2011 Tomatoes

Tomato Patch

I’m feeling kinda reserved at the moment, but I thought I would share some photos of the Tomato Patch, and some of my sporadic harvests.

Size Comparison

Tomato Flowers

Bag of Tomatoes

San Marzano Tomatoes - Unripe

Assorted Tomatoes

Harvest After Dark

Harvest Found in the Dark

I’ve been working on quite a number of things which seem to consume my daylight hours, so I didn’t get to look through the garden till after 10 PM. I have two very small LED lights which I use to navigate my way through the growing micro forest, and locate the treats that fuel my gardening habit.

I’ve finally started getting a good supply of Chablis peppers, and I’m picking them early before they are ripe.  I also found a Brandywine or Cherrokee purple tomato that is beginning to ripen, and I won’t know which it is until the color fills in. These two crops are just beginning to reward me for my hard work tending to their needs, and sprinkling them with nutrient enriched water. I’m still finding more Red Alert cherry tomatoes then I can eat, which always makes a happy gardener while giving away the surplus.

The lettuce just keeps growing as if it’s some sort of magical plant. I give away large zip lock bags full of it one day, and the next day the plants seem undisturbed and taller then ever. I’ve gotten so much lettuce that I’ve been eating it almost daily on my lunch break. Why should I pay $5-$10 for fast food that is no good for me when I can have a free salad that is homegrown, healthy and most of all tastes better ?

The zucchini plants continue to recover from the early summer ground hog onslaught, now that some of these animals have… err… moved on. The small plants which bore the brunt of the attack are beginning to grow very fast, and the zucchini and cucumber seeds that I planted in mid-july are popping out of the ground almost in victorious celebration. I planted far more seeds then usual, hopping to balance out the ground hog side of the equation. Now that the ground beasts are missing in the math, the equation will hopefully be out of balance in favor of lots of veggies for canning and freezing.

Broccoli

While I was wondering around in the moon light free darkness, I spotted something I would have dreaded as a child: Broccoli that looks edible. These days I’ll be happy to try it out, hopefully smothered with cheese and free of those pesky green worms I always seemed to find in store bought heads. Perhaps if I slice them thinly and fry them in butter with garlic and salt they will taste like broccoli chips.

Cabbage

Here is my most promising cabbage plant to date. It is also the one of the very first seeds to find it’s way into the soil this spring. I had planted a row of mixed cabbage seeds, and this was the only seed to poke it’s way through the soil.  As a child, these green leaves would have haunted my dreams like a water sourced monster reaching out to pull me under. The adult however sees this plant as a large bowl of sauerkraut, something I enjoy, and hope to ferment the cabbage from this plant into.

Late Blight Again ?

Brown Spots on a Red Alert Tomato

I almost fell to my knees and screamed into the air “Not again” when I saw these dreadful brown spots on one of my Red Alert tomato plants. Maybe you would think I am overreacting a bit, but this would be my third large patch wiped out by blight if that’s what this monster is. Planting tomatoes sounds like a piece of cake, but once your sitting out in the hot sun digging holes while friends are jumping in the river, then it becomes that much more of an investment then meets the eye.

Brown Leaves

When I discovered these spots, I treated the whole plant as if I were a CDC crew responding to the plague. I got two garbage bags, and ripped the suffering tomato out of the ground, carefully placing every infected limb into the plastic container. I then located my toxic fungicide, and sprayed the whole patch, generously applying the chemical in the area where this plant was located.

Lesions

There’s a close up of the lesions left on the leaves, one of the first signs of Late Blight. The lesions will contain a concentric circle, which is then surrounded by a yellowish area. Blight can ruin an entire tomato patch in one weeks time, leaving a trail of brown mushy stems, and lost spaghetti sauce. I may be in luck however, as Mother Nature does not seem so willing to help this plague in 2011. The ideal conditions for this blight are cool and wet days, something that nature seems reluctant to deliver.

If your battling Late Blight, try “Dragoon Dust” or “Deconil Fungicide”, although I should note they are not organic solutions. I’ve also sprayed my entire patch with a solution of Epsom Salt mixed with water.

