2021 garden recap

PaulF · November 9, 2021

Except it will be mostly tomatoes: peppers did great, zucchini fair, potatoes OK, melons got shut out again, wonderful crop of asparagus.

Now the main course. These were the varieties grown in '21: Anzehela Gigante, Big Cheef, KBX, Cherokee Purple, Blitznetski Serdtse Heart, Portuguese Monster, Wisconsin Gold 55, Estler's Mortgage Lifter, Clear Lake Heirloom, Winsall, Orange Russian #117, AH Scorbii, Koral London, Sheryl's Portuguese Heart, Yasha Yugoslavian, Willow's Bulgarian (aka No Name Bulgarian), Babushka Byka, Rozovyi Izmumni, Blake's Magnum (aka Unknown Magnum), Heshpole, Big Rainbow, Black Cherry.

In my garden, this was an average year for production (results later). Seeds were started on March 1 which was two weeks too early as all the seedlings were too tall and skinny by the outdoor planting date of May 12. The year began very dry and warm, then cool and wet then dry again. All this set back tomatoes by about two to three weeks compared to the average growth stages the past 15 years. Tomatoes began forming mid to late June but none ripened until late August. Reflowering was sparse which foretold of a down year.

Now the more boring number crunching: With 22 plants that survived the total production was 203 pounds at just over 9 pounds of tomatoes per plant...I do not weigh or count cherries.
The most productive varieties by weight were KBX(328 oz.), Portuguese Monster (310 oz), Big Cheef (300 oz)
Most total tomatoes: Big Cheef-42, Wisconsin 55 Gold-40, Koral London-38.
Largest single tomato: Portuguese Monster (27.2 oz), AH Scorbii (22.4 oz), Yasha Yugoslavian (19.9oz)
Largest average for the entire season: Portuguese Monster-13.5 oz, KBX-9.9 oz, Winsall-9.9 oz

Production was in the middle range for the 16 years in this location, so even with the late start we had plenty of tomatoes to eat and share with friends and family. It was not a complete bust as I anticipated but by no means a bumper crop.

Now the most important result...flavor: Usually I pick out several outstanding varieties by taste. This year it was noticeable that the sweet tasting varieties were not as sweet as usual and the most tart varieties were not as tart. Every tomato tasted a whole lot better than any hybrid or grocery store offering but in a range of 1-10, everything was in the 6-7 area. Very good but not great. People trying my tomatoes for the first time told me how wonderful they were...in my head I was saying,"just wait til next year." I imagine weather conditions had more to do with flavor output than any other factor.

No decision has been made for next year's varieties but I think I will go for what has been the best tasting in the past just get back to some 9s and 10s . Any suggestions, comments or questions are welcome. If you have slogged through all this, Thank You and sorry.

Paul

November 9, 2021	#1
PaulF Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Brownville, Ne Posts: 3,296	2021 garden recap Except it will be mostly tomatoes: peppers did great, zucchini fair, potatoes OK, melons got shut out again, wonderful crop of asparagus. Now the main course. These were the varieties grown in '21: Anzehela Gigante, Big Cheef, KBX, Cherokee Purple, Blitznetski Serdtse Heart, Portuguese Monster, Wisconsin Gold 55, Estler's Mortgage Lifter, Clear Lake Heirloom, Winsall, Orange Russian #117, AH Scorbii, Koral London, Sheryl's Portuguese Heart, Yasha Yugoslavian, Willow's Bulgarian (aka No Name Bulgarian), Babushka Byka, Rozovyi Izmumni, Blake's Magnum (aka Unknown Magnum), Heshpole, Big Rainbow, Black Cherry. In my garden, this was an average year for production (results later). Seeds were started on March 1 which was two weeks too early as all the seedlings were too tall and skinny by the outdoor planting date of May 12. The year began very dry and warm, then cool and wet then dry again. All this set back tomatoes by about two to three weeks compared to the average growth stages the past 15 years. Tomatoes began forming mid to late June but none ripened until late August. Reflowering was sparse which foretold of a down year. Now the more boring number crunching: With 22 plants that survived the total production was 203 pounds at just over 9 pounds of tomatoes per plant...I do not weigh or count cherries. The most productive varieties by weight were KBX(328 oz.), Portuguese Monster (310 oz), Big Cheef (300 oz) Most total tomatoes: Big Cheef-42, Wisconsin 55 Gold-40, Koral London-38. Largest single tomato: Portuguese Monster (27.2 oz), AH Scorbii (22.4 oz), Yasha Yugoslavian (19.9oz) Largest average for the entire season: Portuguese Monster-13.5 oz, KBX-9.9 oz, Winsall-9.9 oz Production was in the middle range for the 16 years in this location, so even with the late start we had plenty of tomatoes to eat and share with friends and family. It was not a complete bust as I anticipated but by no means a bumper crop. Now the most important result...flavor: Usually I pick out several outstanding varieties by taste. This year it was noticeable that the sweet tasting varieties were not as sweet as usual and the most tart varieties were not as tart. Every tomato tasted a whole lot better than any hybrid or grocery store offering but in a range of 1-10, everything was in the 6-7 area. Very good but not great. People trying my tomatoes for the first time told me how wonderful they were...in my head I was saying,"just wait til next year." I imagine weather conditions had more to do with flavor output than any other factor. No decision has been made for next year's varieties but I think I will go for what has been the best tasting in the past just get back to some 9s and 10s . Any suggestions, comments or questions are welcome. If you have slogged through all this, Thank You and sorry. Paul __________________ there's two things money can't buy; true love and home grown tomatoes.