J&L Gardens

[Linda10]

Hi Lee,
Received my package yesterday. Thank you for the extra pack. You must have read my mind because that is one I was thinking of trying.

[goodwin]

Hello Linda -

You picked out some great varieties to grow. I've been taking the cherry tomatoes and the Royal Purple to market in Santa Fe the last couple of Saturdays. In fact, I was just out finishing up picking for tomorrow's farmer's market. Then the majordomo (irrigation ditch captain) came by and let me have the water for a couple hours. It has been dry and windy and you learn to never turn down water, so I am irrigating this afternoon.
There are 400 plants - 150 varieties out in the field now. I have about 25 more varieties to set out that my friend Dmitry sent from Russia and some others from the Polish breeder, Anna Jankowski. We should be able to add a number of new ones to the catalog later this summer.
I just took a photo of the south field with the water on. There is corn and chile in the background and melons and tomatoes closer in the photo.
Good luck with everything. I'm looking forward to hearing how it goes.
Lee

[Salsacharley]

Hi Lee,

Can you project when you will have more Ambrosia Gold, Baby Blue and Cafe Bule seeds in stock?

Are you still selling these varieties at the market?

Thanks,

Charley

[goodwin]

Hi Charley -

Good to hear from you. Yes, I'm selling them at the Santa Fe Market on Saturday. Since we are reserved vendors, we're in the same space as last year. I started collecting seed last week and it will be dry in the next few days. Hope everything is going well this summer!

Lee

[Salsacharley]

Thanks Lee,

We'll try and make it to market this week.

Charley

[tnpeppers]

Lee...your description of 'Starfire Isis' states that the plant will reach '4 feet by season's end'...LOL! 4 feet??? All three of mine have passed the eight-foot mark, and are quickly headed for nine...I stand six foot tall, and I cannot reach the cluster of blossoms near the top of the plant. FULL DISCLOSURE: all three are in Earth Boxes, and they are all being fed Texas Tomato Food. Use TTF with caution, because when they say 'managing the growth will be your biggest problem', they aren't kidding. The Emerald Golosina seed you sent as an 'extra' is ALSO performing very well! Thanks...can't wait to see what you'll have available for 2015!

[goodwin]

tnpeppers - It sounds like you'll need to rent a boom truck in order to pick those cherry tomatoes! You should get the local news to do a story.
Are they close to ripening? A couple of my plants this year had the usual markings, but were shaped more like grape tomatoes. The Esmeralda is a really nice tomato, but somewhat later.
I've been collecting seed the last few weeks and have started to upload new varieties to the catalog. I'll post some photos.
I also received a number of varieties from Russia and Slovakia - about 40 altogether. I'll need help from some of the Russian speakers here to figure out what they are. Unfortunately, the seed took almost 3 months to arrive, so they were started quite late and are just beginning to blossom.
It has been a crazy summer starting with drought and heat followed by torrential rains and hail. I''m going to the markets in Santa Fe and Los Alamos and supplying a couple restaurants. It keeps me out of trouble, but I'm stretched pretty thin!
Anyway, I hope everyones' summer is going well and look forward to hearing more results.
Lee

[NarnianGarden]

Congrats on your new Ambrosia ones - got an ebay newsletter informing me on sellers' items.
They look lovely - how would you say, Ambrosia Orange differs from Ambrosia Gold?

The experimental one I tried this year produced some interesting results, so there was still some genetic variability. One plant gave saladette/almost slicer sized yellow/golden fruits with some reddish blush. (The size may have something to do with the fact it grew in a very very sunny and warm location.) The other - which taste I prefer - has fruits that are pinkish/reddish, and definitely cherry. They are very fruity - love them, and will try to save seeds for the next season.

[greenthumbomaha]

Thank you for the seeds of Bedouin you sent last year. It was one of the highlights in my garden both for looks and productivity. This year it was among surprise plants I brought to my local garden club spring plant swap. At our last meeting a former farmer brought a tomato to the meeting to identify and request for next year. Other ladies who had gotten one all loved it and wanted it again too. Seems it is the PERFECT tomato for making tomato juice. Can't wait to grow next year as I had given all mine away!

