Tomatopalooza....numbah TEN!

[gssgarden]

You can add Shannon's and Golden Cherokee!!

Just went to the site and signed up.

Greg

[JimM_SC]

I will have Flat Head Monster.
Jim

[Lee]

Here's my list of what I'll have with me.... Interestingly enough, this
will be the first year (in ten years!) that Craig and I have not had any
variety overlap.... Amazing....

Big Beef
Brawny F3
Cuostralee
Don's Double Delight
Ferris Wheel
Fuzzy Cherokee
Improved Colossal Yellow
Joe Thieneman's Australian Heart
Kentucky Yellow Heirloom
Lemon Gazzi
Mortgage Lifter Pale Leaf
Orange Heirloom
Dwarf Mahogony F3
Dwarf Rosella Purple
Spear's Tennessee Green
Stokes County
Tennessee Heirloom
Sean's Yellow Dwarf F7
Carbon
Yellow Bosnian
Not Kristina Bulgarian
Celebrity
German Queen
Brandywine

[nctomatoman]

Oh this is going to be great! Lee, I had a 2 lb Brandywine picked a few days ago, but it had a little prelude to a lead bad spot near the blossom end - would have been really nasty by tomorrow - so it contributed to the best Tomato Bisque I've ever made!

I think we will be fine with tomatoes for tomorrow.....we always end up just fine! (I don't dare look at the tomatoes I am bringing - I am sure are a bit past their prime....but as we always say, good for seed saving!).

I am getting there with Sue and Caitlin around noon.

[mdvpc]

Wish I was there! Maybe next year!

[gssgarden]

Gonna bring some Anna Russian too!

Greg

[livinonfaith]

Here's hoping all of you have a grand old time!

I'm majorly jealous, but since we're headed in the opposite direction, (beach) I just can't do it this year.

Wishing you no spitters!

[nctomatoman]

It was a great day....very tired....much more later. So many people made today a success. Well done as always, Lee...and all!

[meadowyck]

Glad to see you posting that you survived...LOL Lee you the man as well. If we lived even have way there we would have come. The thought of seeing that many different kinds of tomatoes in one place is mind blowing.

Now you two go get some well deserved rest. LOL

[gssgarden]

What a tasting!! Sooooo many tomatoes it was hard to choose! You really have to go back twice to double check. As I went back to a couple the flavor seemed to change a little! lol

A couple stand outs were German Queen and Dester Amish. Need to grow them for sure!

The Dwarves were UNREAL! Better every year! The taste, color, texture, size and shape were overwhelming!

Bravo to Craig and Lee for their work!

A couple that stood out were..

Laxton Lad
Kelly Green
Rosella Crimson
Brawny F3
Sweet Sue
Dwarf Mohogany
and Jade Beauty

Brought my 8 year old Shannon along this time too. It was hard to keep up with her! She liked it and wants to go next year! She was so proud of the tomatoes she brought and listening to the reviews. Makes me happy she's into gardening like that at such an early age! sniff!

Her favorite was.......you know!

Looking foward to some pics!

Greg

[gssgarden]

Proud girl and her Tomato!

Greg

[Lee]

Here's the photos from this year's event.
Thoughts about the event will be forthcoming.

Lee

http://www.tomatopalooza.org/tomatop...0/ATS00000.htm

[meadowyck]

Lee

thanks so much for the link for event pictures. By the time I got to the last pictures I was ready to lick the computer screen...... OH MY GOODNESS those were some really incredible looking tomatoes.

To those that placed, name tagged, cut up tomatoe, WELL DONE. That is just incredible display for folks to come a see ALL of those incredible varieties.

Ok, I can see this event as a bucket list addition....LOL

Thanks for all the hard work and countless hours you folks have put into this.

Greg I love your budding garden partner there, she is such a beauty.

[nctomatoman]

I would love to post some pics - but neither Sue or I got to pick up a camera once! My first thoughts of the day....showed up at noon, had 12 flats of tomatoes...took Sue, Sara, Caitlin, two of Sara's friends and me an hour to get them out and tagged (during which time I was completely drenched with sweat) - did the intro comments, off to the dwarf table, cut there, had a zillion tomato conversations, people kept pushing bottles of water at me....then at one point, a tomato/bacon sandwich (which was so, so appreciated) - back to talking - headed to the clogging area at 4:30 and sat my butt down in a chair for the first time since I got out of my truck at noon!

Of all of the Tomatopalooza events, this one was the most of a total blur for me - no pics, got to taste hardly anything.....wow, just wow! We had lots of people there, which is great - and they didn't trickle in - they were there at the start and they didn't trickle out - they stayed until the end! I hope the organizers collected info on who most of the people were and how they found out about it - much lower percentage of my seedling customers, many many new faces. Who were all those people?

Slept the clock around - collapsed at 11 PM, got up at 9 this morning, and my brain is so totally fried! Jim, Greg, Chris, Tim - great to see you/have great conversations. Lee - thanks as always. The success of the event totally fell upon the hosts (Jimmy and Fred for a superb location), Lori and Brian and their cast of many helpers - my three girls (Sweet Sue, Sarandipity and Caitydid), Sara's many friends. Gardens and Guns magazine was there - an article will be forthcoming. Sara's friend, a photographer, also there and took lots of pics - I am sure I am forgetting people and details. Oh - and mother nature - never have my own tomato contributions made up such a large percentage of stuff to taste - which makes me nervous about future events - there is a risk there...always is, but something we need to ponder for the future.

Whoosh! Tomatopalooza X has come and gone.....that was FAST!

[kurt]

Maybe its the equipment I am on but upoun clicking on images could not see the variety tags.