Crandrew's Beach Garden

[Crandrew]

Yeah butcher has been a great sport. I hope the fruit is tasty.

I really like the depth or intensity of the green color of your tomato plants. That always indicates very happy, very healthy plants for me.

Ted

[augiedog55]

candrew, your tomatoes look GREAT congradulation

[Crandrew]

Originally Posted by tedln

I really like the depth or intensity of the green color of your tomato plants. That always indicates very happy, very healthy plants for me.

Ted

thanks Ted, thats what im hoping. I found two little hornworms on 1 leaf going to town yesterday I smooshed them. So not its time to spray the BT I guess. I've never used it before.

Originally Posted by augiedog55

candrew, your tomatoes look GREAT congradulation

Thanks. I WANT MATORS!!!!

BT works great for me. If you haven't used it before, remember the caterpillars don't just drop over dead when they come into contact with it. They have to ingest it into their intestinal tract. They then have a very bad stomach ache which kills them. I have more of a problem with tomato fruit worms and cut worms than tomato horn worms. It seems to work well for all caterpillars that eat tomato plants or tomatoes. Rain will wash it away possibly requiring another application. I usually apply it at two week intervals since it takes about that long for damaging caterpillars to develop from newly deposited moth eggs. When my plants become large, I stop spraying the BT with the knowledge that I will probably be sacrificing a few branches and fruit to some worms.

If you have any fungal problems in your area, I would start spraying with Daconil or Liquid Copper while the plants are still small to prevent the start of fungus problems. Apply the BT one day and the anti fungal product a couple of days later. Don't mix the two products.

Ted

[Crandrew]

Originally Posted by tedln

BT works great for me. If you haven't used it before, remember the caterpillars don't just drop over dead when they come into contact with it. They have to ingest it into their intestinal tract. They then have a very bad stomach ache which kills them. I have more of a problem with tomato fruit worms and cut worms than tomato horn worms. It seems to work well for all caterpillars that eat tomato plants or tomatoes. Rain will wash it away possibly requiring another application. I usually apply it at two week intervals since it takes about that long for damaging caterpillars to develop from newly deposited moth eggs. When my plants become large, I stop spraying the BT with the knowledge that I will probably be sacrificing a few branches and fruit to some worms.

If you have any fungal problems in your area, I would start spraying with Daconil or Liquid Copper while the plants are still small to prevent the start of fungus problems. Apply the BT one day and the anti fungal product a couple of days later. Don't mix the two products.

Ted

Thanks for the info on BT. I have been spray with a Molasses, Actinovate and Exel LG mix for over 1 month, at least once a week. So thats covered. I spray once a week with neem for whitefly and aphids.

Originally Posted by Crandrew

I really do need to plan a trip out there!!! Thanks for the kind comments, now i just need some ripe tomatoes.
I made some bruschetta last night, with store bought tomatoes, and while it was still good it was not as GREAT as with some home grown mators....NEED TOMATOES!!!!

I love bruschetta. We don't normally eat bread or toast, but I bought a loaf of French bread for bruschetta and BLT's the other day. I have dehydrated about fifty lbs of fresh garden tomatoes this year, so I have about ten lbs of dried tomatoes. I reconstituted a few dried slices in warm water and made bruschetta from both fresh tomatoes and dried tomatoes. The dried tomatoes worked best because the tomato flavor was much more intense.

I wish I was a baker, because I love any artisan bread with sun dried (dehydrated) tomato mixed into the dough.

Ted

[Crandrew]

Ted,
Im the same way. I rarely eat bread but make exceptions on an occasional basis when its paired with a balance of plenty of greens.

This week it was simple:
Just thinly sliced french roll with olive oil, mators, basil, sea salt, pepper and some mozzarella. After about 6 i had to stop .
I wish I grew enough mators to dehydrate,It just takes so much to get a few OZ or LBS.

I used to just grow a few tomatoes for our use and our neighbors use. Two or three years ago, our daughter said she and a friend decided I needed to expand my garden because they could use more tomatoes. She had no idea what her simple request would set in motion. How can a man say no to his daughter? This year she was knocking on all the doors in her neighborhood trying to give tomatoes away. I'm waiting for her to say "Dad, I think you can reduce the size of your garden".

I really don't have a large garden, but it has been an exceptionally productive year.

Ted

[Crandrew]

Thats awesome Ted! I know my brother in law grows tomatoes for my niece even though he thinks they are the spawn of satan. She eats them all off the vine When she came over she picked all the ripe ones for me

[Crandrew]

Here are the first tomatoes I pulled off for the season. Although they say they are from a golden jubilee plant, I'm sure the seeds got messed up on this one. The fruit are smaller 6-8oz and not golden. Oh well, now to let them ripen.

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1340808495.555196.jpg

First pepper. This is a some burpee cherry hybrid stuffer.
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1340808562.286366.jpg

And the zucchini
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1340808600.001935.jpg

The tomatoes will start pumping out beginning next week.

[babice]

Originally Posted by Crandrew

... So yeah I went a little crazy for year 2...but I feel like I'm in good company.

Hey! I resemble that remark!

Crandy - AWESOME results so far! Congrats on your first pickers as well. Let us know how they taste. Particularly I'd love to know how that Bloody Butcher tastes.

Few comments: (1) love the gnome living in your Bloody Butcher's container! I'm not much of a kitschy person but I do have a gnome living in my garden out front. and (2) don't forget that Iowa is on the way to NJ and NY so you have to plan a stop here first!

[Crandrew]

Originally Posted by babice

Hey! I resemble that remark!

Crandy - AWESOME results so far! Congrats on your first pickers as well. Let us know how they taste. Particularly I'd love to know how that Bloody Butcher tastes.

Few comments: (1) love the gnome living in your Bloody Butcher's container! I'm not much of a kitschy person but I do have a gnome living in my garden out front. and (2) don't forget that Iowa is on the way to NJ and NY so you have to plan a stop here first!

Babiceboo-
So yeah thanks!!! I went out to check on my plants yesterday and went all when I saw the ripe one and the other that was blushing!!! I even threw in a moonwalk!

In response to your comments:
1. Yes im not kitschy either, but I had a garden party a few weeks ago with some close friends who all started growing this year and one brought a gnome for all of us; So I figured hey what the heck. I actually had a date over last week and we were eating dinner on the patio and she asks " so are you into little trolls or something" as she pointed at the gnome. I just started then "well actually thats a gnome, but no, im not 'into them". She just looked at me like this . What! A man can't have a gnome in one of his many Tomato planters!!!
2. THE 2012 CRANDREW HARVEST COUCH SURFING ROADTRIP needs to be planned.

[babice]

Cranorama - you had me totally laughing out loud here at work! Oh - and any woman that doesn't know that's a gnome versus a troll.... ....well.... I'm jes' sayin'.

[Crandrew]

Originally Posted by babice

Cranorama - you had me totally laughing out loud here at work! Oh - and any woman that doesn't know that's a gnome versus a troll.... ....well.... I'm jes' sayin'.

thats what Im saying!... but I decided to not hold it against her just yet.