Almost too many maters.

b54red · July 7, 2015

My wife and I put up what will probably be the last tomatoes we will process this summer unless I can find more room in our small freezer. Despite the fact that I haven't picked many really gigantic tomatoes this year meaning the ones over 2 lbs I have had the largest average fruit size since I started growing tomatoes 40 years ago. It has been somewhat of a surprise since I got such a late start setting my first tomato plants out a month behind my usual set out date. I expected smaller fruit due to the heat of the later planting dates and have been amazed at the fruit size this year. I have not picked many tomatoes less than 10 oz so far this season and when I go out an pick each day I have been surprised by how few fruit it has taken to fill a bucket up.

It sure has been easier processing because it doesn't take that many tomatoes to fill up the large sauce pot we use and the freezer has filled up faster than ever. I have been giving away more tomatoes this year by weight than ever before also. I have to go to one of my doctors for an appointment this afternoon so they are in for a surprisingly large donation of tomatoes and I think I'll stop by my dentist's office on the way and unload some more.

I'm frequently posting about one problem or another so I thought I would let ya'll know it isn't all thorns and briars in my patch all the time.

If all my plants died tomorrow it wouldn't be a terrible disaster because this has been an outstandingly good year with very few really bad problems. I wish every season would be so good to all us tomato addicts.

Bill

My Foot Smells · July 7, 2015

Plenty of season left, let the good times roll ! Sometimes when you take your hands off the steering wheel is when things really get going. Continued success and happy canning.

Dewayne mater · July 7, 2015

Congrats! Thanks for the good news!

Dewayne Mater

BigVanVader · July 7, 2015

I know how you feel Bill, I have so many tomatoes I am scratching my head as to what I was thinking lol. Congrats on the great year!

Mike723 · July 7, 2015

Glad to hear it, good for you! It's nice to see all of our hard work come to fruition.. Had a great year the year before last.. It's truly a pleasure to give tomatoes out by the bushel ..

NarnianGarden · July 7, 2015

Our season has harrly even begun, with no ripe ones yet (except in greenhouses). Looking forward to tasting the fruit of my labors - hopefully the next few weeks will be warm, but not too hot!

I know what you mean by 'too many'... last year, at the end of the season, we were sitting with plenty of green unripe ones and wondering what to do.. They all ripened and were either cooked, put to the freezer or given away to neighbors (who had never seen any tomatoes of those colors...)..
I will make sure that my parents' freezer will have plenty of space this autumn..!

pauldavid · July 7, 2015

Glad that you are having a great harvest Bill. All that hard work pays off!

Gardeneer · July 7, 2015

Freezing, to me, is an inefficient and space wasting method to preserve tomatoes.
You can makes sauce that will take 2/3 less space, and that is in your pantry not in freezer.
Freezing doe not, by the way, preserve the freshness of tomatoe.
By the time you core, deskin, deseed, get some cocktail juice it is already reduced by more than 1/2.
BTW: i do a limited amount of canning
JMO

NarnianGarden · July 7, 2015

Efficiency very much comes down to one's space and storage conditions. We do have a 'cold cellar', but freezing is the easiest way to keep tomatoes. My mom made a few batches of sauce as well and it was very space-saving, but ziplock bags full of tomatoes are handy, too. We don't need to skin them, we eat them, seeds, skins and all.

Canning tomatoes is what I've never tried, it is trickier than cooking fruits which have more acid.
(Not too long ago, I saw an article where an Italian cook said that filtering seeds out of tomato sauce is wasting time - they actually do contribute to the rich flavor.. Something I have been doing right!)

ginger2778 · July 7, 2015

I have one word for you: DEHYDRATOR. Heee!

Captain Neon · July 7, 2015

I have a friend that grows Romas for the main purpose of making tomato chips.

**carolyn137** · July 7, 2015

Bill, glad to hear that it has been a good year for you.

Would you like me to PM you with my home address so that you can send some up here, and of course I'll pay for shipping.

I jave only 10 plants in containers in the side yard, just some blossoms, no fruit set, and with all the rain the foliage is yellowing and b'c of family problems Freda hasn't been able, or maybe want to, go out there and fertilize and spray some Daconil, and I'll be darned if I have to get someone to buy some local fruits for me at a farmstand.

There's always the possibility that Rob, who raised my plants for me, my choice, my seeds, and also raised a lot for himself, that I could ask him for some.

We shall see, and just ignore this whining complaining, ticked off post.

Carolyn

Durgan · July 7, 2015

I seldom have too many tomatoes. I juice them and tomato juice is always welcome.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?HYPCT 3 September 2014 Tomato Juice
Thirty pounds of tomatoes were processed into eleven liters of tomato juice.The jars were pressure canned at 15 PSI for 15 minutes for preservation. The only addition to the pot was one liter of water to facilitate cooking. Annotated pictures depict the process.

ricman · July 7, 2015

I fired up the dehydrator today, that's what I use ...

Rick

NarnianGarden · July 7, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by Durgan

I seldom have too many tomatoes. I juice them and tomato juice is always welcome.

http://www.durgan.org/URL/?HYPCT 3 September 2014 Tomato Juice
Thirty pounds of tomatoes were processed into eleven liters of tomato juice.The jars were pressure canned at 15 PSI for 15 minutes for preservation. The only addition to the pot was one liter of water to facilitate cooking. Annotated pictures depict the process.