In a few days time since finding the lesions, and applying the fungicide, I’ve yet to spot another blighted plant. I’ve also picked quite a few green tomatoes, just in case.

Blossom End Rot

Blossom End Rot

Blossom End Rot is something that almost never affects the tomatoes in my garden, but seems to be fairly common when the tomatoes are planted elsewhere, like in my compost pile. It’s a condition often caused by a very well growing tomato plant find itself in the middle of a drought, whereby the plant can no longer shuffle water and nutrients from the soil to the growing tomatoes.

I found this tomato growing as a volunteer in my strawberry patch, where I have not been watering the plants during dry spells.I just wish this were the only tomato affliction I’ve had to worry about.

You can read more about Blossom End Rot here: http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Tomato_BlossRt.htm

 

Photos From the Tomato Patch.

San Marzano Tomatoes

As I was looking around the tomato patch, I realized that I may just achieve my goal of “too many tomatoes”. I’ve been dusting the plants religiously every 7 days per the “Dragoon Dust” directions, and there is no sign of Late Blight. There are plenty of green tomatoes, and in many different varieties. Each year I seem to pick out new types which I favor, and I’ve slowly built a collection of plants, many of which I can identify by looking only at the leaves.

San Marzano is one of the few varieties I’ve started with my first year that I continue to grow. It is a paste tomato with a great deal in common with Roma tomatoes. The plants always seem to give a ton of effort, and I’m always surprised with how many veggies one plant will bear.

Brandywine Tomatoes

Not long after I acquired a taste for San Marzano, I found myself as a huge fan of Brandywine and Cherokee Purple. Both tomatoes are of excellent quality as sandwiches slices go, and the biggest difference I’ve noticed is the ripe color of the skin. Brandywine are usually red or yellow, and Cherokee Purple carries a dark purplish tone.

Red Lightning Tomatoes

Since I often enjoy learning about other cultures, I tend to enjoy veggies which have originated in some other corner of the globe. The Red Lightning tomato is from China, and the color is mostly red, with vertical bands of yellow which somewhat resemble lightning strikes. The plants never disappoint, and the colors always make me smile.

Red Alert Cherry Tomatoes

Red Alert tomatoes are nothing if not consistently the earliest of my tomatoes to ripen. Since I’ve found a few greenish tomatoes that were pilfered by an unknown animal, half eaten and left in the walk way, I figured I better pick these nearly ripe tomatoes, and let them finish up in this plastic container in a window sill. The water in the container was used to wash off any dust left over from the war on blight. Before placing the container in the sill, I drained all the water out.

They should ripen in a few days, and not long after become a welcome addition to my daily salad.

 

Back on Track

Zucchini Plants

The zucchini patch is doing much better these days. It seems the ground hog that I have yet to eliminate has decided to munch on only one of my zucchini patches, and leave the other alone. While I’m happy for something of a compromise for now, I will not loose to this beast, and I’ve got a long term mentality in mind. I realize this will be the location for my garden for years to come, and this family of rodents must be eliminated before all of my plants are as worn out as my aging checkbook.

Striped Zucchini

The plants are still a bit small, but their ambitions must be appreciated. Most of them have three inch sized zucchini, pretty impressive for a plant which is less then two feet tall. One of these plants is sporting a double growth of produce.

I think the biggest reason for this turn around in my plants growth is directly related to the Miracle Grow I’ve been using to encourage life in these plants. I’ve sprayed a few gallons of the water/crystal mix on both patches of zucchini. It seems both areas are growing faster, and one will produce enough to keep the ground hogs away from the other. These rodents are also munching on the zucchini alone, and leaving the recovering cucumber plants alone as well.

Waltham Butternut - Winter Squash

Some of the first seeds I sowed in the garden were Waltham Butternut Squash, which are my second favorite winter treat, second only to Yukon Gold potatoes. I wanted to give these plants plenty of time to get growing well, but it didn’t seem to work. They have been popular snacks for deer and ground hogs, and most plants are shorter then the kitten that runs in my house every time I open the door. I’m going to make them a priority for side dressing and the blue water miracle grow mixture I’m using,  as soon as I get some time.

