Best tomato conditions- where to live? - Page 3

barkeater · September 4, 2006

Yes, there is a debate to where tomatoes were first domesticated, i.e. cultivated, but from what I read there is no debate the origin in the wild is the Andes Mountains of Peru.

bizzarbazzar · September 9, 2006

I have a really bad habit of moving frequently and in the past few years have lived in Ohio, Indiana, Arizona, California and Montana. We call the Indiana and Ohio areas the tomato belt. For some reason the climate seems perfect. However, there will be some snow and ice scraping. Now Arizona was great but I grew late fall and early winter gardens. Spring was too short and got to hot, way to early. California was the absolute worst for me. No snow, which was nice, but there was never a median temp.
Of course this is just my opinion..... and I am often incorrect

obispo45 · September 9, 2006

I've moved around quite a bit also...Massachusetts, Vermont, Colorado, California x2, New Mexico and now Minnesota. Will probably relocate at some point in time but Minnesota is a wonderful place if one can tolerate our January thru March. I've lived here since 2001 and we have yet to have a true "Minnesota Winter". We only have 2 seasons though...Winter and Road Construction. Autumn this year is scheduled for Oct 11 to Oct 18. At least IMO anyway. Still affordable for many of us regular folks, plentiful employment, good schools, endless freshwater related recreation possibilities and plenty of Minnesota Vikings scandals to keep things fresh. I could go on and on. Good place to be.

Soil in my area is just spectacular. Rain is usually somewhat evenly distributed throughout the growing season. Not too many bacterial, viral, etc problems that seem to prefer the warmer and wetter locales....but we make up for it in terms of insects and four legged garden predators..LOL.

I don't know, maybe that three or four month window of crappy weather allows me to spend lots of time in my growroom planning for a wonderful upcoming gardening season. Then again thats a long time, easy for me to get in trouble making seed trades, looking at the new catalogs and getting in over my head. Suppose there are worse problems one could have though...LOL.

montanamato · September 9, 2006

Not here...As Mantis suggested I should move! Unfortunately our job is great, as are the schools etc...But I want soil again...I have lived in other parts of the state where the nights were warmer and the season was usually great....However, this is the worst, except where Bizzarbazzar lives. Her growing season is typically really short. Ours varies, but the wind, hail, grasshoppers, and heavy clay keep things challenging. My husband loves a good drought and I long for green and rain...I loved the years I lived in AK. I feel separate retirement homes in our future........

Jeanne

akgardengirl · September 9, 2006

You wouldn't have been so keen on Anchorage this summer Jeanne, except for the green part. The Sept. master gardener's newletter was full of gripes about the weather. All I can say is that is was a very expensive tomato year for me with the lights starting up in Feb., all the fancy ammendments for the earthboxes etc. and then nothing but a handful of tomatoes. How about WA state? Maybe the eastern part would be a good place to grow tomatoes. I just don't know.
Sue

bizzarbazzar · September 9, 2006

Ah yes, Jeanne...The grasshoppers. They have taken over, however I am lucky, they seemed to enjoy the turnips I planted and have left most of everything else alone. I decided if I cant beat em...I better learn to live in harmony with em. So I continually planted turnips, and let them have the greens (on the far back area of the yard which is rocky and hard). If I keep them happy and fed, they would leave everything else alone. As soon as I did have very little left but lacy turnip greens, they moved over to everything else. So I planted more turnips (they were no longer for us, so we dont care if they mature) back they go to the turnip greens.
Sue, the good news about the lights, earthboxes etc. You can use them again next year. Hopefully, if all works out well. You will have a much better harvest next year.

Heather

psa · September 10, 2006

I think Eastern Washington works quite well for tomatoes, at least here in the Richland/Pasco/Kennewick area. Lots of heat, but dry, so it doesn't encourage disease and has less impact on pollen. We have a long season, starting in April and extending through October. Ripening tomatoes is never a problem, like it was when I lived on the other side of the state.

July 2005, Kelloggs Breakfast et al. at 5' tall:

Fert1 · September 12, 2006

Not here in SC. Our summers can be brutally hot, and it can make it tough for the plants to set fruit. Disease and insects are also a big problem here. We do have the advantage of a long season here, and can grow late season varieties where some others don't have that opportunity.

