 Snow White(1), 3 Olga's Round Yellow Chicken Egg (8 ounces, 8.5 ounces), 3 Carmello (6 ounces), 2 Red Currant, 2 Redfield Beauty, 2 Black and Brown Boar(2), 2 Speckled Roman(2), 2 Watermelon (8 ounces, 8 ounces), 2 Black Krim(1) (6 ounces, 8 ounces), 2 Pineapple Pig (19 ounces, 13.5 ounces), 2 Nyagous(1), 2 Indigo Apple(2), 2 Black Krim(2) (7 ounces, 7 ounces), Omar's Lebanese (new) (17.5 ounces), Paul Robeson (new), Amana Orange (new) (15 ounces), Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(1) (7.5 ounces), Oaxacan Jewel (9.5 ounces), Speckled Roman(1), Vorlon, Jaune Flamme(2), Indigo Apple(1), Dr. Wyche's Yellow (10 ounces), Black From Tula (8 ounces), Pineapple(1) (7 ounces), Thessaloniki (6 ounces), Noire Charbonneuse(2), Taxi and Indigo Rose for a total of 262 tomatoes.
One of the only disappointments in 2007 was Omar's Lebanese. From memory, our largest tomato off of that plant that year was 9 ounces. It didn't taste special at all. But the one we harvested today looks beautiful! The 2 Pineapple Pig tomatoes are exquisite and Amana Orange is quite attractive as well.
Do you know how silly it is to write that even though we harvested 87 SunGold tomatoes today we may finally be slowing down?
A Ramapo tomato is maturing. A Red Boar(2) was maturing but it had severe blossom end rot and was tossed yesterday.
We've harvested over 400 Husky Cherry Red(2) tomatoes (411) and 100 Yellow Perfection tomatoes (102)
We've now harvested over 3000 tomatoes in July (3147) and over 4000 tomatoes for the year (4011).
One of the only disappointments in 2007 was Omar's Lebanese. From memory, our largest tomato off of that plant that year was 9 ounces. It didn't taste special at all. But the one we harvested today looks beautiful! The 2 Pineapple Pig tomatoes are exquisite and Amana Orange is quite attractive as well.
Do you know how silly it is to write that even though we harvested 87 SunGold tomatoes today we may finally be slowing down?
A Ramapo tomato is maturing. A Red Boar(2) was maturing but it had severe blossom end rot and was tossed yesterday.
We've harvested over 400 Husky Cherry Red(2) tomatoes (411) and 100 Yellow Perfection tomatoes (102)
We've now harvested over 3000 tomatoes in July (3147) and over 4000 tomatoes for the year (4011).
Sunday, June 3, 2012
13 More Plants With Tomatoes; 2 Plants With Maturing Tomatoes!
Yesterday's harvest: 2 Husky Cherry Red(1). Today's harvest: 2 Husky Cherry Red(1).
Now Husky Cherry Red(1) has passed Husky Cherry Red(2) in total production: 14 tomatoes for Husky Cherry Red(1) and 12 tomatoes for Husky Cherry Red(2).
I took a closer look at the tomato plants over the last couple of days. You know the story, more "training". I added a stake to Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(1). I used tomato tape for a wayward branch on Husky Cherry Red(1). As the plants get taller and there's less cage room for training, I'll simply use tomato tape to tie back some of the wayward branches. As the weeks progress there will be more and more rolls of tomato tape and stakes being used.
In my last blog post I indicated that I knew there were more plants with tomatoes. Uh, I wasn't kidding. There are 13 more plants with growing tomatoes. The lastest list includes Amana Orange, Noire Charbonneuse(2), Snow White(2), Big Zebra, Green Zebra, Nebraska Wedding, Pierce's Pride(1), Vorlon, Marmara, Snow White(1), Speckled Roman(3), Delicious and Ramapo.
SunGold and SunSugar have maturing tomatoes. SunGold has already reached the top of the cage. In fact, let me see if I can get a reasonable picture of it.
As you know, it's only June 3. How tall will this plant get in 60 more days? It's only been in the ground for 57 days.
Having said that, the height of the plant isn't the payoff window. It's the tomatoes! You may be able to tell from the image that the plant is not only tall, it's quite thick. There are hundreds and hundreds of tomatoes on the plant. We'll see how they taste. We'll have plenty to choose from in the upcoming weeks.
Now Husky Cherry Red(1) has passed Husky Cherry Red(2) in total production: 14 tomatoes for Husky Cherry Red(1) and 12 tomatoes for Husky Cherry Red(2).