Thanks again for a great tomato choice,
Lisa

[goodwin]

hi Narniangarden,

I think I sent you the experimental Ambrosia Gold x Bosque Blue. I got the same variation. Some plants set large, oblate, gold cherry tomatoes with a dusting of blue. Two plants had smaller oval pink fruit. Both had the spicy fragrance which is a good sign.
I planted both the red and yellow tomatoes you gave me. The reds split some in the wet weather, but the yellow tomatoes were perfect. Both colors grew true to type, so perhaps they are not hybrid. I put the yellow one you sent in the catalog for people to trial. Here is a photo.

Did you grow out the eggplant? I thought it might be a stretch, but it is beautiful and the aroma is amazing.
The Ambrosia Orange UBX is the result of crossing the Gold back to a green currant tomato with wild lineage (hirsutum). The fruit is smaller, darker from the green gel, and the plant has narrower leaves and a more sprawling habit. It is a bit later, but the sugar levels are consistently very high.
It is very nice to hear from you!

Lee

[NarnianGarden]

Lee, it's a hoot to see that you got good results - glad the yellow ones turned out so well. I have no idea what the official name of that variety is - probably just a commercial one for greenhouse growers.
Yes, I grew out the eggplant - many thanks! Two plants that were green and lush - but then some mites attacked them - they loved the hot & dry weather, and succeeded in bringing in total demise. I learned the hard way that sometimes nature needs some help, so next year I'm better prepared and have a pyritrine spray at hand. In the end, I managed to get a couple of tiny fruits that I cooked in stews (hate to see anything go to waste)...
Thanks again for the seeds, I loved the Ambrosia variants and look forward to trying them again in 2015, Lord willing.

[goodwin]

NarianGarden - Well, next season is still months away. However, I am already thinking about what to start, and 'Finnish Yellow' will be on the list. I plant a couple other yellow salad tomatoes for market, Jaune Flamme for the tart flavor and Orange Banana for its late season sweetness. So now I have a new one and the flavor is surprisingly good. Stay in touch and let me know what you would like to try.

Lisa - The Bedouin (Beduin) plants I was picking from in May are still going! That is nearly four months now. I always slice one up for samples at the farmers markets because I know the flavor will attract attention. Anyway, it's good to hear the variety does well where you are.
I am giving some thought to doing some growing through the winter and I'm applying for a USDA grant for a greenhouse. Bedouin would be a good variety to try because the plant is compact and tolerates cold temperatures - maybe Banded Amazon, too. I think we are in for an early winter here and I expect to see the aspen trees turning any day. Snow may not be far behind.
It is always amazing how quickly the summer comes to an end.

Lee

[Salsacharley]

Another experience of superb service from J & L Gardens. I placed my order last Thursday and received the order in 2 days! Thanks Lee!

[goodwin]

Happy Thanksgiving!
I hope everyone can take the day off to relax and celebrate a wonderful summer of growing and sharing. Here the fields are turned under and everything is stored away. We have snow now in the valley, so it is officially winter.
I added a number of new tomato varieties for 2015. Some are releases from our development programs and others are from Central Europe and Russia. We also are carrying some new breeding stock and related species. There are native landraces of corn, chile and beans from nearby pueblos we have gathered as well. Here is a quick list of the tomatoes:

J&L Gardens
Ambrosia Orange UBX (experimental, high brix)
Ambrosia Rose UBX
Danube
Sleeping Giant
Wild Tiger

Striped or Banded Varieties
Amurskiy Tigr
Avuiri
Cal Red and Green
Favorie de Bretagne
Ozark Sunset

New Joe Rarus varieties
Green Honey
Snow Cherry
Supernova

Amethyst Cream Cherry
Deutcher Fleiss
Finnish Yellow
Green Pear
Grightmire's Pride
King Kong
Korol Sibiri
Medovaya Kapla
Mrs. Schlaubaugh's Famous Strawberry
Pink Ruffled
Sakhar Bely
Sandul Moldovan
Severnaya Malyutka
Sibirskiy Skorospelyy
Sibirskiy Velikan Rozovyi
Tatjana
Tsiris Ovyy Sad
Vedmezha Lapa
Zluta Kytice

All this certainly kept me out of trouble over the summer!
Lee

[greyghost]

Lee, I was amazed at your quick service, too. I'm really looking forward to growing the mixed variety packet of Pueblo bean seeds. Some really beautiful
colors and patterns! I also liked that there was an equal number of each bean
variety. Usually, when I order a mix, I sometimes get about 90% of one item in the mix.

Do you have info to add about the San Pedro tomato? It sounds like a wonderful variety.

Darlene