Tomatoes and Potatoes

Although the ground hog had trimmed my zucchini and with that action also trimmed my pride, I still have a good deal left. The front portion of the garden is growing very well. Here you will find two tomato patches, 7 rows of Yukon Gold potatoes, beans, celery, and onions. I’ve side dressed the celery and onions in an effort to kick start their growth, and I’ve applied lots of water on these brutally hot days. At least one day a week, I will cover the whole garden with four hours of sprinkler time.

Chard, Broccoli, Lettuce, Kohlrabi, Mesclun and Beans

The other end of the front row is also looking pretty great. My broccoli are slowly beginning to form heads, the colorful chard and lettuce are growing faster then I imagined and the beans are doing well enough considering the local deer populations appetite. My kohlrabi plants are still low to the ground at about 5 inches tall. These are cool weather compatible, so I’ve got plenty of time to get bushels of space cabbage.  I’ve also planted a few pak choi plants near the kohlrabi, but they are still too small to see in the picture.

Just to note, the camera was about 15 feet in the air when I took these pictures, so the garden looks much smaller then it really is. The total length is about 250 feet long, and about 60 feet wide. I do tend to get carried away some times.

John and Martha’s Garden

Peppers and Tomatoes

My neighbor John noticed that we have been using the tractor and brush hog to mow the field around my house, and he wanted me to stop up and see about mowing some of his fields. While I was there, I thought it would be neat to take some pictures of John and Martha’s garden. The family is one of many Amish households in the area, so they always grow a garden, regardless of the current state of the economy, but they too are expanding the size of their plot for next year. In the background is the field which I’ve been mowing with the tractor. Since it’s taking so long, Davie has offered to help while I’m at work. The two of us should be able to mow the whole thing before winter.

Banana Peppers

While I generally grow bell peppers, the neighbors usually grow banana peppers. I guess I should ask them where they get their seeds from because I have only started to see flowers on my pepper plants.

Cabbage

Their cabbage is also doing great, and although I don’t like eating this veggie much, I’m a bit jealous as I’ve never had much luck growing these plants, and theirs look phenomenal.

Onions

Their onions are a bit taller then mine, but here I don’t feel so bad. My patch isn’t nearly as weed free, but my plants are about the same size.

I also transplanted my Pak-Choi out to the garden over the weekend, and sowed some additional cucumber and zucchini seeds, which should have just enough time before winter to grow food.

War Waged on Two Fronts

Dragon Dust on Tomatoes

I’ve been very vigilant this year trying to prevent an outbreak of late blight. I’ve resorted to using “Dragoon Dust” powder, as well as “Daconil Fungicide” spray. The powder should be applied every seven days according to the label, and the Daconil spray I’m adding to my miracle grow mixture when spraying these plants.

I’ve often tried to use organic methods when growing food, and I’ve paid dearly for my ideals. I’ve seen two tomato patches containing hundreds of plants and dozens of hours of work vanish to late blight. After suffering these loses, I came to a new realization, that I should do what works, not what I believe to be the proper way to grow food. I will still apply manure in the fall, and add bio-char whenever possible, but I’m not going to ignore technology, and progress, to bury my head in a pile of dead tomato plants. I’m going to keep trying new things until I achieve the desired result: Too Many Tomatoes = )

This is my war on blight, and so far this season, I have yet to encounter the darkened brown spots on the stems which consume the entire plant until it’s a lifeless twig.

Endive Munched to the Ground

On the other front of my war things aren’t nearly as cheery. I’m not losing per say, but I’m far from winning. My zucchini seem to be growing in spite of the daily onslaught of the hogs, however the tiny endive and second patch of cucumbers are taking the brunt of the brown rodents feeding. I’ve received the ultimate weapon to combat these furry brown eating machines, and I’ve yet to calibrate the attached scope, but I’ve already placed a few small weights of lead in the garden.  I begin my day before work taking a quick look through the garden, and targeting anything which doesn’t belong. I’ve yet to tag a hog, but I’m sure I will get them in time.  My new priority is to “sight in” the scope, or calibrate it, so that whatever rodent is in my cross-hairs will drop when the time comes.