I took a closer look at the tomato plants over the last couple of days. You know the story, more "training". I added a stake to Pink Berkeley Tie Dye(1). I used tomato tape for a wayward branch on Husky Cherry Red(1). As the plants get taller and there's less cage room for training, I'll simply use tomato tape to tie back some of the wayward branches. As the weeks progress there will be more and more rolls of tomato tape and stakes being used.
In my last blog post I indicated that I knew there were more plants with tomatoes. Uh, I wasn't kidding. There are 13 more plants with growing tomatoes. The lastest list includes Amana Orange, Noire Charbonneuse(2), Snow White(2), Big Zebra, Green Zebra, Nebraska Wedding, Pierce's Pride(1), Vorlon, Marmara, Snow White(1), Speckled Roman(3), Delicious and Ramapo.
SunGold and SunSugar have maturing tomatoes. SunGold has already reached the top of the cage. In fact, let me see if I can get a reasonable picture of it.
 |
| SunGold tomato plant over my wife's right shoulder |
Having said that, the height of the plant isn't the payoff window. It's the tomatoes! You may be able to tell from the image that the plant is not only tall, it's quite thick. There are hundreds and hundreds of tomatoes on the plant. We'll see how they taste. We'll have plenty to choose from in the upcoming weeks.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
How Does It Look For This Year?
Now that we're all the tomato seedlings are planted for the year (famous last words), how do I think they will do this year?
Here's some bullets that will indicate we will have a really good year:
1) Look back on our February 20 post of this year. Some of that compostible dirt was placed on our yellowing back yard grass, for lack of any other place to put it. The grass is completely green. A big heaping pile was placed in the "koi pond". Last year we didn't add soil and the soil level had noticeably dropped an inch or so.
There was so much soil we placed it everywhere, including the plantable area of back yard.
2) Based on the great results last year in the "Far East", I continued to dig deep holes there and in the backyard cutout. As a rough estimate, we pulled out about 350 pounds of rock and asphalt over the last five weeks or so from these two areas.
3) The plants look great. The only plant that looks like it may be struggling is Bloody Butcher.
4) The sweet peas and snap peas planted in the "koi pond" this last winter will add needed nitrogen to the soil.
And some bullets that indicate we'll have a mediocre year:
1) Sure we dug some deep holes in the back yard, but it took extra time. The seedlings got huge in their containers. Could they be root bound? Some plants looked to be at least 18 inches tall. That can't be good. Granted, all these seedlings are four to six inches above ground when planted, but we think planting tall seedlings isn't as "safe" as planting smaller seedlings.
2) Some of the larger seedlings had black spots on their leaves. One long seedling had a black bruising in the middle of the stem.
3) Lots of beefsteaks were planted somewhat late. If we hit 110 degrees in late June (like 2008) or early July, the flowers will sterilize and we'll end up with little to no harvest on these plants with longer maturation cycles.
The seedlings look great...but we say that every year. But they really do look great! We think the compostible dirt has really helped the garden overall. Not just the tomato seedlings but the back yard grass, the irises, roses, etc..
I suspect our count for the year won't be that high. As mentioned, we planted a lot of larger tomatoes this year. From memory: Giant Syrian, Omar's Lebanese, Big Zebra, Delicious, Big Bite, Amana Orange and Pineapple are a few of the plants that can produce tomatoes over one pound. We got over 2700 tomatoes from Matt's Wild Cherry last year in the "koi pond", but this year we planted it in a pot. We won't get 2700 tomatoes from this plant this year.
My guess: We're more dependent on the weather this year than on other years. I'm going to guess a total of 7000 tomatoes harvested this year. But we will harvest more pounds than last year.
I'm excited for this year's harvest!
Here's some bullets that will indicate we will have a really good year:
1) Look back on our February 20 post of this year. Some of that compostible dirt was placed on our yellowing back yard grass, for lack of any other place to put it. The grass is completely green. A big heaping pile was placed in the "koi pond". Last year we didn't add soil and the soil level had noticeably dropped an inch or so.
There was so much soil we placed it everywhere, including the plantable area of back yard.
2) Based on the great results last year in the "Far East", I continued to dig deep holes there and in the backyard cutout. As a rough estimate, we pulled out about 350 pounds of rock and asphalt over the last five weeks or so from these two areas.
3) The plants look great. The only plant that looks like it may be struggling is Bloody Butcher.
4) The sweet peas and snap peas planted in the "koi pond" this last winter will add needed nitrogen to the soil.
And some bullets that indicate we'll have a mediocre year:
1) Sure we dug some deep holes in the back yard, but it took extra time. The seedlings got huge in their containers. Could they be root bound? Some plants looked to be at least 18 inches tall. That can't be good. Granted, all these seedlings are four to six inches above ground when planted, but we think planting tall seedlings isn't as "safe" as planting smaller seedlings.