I think part of successful growing is to know your climate and what to do to adjust to it. For example, here since our summers get so hot, it's important to get those plants in the ground as early as possible, to get a jump on the heat. Once the fruit has set, most plants will at least tolerate the heat, even if they don't continue setting fruit. Certain varieties will set fruit better in the heat than others, and that's also an important factor to consider.

Someone with a short growing season, would probably want to get their plants as large as possible before planting time, and grow shorter season varieties. I think the key is to learn to work with what you have, and make the most of the climate you're given.

montanamato · September 12, 2006

Holly....You hit the nail on the head....I get a very abnormally long, warm season and forget where I live and go to longer season tomatoes....Then, we get a "nromal" year and I realize why I have learned to cherish salad sized tomatoes.....But those Cherokee Purples this summer were worth trying for 4 years...Like nothing I have tasted, and dark colored and gorgeous...

Jeanne

Fert1 · September 12, 2006

I'm glad you at least got to try Cherokee Purple. It is definitely one worth tasting. I've actually found that my CP plants will usually bear one or two fairly early tomatoes, then it continues through the rest of the season. So that one is probably a better choice for you than some of the really late season ones, like the bi-colors or Rose, (one of my personal favorites that takes forever).

spyfferoni · September 16, 2006

My husband has been working in Clevland for a few weeks.
He said there are some nice areas there. He is just there for a temporary assignment, but with his job he could move to other offices if they had openings. All I am thinking when he was talking about the area was---Ohio is supposed to be great for growing tomatoes and---if we lived there I could go to CHOPTAG.

I guess Utah is not too bad, it is just so dry and where I live we seem to get a lot of wind.

"The grass is always greener on the other side."

Tyffanie

bizzarbazzar · September 16, 2006

Most of my family lives in the Cleveland area and DH's family lives in Indianapolis. There are some fabulous areas in Cleveland metro area and house prices are so reasonable. The restaurants are mostly fabulous too.

spyfferoni · September 16, 2006

Bizzar,
How did you end up in Butte---of all places???
Have you had a pork chop sandwich yet?
Have you tried Pasties yet? (I get some pasties every time I visit Montana. There is a bakery in Deer Lodge that makes really good ones.)

bizzarbazzar · September 16, 2006

I wanted to retire in Montana, and decided although I am not nearly ready to retire..I was ready to leave CA and mopve somewhere I felt safe to raise my 4 year old son. I havent tried pasties, but I heard they are great..but since I dont eat beef or pork, I probably will never try one. But my DH and son both will try one soon, DH really wants too. Everyone Raves about Pork Chop Johns up here and DH will have to try one of those soon too.

We do love it here though!

Bizzar,
How did you end up in Butte---of all places???
Have you had a pork chop sandwich yet?
Have you tried Pasties yet? (I get some pasties every time I visit Montana. There is a bakery in Deer Lodge that makes really good ones.)

montanamato · September 16, 2006

Bizzar, Did you move there in time for St. Patrick's Day last year. ?...My roommate in college was a Butte girl ,and we would get our finals moved (before semesters) in order to be in Butte on the 17th.
Also , beware of the little noodle parlor on the hill, with enclosed seating...

Jeanne

September 9, 2006	#32
bizzarbazzar Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Butte, MT Posts: 811	Best tomato growing locations (my opinion) I have a really bad habit of moving frequently and in the past few years have lived in Ohio, Indiana, Arizona, California and Montana. We call the Indiana and Ohio areas the tomato belt. For some reason the climate seems perfect. However, there will be some snow and ice scraping. Now Arizona was great but I grew late fall and early winter gardens. Spring was too short and got to hot, way to early. California was the absolute worst for me. No snow, which was nice, but there was never a median temp. Of course this is just my opinion..... and I am often incorrect

September 12, 2006	#38
Fert1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Upstate SC, Zone 7 Posts: 543	Not here in SC. Our summers can be brutally hot, and it can make it tough for the plants to set fruit. Disease and insects are also a big problem here. We do have the advantage of a long season here, and can grow late season varieties where some others don't have that opportunity. I think part of successful growing is to know your climate and what to do to adjust to it. For example, here since our summers get so hot, it's important to get those plants in the ground as early as possible, to get a jump on the heat. Once the fruit has set, most plants will at least tolerate the heat, even if they don't continue setting fruit. Certain varieties will set fruit better in the heat than others, and that's also an important factor to consider. Someone with a short growing season, would probably want to get their plants as large as possible before planting time, and grow shorter season varieties. I think the key is to learn to work with what you have, and make the most of the climate you're given. __________________ Holly

