Hello Zone 6/7, How are things? - Page 3

rosel999 · June 27, 2007

This morning I saw my first little baby tomato, finally! I am so excited that I just wanted to share. Happy day!

dcarch · June 27, 2007

Carbon is a little soft to the touch, so I picked it, 6/27/2007. My first Carbon, and the first slicer of the season. A week before July 4th.

A few others are getting color, and will be ready in the next couple of days.

dcarch

tomatoguy · June 27, 2007

The garden is doing very well indeed now. I picked a couple of the pseudo-Burgundy Traveler large cherries on the 14th and they were adequate. The first Earl's Faux came in next on the 24th and it was awesome. Ditto the Mortgage Lifter I tasted tonight. Big Red is producing as well and is very good. Just picked a Clear Pink Early which is the largest of that variety I have seen. It is tennis ball size when the norm seems to be more like golfball size. The cuke, cantaloupe and muskmelon vines have taken over the floor of the garden so I have to be very careful when I am checking out the plants.

Granny Cantrell's German Red has now taken over as the largest plant. It is 7 1/2 feet tall but has not produced a ripe fruit yet. It was late last year as well. The other plants in the garden average about 6 feet tall. No disease or pest problems to speak of. Nice of the lacewings to show up in my garden for the first time ever and eat their fill of aphids.

Container plants are lagging behind a bit probably due to the drought we had. The early starts are about 4' and the late ones 2'.

I am looking forward to the first Brandywine Sudduth's and New Big Dwarf. They are going to have to be really excellent this year to beat out Earl's Faux. Earl's has certainly set the standard for taste and texture so far.

Will post some pics in a few days.

mater

dcarch · June 27, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by tomatoguy

The garden is doing very well indeed now. -----------Will post some pics in a few days.

mater

When did you start seeds and when did you put your plants in ground?

dcarch

tomatoguy · June 28, 2007

I started seeds in late February. I started planting out in mid-March then lost all my plants to a 22 degree freeze in early April. After that, I replanted between April 14th and 19th. First frost free date here is May 1.

mater

rsg2001 · June 29, 2007

I planted late - end of May/Early June, so I'm first now getting little tomatoes... my container plants are well ahead of my in-the-ground plants (they get more sun). I have several Eva Purple Ball little ones on the way, and my two Cherokee Chocolates have two apiece. Lime Green Salad is loaded with blossoms and a few tomatoes have formed, and my trusty Sungold and Black Cherry are producing many tomatoes. I have a lot of later tomatoes, too. The rest as I can recall them are Marianna's Peace, Lemon Boy, Earl's Faux, Evergreen, Black Pear, BHN (the newest one), Sioux, Boondocks, Neve's Azorean Red, Brandywine Sudduth, Aunt Ruby's German Green (I saw one in a nursery and had to buy it) and Black Krim (also from the nursery) -- the rest I grew from scratch.

I also have three mystery tomato plants that grew 'wild'. One is a potato-leaved mystery and the other two are regular leaved. I suspect the RLs are more Black Cherry, as last year I had a couple of them come up 'wild.' The mystery PL decided to grow out of virtually the same spot as a hot pepper... Sigh. I will see if I can move the hot pepper.

Tomstrees · June 29, 2007

Good growin Dcarch! We need slicer pics !

~ Tom (who should be picking ripe toms this up coming week)

dcarch · June 29, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tomstrees

Good growin Dcarch! We need slicer pics !-------

OK. I thought it would be darker meat for Carbon.

Taste? Let's just say that I am running outside every 30 minutes to check on when the next three are going to be ready

.
dcarch

remy · June 29, 2007

Dcarch,
You are an evil man.

Oh, I did find a small Carbon today, very exciting!
Remy

DavidinCT · June 30, 2007

How are things going?

It's a jungle out there. Too bummed out by it to take pictures but I probably will in a few days when I do what I should have done a month ago: get the pile of bamboo I have cut and lashed into cages.

Have five 25' long raised beds (dirt two feet high) with 54 plants I set out on May 14th and 20th. Sungolds, Black Cherries and Orange Santas are 6' tall already. Got them caged. Don't know how tall the Sara's Galapagos, Rutgers, Carbon, Ester Hess Yellow Cherry, Nyagous, Earl Faux, Marianna Peace, Box Car Willie, Kellogs Breakfast and others are. That part of the garden looks like one huge tomato plant. The rows are 4 to 5 feet apart but you wouldn't know by looking. Its all a tangle of tomato plants.

I keep telling myself, "It's OK...this is how Carolyn grows tomatoes...let them sprawl" (but I suspect she leaves more room between the rows and plants than I did).

Anyways, thanks to all for the information this winter and spring. Never seen tomato plants with stems so thick, foliage so lush, blooms and fruit so plentiful.

Next year I will have the cages set in the ground before the plants go in.

dcarch · June 30, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by DavidinCT

How are things going?

It's a jungle out there. ----Have five 25' long raised beds (dirt two feet high) -------------.

Got to see some pics

.

dcarch

dcarch · June 30, 2007

Picked three Black Prince, one Ananas Noire and two Black Krim yesterday

dcarch

DavidinCT · July 1, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by dcarch

Got to see some pics

.

dcarch

Maybe I'll take some before and after pictures. Let everyone see what neglecting tomato plants for a few weeks did.

Don't hold me on the "after" picture though because tommorow when I investigate the tangle I might just go with the flow and let them sprawl.

I'm a long way from a month ago when I was going to carefully spray daconil on the top and undersides of every leaf.

Been lucky on the weather. Not the humidity and rain which I read really hurt tomato production last year in CT. Clear skies 70 to 80 degree temps day after day with a nice rain about once a week. We're 10, maybe 12 or 13 weeks to the first frost. Can't imagine what the garden will look like then if this keeps up.