2) Some of the larger seedlings had black spots on their leaves. One long seedling had a black bruising in the middle of the stem.
3) Lots of beefsteaks were planted somewhat late. If we hit 110 degrees in late June (like 2008) or early July, the flowers will sterilize and we'll end up with little to no harvest on these plants with longer maturation cycles.
The seedlings look great...but we say that every year. But they really do look great! We think the compostible dirt has really helped the garden overall. Not just the tomato seedlings but the back yard grass, the irises, roses, etc..
I suspect our count for the year won't be that high. As mentioned, we planted a lot of larger tomatoes this year. From memory: Giant Syrian, Omar's Lebanese, Big Zebra, Delicious, Big Bite, Amana Orange and Pineapple are a few of the plants that can produce tomatoes over one pound. We got over 2700 tomatoes from Matt's Wild Cherry last year in the "koi pond", but this year we planted it in a pot. We won't get 2700 tomatoes from this plant this year.
My guess: We're more dependent on the weather this year than on other years. I'm going to guess a total of 7000 tomatoes harvested this year. But we will harvest more pounds than last year.
I'm excited for this year's harvest!
Sunday, April 29, 2012
We're Finished Planting Tomatoes For This Year
On Friday my wife planted Indigo Apple(1), Porkchop(2), Black Krim(2), Paul Robeson, Vorlon(2), Jaune Flamme(2) and Chile Verde in the "koi pond". In the evening I made one hole and started another in an area I expected to have a lot of debris -- I wasn't disappointed. I left it unfinished.
On Saturday my wife planted Brown Berry in a pot and Snow White(2) in the south garden. I continued making holes throughout the day. I took out the largest piece of asphalt I've ever dug and completed that hole as well. My wife planted Neves Azorean Red, Marianna's Peace in the bad hole, a wilting Marmara, Gypsy, Amana Orange and Omar's Lebanese. We watered Marmara again, hoping it would come back. The plant showed signs of improvement later in the afternoon.
It was a long, sweaty day for both of us.
In the morning I checked out Marmara. It was a happy plant again!
Today I finished the holes in the "Far East", completing the work in the hard area of the back yard. My wife planted Black Cherry(2), Amazon Chocolate, Noire Charbonneuse(2) and Indigo Apple(2). We took a break and then dug out a small triangular area next to the post for the patio cover. Here we planted Italian Tree.
Before heading out for an early dinner, I took a look at the "koi pond" to see the new plants. Jaune Flamme(2) was wilting. We gave it some water and left for dinner.
When we came back, Jaune Flamme(2) had clearly improved, so we gave it some more water. Then we planted White Zebra in the "koi pond" and Pierce's Pride(2) in the "corner office".
We now think we're done planting tomatoes for 2012!
Making holes in the back yard has been exhausting. I've dragged through work a couple of times more than I would like and would like to work out again!
I need to add cages to the plants and clip the low hanging stems that are hitting the dirt, but that's trivially easy compared to digging holes with rock and asphalt.
Onward and upward!
On Saturday my wife planted Brown Berry in a pot and Snow White(2) in the south garden. I continued making holes throughout the day. I took out the largest piece of asphalt I've ever dug and completed that hole as well. My wife planted Neves Azorean Red, Marianna's Peace in the bad hole, a wilting Marmara, Gypsy, Amana Orange and Omar's Lebanese. We watered Marmara again, hoping it would come back. The plant showed signs of improvement later in the afternoon.
It was a long, sweaty day for both of us.
In the morning I checked out Marmara. It was a happy plant again!
Today I finished the holes in the "Far East", completing the work in the hard area of the back yard. My wife planted Black Cherry(2), Amazon Chocolate, Noire Charbonneuse(2) and Indigo Apple(2). We took a break and then dug out a small triangular area next to the post for the patio cover. Here we planted Italian Tree.
Before heading out for an early dinner, I took a look at the "koi pond" to see the new plants. Jaune Flamme(2) was wilting. We gave it some water and left for dinner.
When we came back, Jaune Flamme(2) had clearly improved, so we gave it some more water. Then we planted White Zebra in the "koi pond" and Pierce's Pride(2) in the "corner office".
We now think we're done planting tomatoes for 2012!
Making holes in the back yard has been exhausting. I've dragged through work a couple of times more than I would like and would like to work out again!
I need to add cages to the plants and clip the low hanging stems that are hitting the dirt, but that's trivially easy compared to digging holes with rock and asphalt.
Onward and upward!
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