I've never had any luck at all growing tomatoes, but, like you, this year have them starting to ripen now. They're in good soil and I think the moisture has really helped a bunch!

I think this has been the best spring in quite some time for maters. Especially after the lack of spring and rain last year.

I AGREE! Every year I say I won't plant tomatoes again, but every year I do and am disappointed. NOT THIS YEAR! My 'maters are WONDERFUL! Lots of cherry tomatoes are ripening now and some bigger ones are just starting to turn. My problem is that usually the heat gets to them before they begin producing. This year I put them in the ground sooner becuase our winter was so warm. It was risky, but really paid off!

I am eating my Paul Robeson Tomatoes ( a Russian breed), Jubillee, Big beef, sungold, and a Yugoslavian small tomato. They are coming out of my ears dispite the cages falling over the deer getting into myy garden, my Trombetta squash climbing over them. I decided to put them in a month early and I protected them on three nights when they were small.

I am a traitor. I just love that russian tomato. SO RICH. I can't sing its praises enough. We have been with lows in the low 70's and it still has been fruiting a bit. I need to get some fertilizer on them today. Thank you for reminding me.

My last 2 years have been awful!! same with the squash. I am going great guns with them too. I think getting things in early when there is a warm pattern is the ticket. The squash bores aren't half as bad this year. I have not seen one. Maybe the hot soil from last summer killed the pupae. Just a hair brained theory. I have been eating squash 4 days in a row. I see a new thread coming. See ya.

I have four vines - and four varieties, and they are all flourishing, and starting to ripen at the same time. We're already starting to give some away to our neighbor in spite of eating our fill everyday.

We have been getting ripe tomatoes since late April. The first to ripe were Viva Italian romas, followed by tons of JD's Ctex, Indian stripe, Cherokee purple and other varieties. We even have gotten about 5 pink brandywine so far. We have been giving away tomatoes to lots of people and eating them all the time ourselves, and making lots of spag and tomato sauce. The spring temps/moisture were perfect, though I do think we will be slowing down here, with the temps being high and no rain in weeks now.

wantonamara, where did you get the "Russian" seeds? I'd like to try it
Weldon

Nothing but Celebrities here, but they are good, and plentiful. Don't know as yet what my "volunteers" are as they are just now setting tomatoes.

I also swore off tomatoes after the past two years of more-trouble-than-they-were-worth but hub brought 5 plants home sometime in late Jan. or early Feb. so in the ground they went, and grew and grew, they are taking over the whole vegetable garden and producing aplenty.

Lynn,
I always put my maters out really early. As long as the ground is at least 60 degrees, I will plant them. Yes I may have to protect them ( I use gallon milk jugs), but at least the roots get established early, so that they can start producing early.
Susan

Weldon, I bought the transplant at the Natural Gardener in Austin. I have seen the seeds around. Google Paul Robeson tomato seed and you will get lots of hits. Pink caspian is a good one also. If you are caught with green ones at frost. They save and ripen. I was eating tomatoes in February. There are many russian tomatoes and they are very different and extremely flavorful in a different way. I ate one pink colored russian that was the most perfect tomato ever and I had lost the tag. I thought it was the paul robeson but it was not . They might get you the more interesting tomato sites.. The Pink is not the washed out pink of the unripe. It is a luscious very ripe looking pink. They also have white tomatoes and purple tomatoes. I have not had success with the white.....Well, it was last summer. Heat might have had something to do with that failure.

Here is a link that might be useful: Paul Robeson at Baker creek Heirloom