Found a "before" picture from the middle of May. I'll post what it looks like now tommorow.

Edited to add pics from this morning

May 14th . . . . . . . July 1st

Tomstrees · July 1, 2007

Quote:

Picked three Black Prince, one Ananas Noire and two Black Krim yesterday:wink:
dcarch

Hey Dcarch !

You doing photshop work on them maters ? ~ lol

(Good growin if you aren't "doctoring up" those photos, lol)

~ Tom

dcarch · July 1, 2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tomstrees

Hey Dcarch !

You doing photshop work on them maters ? ~ lol

(Good growin if you aren't "doctoring up" those photos, lol)

~ Tom

Either way, I take it as a compliement

.

1. I am a darn good Photoshop guy.

or

2. I am a darn good grower.

dcarch

June 27, 2007	#31
rosel999 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2007 Location: 6B NJ Posts: 15	This morning I saw my first little baby tomato, finally! I am so excited that I just wanted to share. Happy day! __________________ Sue

June 29, 2007	#37
Tomstrees Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NJ Bayshore Posts: 3,848	Good growin Dcarch! We need slicer pics ! ~ Tom (who should be picking ripe toms this up coming week) __________________ My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~ H. Fred Ale

June 29, 2007	#39
remy Buffalo-Niagara Tomato TasteFest™ Coordinator Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Z6 WNY Posts: 2,354	Dcarch, You are an evil man. Oh, I did find a small Carbon today, very exciting! Remy __________________ "I wake to sleep and take my waking slow" -Theodore Roethke Yes, we have a great party for WNY/Ontario tomato growers every year on Grand Island! Owner of The Sample Seed Shop

June 30, 2007	#42
dcarch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: NY Posts: 2,618	Picked three Black Prince, one Ananas Noire and two Black Krim yesterday dcarch __________________ tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato

June 27, 2007	#33
tomatoguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Rockvale, TN Zone 7A Posts: 526	The garden is doing very well indeed now. I picked a couple of the pseudo-Burgundy Traveler large cherries on the 14th and they were adequate. The first Earl's Faux came in next on the 24th and it was awesome. Ditto the Mortgage Lifter I tasted tonight. Big Red is producing as well and is very good. Just picked a Clear Pink Early which is the largest of that variety I have seen. It is tennis ball size when the norm seems to be more like golfball size. The cuke, cantaloupe and muskmelon vines have taken over the floor of the garden so I have to be very careful when I am checking out the plants. Granny Cantrell's German Red has now taken over as the largest plant. It is 7 1/2 feet tall but has not produced a ripe fruit yet. It was late last year as well. The other plants in the garden average about 6 feet tall. No disease or pest problems to speak of. Nice of the lacewings to show up in my garden for the first time ever and eat their fill of aphids. Container plants are lagging behind a bit probably due to the drought we had. The early starts are about 4' and the late ones 2'. I am looking forward to the first Brandywine Sudduth's and New Big Dwarf. They are going to have to be really excellent this year to beat out Earl's Faux. Earl's has certainly set the standard for taste and texture so far. Will post some pics in a few days. mater

June 28, 2007	#35
tomatoguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Rockvale, TN Zone 7A Posts: 526	I started seeds in late February. I started planting out in mid-March then lost all my plants to a 22 degree freeze in early April. After that, I replanted between April 14th and 19th. First frost free date here is May 1. mater

June 29, 2007	#36
rsg2001 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: New York Zone 6 Posts: 479	I planted late - end of May/Early June, so I'm first now getting little tomatoes... my container plants are well ahead of my in-the-ground plants (they get more sun). I have several Eva Purple Ball little ones on the way, and my two Cherokee Chocolates have two apiece. Lime Green Salad is loaded with blossoms and a few tomatoes have formed, and my trusty Sungold and Black Cherry are producing many tomatoes. I have a lot of later tomatoes, too. The rest as I can recall them are Marianna's Peace, Lemon Boy, Earl's Faux, Evergreen, Black Pear, BHN (the newest one), Sioux, Boondocks, Neve's Azorean Red, Brandywine Sudduth, Aunt Ruby's German Green (I saw one in a nursery and had to buy it) and Black Krim (also from the nursery) -- the rest I grew from scratch. I also have three mystery tomato plants that grew 'wild'. One is a potato-leaved mystery and the other two are regular leaved. I suspect the RLs are more Black Cherry, as last year I had a couple of them come up 'wild.' The mystery PL decided to grow out of virtually the same spot as a hot pepper... Sigh. I will see if I can move the hot pepper.

June 30, 2007	#40
DavidinCT Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Connecticut Zone 6B Posts: 88	How are things going? It's a jungle out there. Too bummed out by it to take pictures but I probably will in a few days when I do what I should have done a month ago: get the pile of bamboo I have cut and lashed into cages. Have five 25' long raised beds (dirt two feet high) with 54 plants I set out on May 14th and 20th. Sungolds, Black Cherries and Orange Santas are 6' tall already. Got them caged. Don't know how tall the Sara's Galapagos, Rutgers, Carbon, Ester Hess Yellow Cherry, Nyagous, Earl Faux, Marianna Peace, Box Car Willie, Kellogs Breakfast and others are. That part of the garden looks like one huge tomato plant. The rows are 4 to 5 feet apart but you wouldn't know by looking. Its all a tangle of tomato plants. I keep telling myself, "It's OK...this is how Carolyn grows tomatoes...let them sprawl" (but I suspect she leaves more room between the rows and plants than I did). Anyways, thanks to all for the information this winter and spring. Never seen tomato plants with stems so thick, foliage so lush, blooms and fruit so plentiful. Next year I will have the cages set in the ground before the plants go in.