Again, I am very impressed by your hard work..! The end product looks great - but I wonder if the final residue could be used in some ways, instead of throwing it way.. Goats, for example, eat anything and turn it into a nutritious product that can be used further to all kinds of delicious stuff (cheese, youghurt...)

July 7, 2015	#1
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	Almost too many maters. My wife and I put up what will probably be the last tomatoes we will process this summer unless I can find more room in our small freezer. Despite the fact that I haven't picked many really gigantic tomatoes this year meaning the ones over 2 lbs I have had the largest average fruit size since I started growing tomatoes 40 years ago. It has been somewhat of a surprise since I got such a late start setting my first tomato plants out a month behind my usual set out date. I expected smaller fruit due to the heat of the later planting dates and have been amazed at the fruit size this year. I have not picked many tomatoes less than 10 oz so far this season and when I go out an pick each day I have been surprised by how few fruit it has taken to fill a bucket up. It sure has been easier processing because it doesn't take that many tomatoes to fill up the large sauce pot we use and the freezer has filled up faster than ever. I have been giving away more tomatoes this year by weight than ever before also. I have to go to one of my doctors for an appointment this afternoon so they are in for a surprisingly large donation of tomatoes and I think I'll stop by my dentist's office on the way and unload some more. I'm frequently posting about one problem or another so I thought I would let ya'll know it isn't all thorns and briars in my patch all the time. If all my plants died tomorrow it wouldn't be a terrible disaster because this has been an outstandingly good year with very few really bad problems. I wish every season would be so good to all us tomato addicts. Bill

July 7, 2015	#6
NarnianGarden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Finland, EU Posts: 2,550	Our season has harrly even begun, with no ripe ones yet (except in greenhouses). Looking forward to tasting the fruit of my labors - hopefully the next few weeks will be warm, but not too hot! I know what you mean by 'too many'... last year, at the end of the season, we were sitting with plenty of green unripe ones and wondering what to do.. They all ripened and were either cooked, put to the freezer or given away to neighbors (who had never seen any tomatoes of those colors...).. I will make sure that my parents' freezer will have plenty of space this autumn..! Last edited by NarnianGarden; July 7, 2015 at 01:33 PM.

July 7, 2015	#12
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	Bill, glad to hear that it has been a good year for you. Would you like me to PM you with my home address so that you can send some up here, and of course I'll pay for shipping. I jave only 10 plants in containers in the side yard, just some blossoms, no fruit set, and with all the rain the foliage is yellowing and b'c of family problems Freda hasn't been able, or maybe want to, go out there and fertilize and spray some Daconil, and I'll be darned if I have to get someone to buy some local fruits for me at a farmstand. There's always the possibility that Rob, who raised my plants for me, my choice, my seeds, and also raised a lot for himself, that I could ask him for some. We shall see, and just ignore this whining complaining, ticked off post. Carolyn __________________ Carolyn

July 7, 2015	#2
My Foot Smells Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Pulaski County, Arkansas Posts: 1,239	Plenty of season left, let the good times roll ! Sometimes when you take your hands off the steering wheel is when things really get going. Continued success and happy canning.

July 7, 2015	#3
Dewayne mater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,212	Congrats! Thanks for the good news! Dewayne Mater

July 7, 2015	#4
BigVanVader Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Greenville, South Carolina Posts: 3,099	I know how you feel Bill, I have so many tomatoes I am scratching my head as to what I was thinking lol. Congrats on the great year!

July 7, 2015	#5
Mike723 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: CT Posts: 290	Glad to hear it, good for you! It's nice to see all of our hard work come to fruition.. Had a great year the year before last.. It's truly a pleasure to give tomatoes out by the bushel ..

July 7, 2015	#7
pauldavid Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NE Louisiana, Zone 8A Posts: 1,179	Glad that you are having a great harvest Bill. All that hard work pays off!

July 7, 2015	#8
Gardeneer Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: NC - zone 8a - heat zone 7 Posts: 4,916	Freezing, to me, is an inefficient and space wasting method to preserve tomatoes. You can makes sauce that will take 2/3 less space, and that is in your pantry not in freezer. Freezing doe not, by the way, preserve the freshness of tomatoe. By the time you core, deskin, deseed, get some cocktail juice it is already reduced by more than 1/2. BTW: i do a limited amount of canning JMO

July 7, 2015	#10
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	I have one word for you: DEHYDRATOR. Heee!

July 7, 2015	#11
Captain Neon Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Florence KY Posts: 234	I have a friend that grows Romas for the main purpose of making tomato chips.

July 7, 2015	#13
Durgan Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Brantford, ON, Canada Posts: 1,341	I seldom have too many tomatoes. I juice them and tomato juice is always welcome. http://www.durgan.org/URL/?HYPCT 3 September 2014 Tomato Juice Thirty pounds of tomatoes were processed into eleven liters of tomato juice.The jars were pressure canned at 15 PSI for 15 minutes for preservation. The only addition to the pot was one liter of water to facilitate cooking. Annotated pictures depict the process.

July 7, 2015	#14
ricman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Ardmore,Oklahoma Posts: 172	I fired up the dehydrator today, that's what I use ... Rick