Noise Makers

I’m trying another less damaging weapon as a deterrent.  Larger animals require the proper time of year for a lead solution, so these noise makers are the next solution I will be testing out. The aluminum should capture some of the wind which will cause a noise that I’m hoping will scare many rodents and deer alike. I’ve made several different styles, some with spinning wheels, others which have a flat square with a weight attached that should cause a drumming sound.

So the war wages on… all in a half acre plot over simple tasty food.

Healthy Tomatoes

Healthy Tomato

I’ve done battle with Late Blight for several years now, but I refuse to give in to this plague. When my tomato patch turned to mush last year as my plants all withered away, I took the opportunity to learn how to battle blight, and Win. I plan to launch a preemptive first strike on this pest before it has the chance to rear it’s ugly head and wither even one leaf on my much smaller and more manageable plot. I’d recommend to all who have more then a few plants to purchase some Epson salts soon, and prepare to battle the blight with a Epson salt mixed with water sprayed on the leaves. I’ve had luck mixing Epson salt water with a small amount of store bought anti-blight chemicals.  Either way, you take your own risks while applying this remedy.  Make sure to use Epson Salt, rather then table salt.

Brandywine

The Brandy-wine tomatoes are beginning to set flowers even at the short height of one and a half feet tall. A sure sign of a brandy-wine plant are the leaves which are wide and singular, unlike other tomatoes which have multiple thin leaves.

Red Alert - Early Cherry

Here’s a favorite for the cherry tomato lovers, and a great early tomato for salads. This photo was taken at least three days ago. These amazing plants will bear more color then the average Christmas tree weeks before other varieties of tomatoes are ripe. I’ve been growing them for a few years now, and I’ve never been disappointed.

Hit the Ground Running

Rototilled Garden

I came home to a surprise on Monday when I rounded the corner on the windy dirt road which I live. I looked up at my huge garden and noticed it was a different color then I expected. I was looking for a white coating over a freshly mowed green field; What I saw was a patch of brown without a trace of green. I immediately knew the garden had been tilled, but this is not what I was expecting. My mind had been filled with different scenarios for tilling the soil starting with asking a few neighbors to borrow their tractor, or hiring them to pull our rototiller. When I rounded the corner I knew I was off the hook, and could move on to planting. I have some very helpful family members to thank for this outcome, as they arranged the whole thing.

My Sun Baked Soil

Here is the soil I start 2011’s garden in, with remnants of last years corn stalks mixed in.  This is the soil that I’ve worked with for four years, adding manure, bio-char, lime and the remnants of camp fires at every turn. I gawked in amazement at the edge of the garden for a moment after returning from my nine to five.  After a few moments in the hot sun I knew instantly that I must begin today, and not wait for my vacation to begin. I have some days off next week from June 4-12, and had planned to begin then. Instead I grabbed my garden attire, visited the greenhouse and left just as soon with trays of plants in my hands ready for a new home in the sun.

Amish Paste, Brandy-Wine, Cherokee Purple, etc

I’m using rolls of weed blocking fabric to ease the work load, and also to speed the growth of these plants. The black color of the fabric tends to warm the soil, which in turn makes the plants grow faster. It also prevents the weeds from stealing vital nutrients from the soil. I started the planting with Amish Paste, then Cherokee Purple, Brandy-Wine, and eventually San Marzano Tomatoes. I kept at it till 9:30 at night, finishing with some rows of lettuce in the area behind me.  I finally made my way to the TV by 10:30 after watering the rest of the plants in the greenhouse, the herbs in my rock garden, and washing off the layer of mud my skin had accumulated. When I got to the TV there was nothing good on anyway, I should have put in another hour of planting !