Bummer season, but the flavor is great!

vegomatic · August 27, 2011

Hi all,

Been awhile since I posted on any gardening sites, but I still manage to get something in the ground every year.

This season is the oddest. A warm, wet sping got squashed flat by a long cold stretch which immediately switched to hot and dry. Setting out a little later didn't help. As it happened, I planted out right before the extended cold spell hit.

I have small but relatively healthy plants despite the flea beetles. Fruit set is phenomally low. Getting anything close to ping pong ball size is proving difficult, but a few scrawny plants in pots have made some larger fruits. We're getting maybe one to three fruits per plant, ripening maybe one or three per week from various plants.

My sister lives just a few miles away and is probably a better grower than I. She has also had a similar lousy season. My other gardening buddy who normally has a great garden has only picked a dozen tomatoes, so I can't totally blame my own methods this time, LOL.

We're laying our plans for many changes next year, but at least the few ripe ones are full of flavor and appreciated much more because they are so few! It's hard to slice a tiny mater exactly in half to share with my wife, but we make a special event out of it and it's amazing the flavor packed in a pea-sized Sungold.

Meanwhile, I just let the deer eat my bean plants as I only picked one pod from the patch. Same for the squash and 'maters in the same bed. Nothing worth saving. But I picked a Zuchinni so huge, it had to go diagonally into the 'fridge or the door wouldn't shut!

I guess I just had to get back on the forums and see if anyone else has had such a wierd season as we did.

-Ed "Just wait till next year"

August 27, 2011	#1
vegomatic Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Black Hills SD Z4 Posts: 89	Bummer season, but the flavor is great! Hi all, Been awhile since I posted on any gardening sites, but I still manage to get something in the ground every year. This season is the oddest. A warm, wet sping got squashed flat by a long cold stretch which immediately switched to hot and dry. Setting out a little later didn't help. As it happened, I planted out right before the extended cold spell hit. I have small but relatively healthy plants despite the flea beetles. Fruit set is phenomally low. Getting anything close to ping pong ball size is proving difficult, but a few scrawny plants in pots have made some larger fruits. We're getting maybe one to three fruits per plant, ripening maybe one or three per week from various plants. My sister lives just a few miles away and is probably a better grower than I. She has also had a similar lousy season. My other gardening buddy who normally has a great garden has only picked a dozen tomatoes, so I can't totally blame my own methods this time, LOL. We're laying our plans for many changes next year, but at least the few ripe ones are full of flavor and appreciated much more because they are so few! It's hard to slice a tiny mater exactly in half to share with my wife, but we make a special event out of it and it's amazing the flavor packed in a pea-sized Sungold. Meanwhile, I just let the deer eat my bean plants as I only picked one pod from the patch. Same for the squash and 'maters in the same bed. Nothing worth saving. But I picked a Zuchinni so huge, it had to go diagonally into the 'fridge or the door wouldn't shut! I guess I just had to get back on the forums and see if anyone else has had such a wierd season as we did. -Ed "Just wait till next year" Last edited by vegomatic; August 27, 2011 at 02:28 AM.