16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

I planted 6 seeds this year and got 5 RL seedlings and 1 PL. I planted the PL and 1 RL. The RL produced 3 big, beautiful, tasty toms that look exactly like the photos on Taniana's website. The PL toms aren't ready yet. It looks like they need another 2 weeks at least. Admittedly, I got the seed in an exchange.
John A

I've been getting both PL and RL seedlings from Stump of the World since 2003. Saved PL seed and saved RL seed each produce PL and RL seedlings. Tomatoes from PL and RL plants tasted the same. My source for seed was Chuck Wyatt.
If one runs across a tomato called Perpetual Change, it's this PL and RL version of Stump of the World.
Gary


Try variety Cherry Falls from Livingston Seed Co. Cascading cherry tomato type, best to place on some kind of plant stand. I put three plants in one 15 gallon pot. Incredibly heavy production, got more tomatoes than I could use. Ended up pulling the loaded plants when garden plants started producing. Decent flavor, thin skin. Not a fan of cherry tomatoes in general but I want early tomatoes, and container cherries are my best chance of achieving this goal.
Have been growing Red Robins for many years. Cherry Falls beats Red Robin hands down.



Hi Linda,
The seeds came from Baker's Creek which is a very reputable source. I think it was a labeling error by the student grower rather than a breeding error. My own labels fall out and get mixed up sometimes so I sympathize. I looked through the orange tomato varieties in the catalog and this is the one that sounded like the best match. I have attached the photo from the catalog. They don't show one in profile so it is hard to say. I guess the thing to do is order some from the catalog next year and see if they come out the same. I also intend to save seeds from this beautiful tomato. Blight or septoria set in mid season this year. I still got lots of tomatoes though the plants are mostly dead now. Some of the tomato varieties get blemishes on the fruit but this one came though spotlessly.



My guess would be powdery mildew
Here is a link that might be useful: Powdery mildew on toms, google images

I'm glad to see that the sun was shining b/c there was a chance of strong storms.
Craig LeHoullier is my best tomato friend, and more, and we've known each other for about 23 years now and Craig and Lee have hosted Tomatopalooza for many years now and it has always been a success with great attendance.
I know it was held at Efland and I looked in the picture to see if another one of my friends was there b'c he lives in Efland. Shoe Griffen is his name and he along with two others do most of my seed production for me now that I can't, and Craig raises all my plants for me and ships them up there.
I asked both Lee and Craig, I forgot to e-mail Shoe, to make sure that none of the fruits from my new varieties were out there so folks could get seeds and Lee said not to worry b'c they keep an eye on varieties such as those as well as the fruits from the Dwarf Project that haven't yet been released/
It takes a tremendous amount of work to set up the tables like that with the signs and cut fruits and labelled plates and I do hope that folks appreciate that/
It sounds like you had a good time and I'm glad for that.
Carolyn

I canôt help but drool over the pictures LOL
so many to try...
How does one goes around about finding local gatherings of similar origin?
We have local small group of tomato peeps and I really would love to get to know more Chicagoland growing tomatoers and tomatoettes and either join or help organize something similar.

Container growing has been good to me this season...but it is certainly different than in-ground. Grow bags seem to work for many....but sure dry out quickly. This means lots of work. Larger is generally better. Fast-draining mixes is important. Feed regularly.

I obviously screwed up on that post, I'll try and figure out what went wrong and re- post.
Chic
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This post was edited by seysonn on Fri, Aug 30, 13 at 23:08

They (the hornworms) were actually something of a treat to have... for my puppy that is. After taking off the tomatoe plant Belle would play with and then eventually eat them. I told my honey that belle got 4-6 servings of greens today.
But boy can they defoliate a branch overnight.
tom

Squash Vine Borers are worse, IMO. At least the hornworms can be picked off when damage is seen. SVB's do damage and are often impossible to remove and have plant recover.
Hate them with a rather violent passion...
At least the chickens can eat the hornworms.

Billyoscar: I've seen this kind of health in my garden in the woods in northern Minnesota (my home). Wonder where I could find half rotten logs or pieces of the forest floor here in Colorado. We have a trailer so we could go dig up chunks of forest floor if I just knew where to be able to go dig. I was so lucky to be living on forested land years ago.
Westy

I always use my Back to Basics Processor and make tomato juice. I use whatever's on the counter at the time. I reduce it down and add a little bit of canning salt (the recommended amount for canning) and sometimes a touch of sugar. When I've reduced it by ~40 %, I put it in quart jars and can it. Later in the winter, I can use that extra thick juice to make all kinds of things from picante and salsa to soups, stews, ketchup, or whatever trips my trigger.
Years of trying to do whole or chunked tomatoes just didn't work out. If all else fails, I also love tomato juice that has that taste of fresh from the garden.
Ted

In average, tomatoes are 90% water. Part of the remaining 10% consist of SEEDs , SKIN and bad pulp.
So in effect, a can of tomato paste is reduce by more than 80%.
Spaghetti sauce is reduced my more than 60%.
Reducing above percentages by boiling is both TIME and ENERGY consuming. There is a much simple method:
1- wash them
2- smash them and blend with stick/hand blender(in the same pot). Until fine pree.
3- Strain through a Jap/chinese rice strainer. You will get the skin, seeds, hard pulp out.
4- pour the strained must/puree into a a bag(made of fine woven fabric, cotton or nylon) and tighten its mouth.
5- Like making cheese, put some weight on it. You should see almost clear water with a little color coming out.
6- when it is reduced to the thickness that you wanted,, empty it to a pot, cook a little bit and can it.
7- use the juice as drink, make soups, ..etc.


Another point is that, tomatoes can stay in green/growth stage for a LONG time(40 day ?). with large fruits it can even take longer. So, if there have bee new sets(late comers) , it will take them a while to grow and ripen.
And yet another point: In zone 5, CO, if the wether has been cooling off, it will slow down both growth and ripening.
The other point, already mentioned, is that if you fertilized with nitrogen rich stuff, the plant will concentrate on foiliage growth.
JMO.





Agree that you don't want them on the window, don't want them in direct sun. When we say ripen on the counter that doesn't mean in the window or the direct sun.
Can't say why your Grandmother thought the window sun was needed.
Dave
Because everyone thought the window sill ripened them due to sunlight ,theY did not know any better ,kinda like they thought small pepples in the bottom of your planters increased drainage