September 12, 2006	#40
Fert1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Upstate SC, Zone 7 Posts: 543	I'm glad you at least got to try Cherokee Purple. It is definitely one worth tasting. I've actually found that my CP plants will usually bear one or two fairly early tomatoes, then it continues through the rest of the season. So that one is probably a better choice for you than some of the really late season ones, like the bi-colors or Rose, (one of my personal favorites that takes forever). __________________ Holly

September 4, 2006	#31
barkeater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NE Kingdom, VT - Zone 3b Posts: 1,439	Yes, there is a debate to where tomatoes were first domesticated, i.e. cultivated, but from what I read there is no debate the origin in the wild is the Andes Mountains of Peru.

September 9, 2006	#33
obispo45 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: SE Minnesota Zone 4.51a Posts: 139	I've moved around quite a bit also...Massachusetts, Vermont, Colorado, California x2, New Mexico and now Minnesota. Will probably relocate at some point in time but Minnesota is a wonderful place if one can tolerate our January thru March. I've lived here since 2001 and we have yet to have a true "Minnesota Winter". We only have 2 seasons though...Winter and Road Construction. Autumn this year is scheduled for Oct 11 to Oct 18. At least IMO anyway. Still affordable for many of us regular folks, plentiful employment, good schools, endless freshwater related recreation possibilities and plenty of Minnesota Vikings scandals to keep things fresh. I could go on and on. Good place to be. Soil in my area is just spectacular. Rain is usually somewhat evenly distributed throughout the growing season. Not too many bacterial, viral, etc problems that seem to prefer the warmer and wetter locales....but we make up for it in terms of insects and four legged garden predators..LOL. I don't know, maybe that three or four month window of crappy weather allows me to spend lots of time in my growroom planning for a wonderful upcoming gardening season. Then again thats a long time, easy for me to get in trouble making seed trades, looking at the new catalogs and getting in over my head. Suppose there are worse problems one could have though...LOL.

September 9, 2006	#34
montanamato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Montana Posts: 1,038	Not here...As Mantis suggested I should move! Unfortunately our job is great, as are the schools etc...But I want soil again...I have lived in other parts of the state where the nights were warmer and the season was usually great....However, this is the worst, except where Bizzarbazzar lives. Her growing season is typically really short. Ours varies, but the wind, hail, grasshoppers, and heavy clay keep things challenging. My husband loves a good drought and I long for green and rain...I loved the years I lived in AK. I feel separate retirement homes in our future........ Jeanne

September 9, 2006	#35
akgardengirl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Anchorage, AK zone 3/4 Posts: 1,410	You wouldn't have been so keen on Anchorage this summer Jeanne, except for the green part. The Sept. master gardener's newletter was full of gripes about the weather. All I can say is that is was a very expensive tomato year for me with the lights starting up in Feb., all the fancy ammendments for the earthboxes etc. and then nothing but a handful of tomatoes. How about WA state? Maybe the eastern part would be a good place to grow tomatoes. I just don't know. Sue

September 10, 2006	#37
psa Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: TriCities, WA Posts: 141	I think Eastern Washington works quite well for tomatoes, at least here in the Richland/Pasco/Kennewick area. Lots of heat, but dry, so it doesn't encourage disease and has less impact on pollen. We have a long season, starting in April and extending through October. Ripening tomatoes is never a problem, like it was when I lived on the other side of the state. July 2005, Kelloggs Breakfast et al. at 5' tall:

September 16, 2006	#41
spyfferoni Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Utah Posts: 675	My husband has been working in Clevland for a few weeks. He said there are some nice areas there. He is just there for a temporary assignment, but with his job he could move to other offices if they had openings. All I am thinking when he was talking about the area was---Ohio is supposed to be great for growing tomatoes and---if we lived there I could go to CHOPTAG. I guess Utah is not too bad, it is just so dry and where I live we seem to get a lot of wind. "The grass is always greener on the other side." Tyffanie