If you need medication than I do also. As I was fondling some tomatoes this afternoon I came across a nice ripe one. I lost all control, picked it and ate in on the spot. :)

Me, too.

I talk to them as well.

Once the tomatoes are going like gangbusters, you may find that you don't even want to look at one! Some of last years crop fell to the ground and took root. Even after a deep 12 inch tilling, the tomato seeds survived and sprouted plants. Far too small for my area though. I must say that some mammouth dill that was dropped from ripend seeds last summer has now reached almost 5 foot tall and already has huge flower bud heads. I just hope that I start to see some cukes soon.

My second wave of ripened garden peas has cleaned almost every plant of one type. Two other pea types (migger and mature later) are now flowering. I just hope they don't get fried with heat thats coming soon. I only got 2 quarts of peas so far, but thats a lot better than last year. Nothing like fresh cooked peas and corn right from the garden.

I go out and pet the growing tomatos as well. The smell of the leaves is also something I really enjoy, so heavenly. I do get over it once they all start producing.

Right now I just have a few green tomatoes on the Early girls and a sweet 100, I can't wait until the Cherokee purples are ripe.

I don't really pet them but I have to go and look at them ...every day...OKKKKKKKKKkk sometimes more than once per day...

Oh goody, at least I know I'm not alone.

My tomatoes are in pots, so I don't think I'll have too many to eat. Last year, the only one I had too many of was the yellow pear cherry tomatoes. But I've plenty of customers who don't grow tomatoes, and they appreciated getting little bags of them.

My cukes are pretty pathetic this year. I think it's just been too hot. My green beans though, which I had over fertilized, are finally producing bunches of flowers, so we'll be having green beans soon.

I think I might pick my first tomato this afternoon, and like greenhouser, I have my doubts as to whether it will make it indoors without being eaten!

If the cukes are stubby and round like little golf balls, they need lots more water. I used to have that problem until I manually water and also use two rows of soaker hoses around them. They are now just starting to climb the trellis. I have been enjoying yellow waxed beans in the last couple of yars as opposed to the green beans. The plants are barley at the second set of true leaves now. With all the rain yesterday and brigh sun and heat today, things will start to get growing faster. I have read that if you spray the foliage on tomatoes, and use a liquid kelp or granulated kelp product, it helps to speed up ripening. I used it on the peas and 90% of the plants had all fully formed pods that could all be picked at one time.

rachelellen, I'm sure it does them good to be caressed!

I only WISH I had some to fondle. I don't ever get any till well into summer here anyway, and between a family emergency in early spring that delayed planting out and the cool weather since, I'm farther behind than I've ever been with my tomatoes; don't even have any blossoms (am jealous of greenmulberry, who is in my same zone and has at least green fruit!).

Don't think I'm above fondling even tomato LEAVES, mind you.

But like Ken I've got peas now---the first handful didn't make it into the house, but having just come back from a few days away I have accumulated enough to put into a meal and will pick 'em & eat 'em tomorrow. Maybe get some baby potatoes from the farm stand. Mmmm....

Z

zabby17

I envy you your peas. They don't do well here no matter how early I start them in spring. I've also tried broccoli and Brussel sprouts and they don't do well either. Only collards, of that family of plants does well here in our early heat, constant lack of rain and humidity. In fall turnips thrive. This year I'm going to try growing more beets this fall also.

It may be better to start peas in mid to late September. Then your sure they will grow and ripen well eneough for the fall harvest. I plan to do the same here, but they will be planted the beginning of august, as September is getting quite cool. My broccoli is also getting big, but no heads yet. Thats another with high potassium and I must blanch and freeze to reduce the potassium level, according to my many diets lists.

I've been eating peas for three days straight. I didn't think I'd get a crop at all, being that they SHOULD be a cool weather crop and I live in one of the hottest zones AND we've had quite a few 100+ hot spells in the past two months. But they're going gangbusters and I'm incredibly pleased with myself.

And I've been fondling my tomatoes as well - especially the Roma, because there's so many of them and they're hiding underneath the foliage.

I've got quite a few ripe ones off both of my cherry toms and two tennis ball sized fruits on my Early Girl will be ready to pick tomorrow.

Neither the peas nor the cherry toms make it inside most of the time. Mmmmm.

okay, I've resisted as long as I can ... I truly love tomatoes and anxiously await the first local harvest, but with two beers working, I must ask you rachelellen .. can't you find anything better to fondle???

Well, my husband was still at work. ;)

Oh my! Where is Jessica when we need her?

Jim

Yeah, me too.. There must be other things out there that deserve more attention.. How about chasing some bad bugs away.. Use scare tactics..

Well, I've eaten my first tomatoes. They were absolutely delicious, and more are ripening as I type.

The only thing is that the skins were tough. I've never had a tomato with skins that tough. I believe the bigger variety is an Early Girl, which I've grown before, and the other was a cherry tomato, I can't remember the variety.

I understand that some tomatoes have softer skin than others...I remember my father's beefsteaks would almost burst at a touch if they were ripe enough. But is there something else that can cause a tougher skin than normal?

Early girl is bred for a tough skin. And some cherry types too. I was not very impressed with cherry toms or the early girl. Big Boy is a little better as are some grape type tomatoes. If these are just for eating, they are OK. The reason for the tough skins is its deliborate, so they ship better with less crushing and bruising.If your doing sauces, planting soe plum types, or paste types are also very good for eating fresh. Last years jumbo types were all like beefsteaks and slightly smaller. A few cracked on top due to heat, which is normal.

Hmm. I always plant an Early Girl, but don't remember the skins being this tough. Oh well, as I said, they're absolutely delicious, so I'm not about to let a bit of tough skin bother me. And, it did live up to it's name, as it is the first plant to have tomatoes ready. Another, I think a Better Boy (the tag has disappeared, so I can't be sure) isn't anywhere near ready.

The tougher skin is because they will be growing in cooler weather, earlier in the season, which can rot some tomatoes before they ripen.

rachelellen,

Do you start your toms from seed? I'd be happy to send you some for next season if you want. I found Early Girls often tough, too, and have switched for my early plants to a couple of heirloom types that are tasty and juicier. Stupice, Matina, and Kotlas have all matured very quickly for me, and I'm hoping next year to try one called Kimberly that's gotten very good reviews from some tomato buddies of mine. Stupice in particular is very reliable in almost all conditions, and keeps pumping out smallish but flavourful tomatoes all summer.

Stupice is and a couple of cherry varieties are the only ones I have even showing blossoms now. I'm living vicariously through you...

Served up the last of last year's salsa two nights ago when an old friend came for dinner. No more Annie's Salsa till the new crop, sniff!!!

Zabby

ksrogers, I live in the CA Central Valley...our temps have been in the 80's-100's since the tomatoes were little nubs. Is there anything else you can think of? I just tried my first cherry tomato and the skin was so tough it almost crunched.

I did a dumb thing a few weeks ago and used triple 16 instead of veggie food by accident, and that, along with several really bad bouts with wind caused the first set of blossoms to drop off. Would it be possible that a residual excess of nitrogen is the culprit?

I mean, these skins are really tough. I have been growing tomatoes in pots for at least 10 years and never had any even close to this tough.

Zabby, I would love to grow heirlooms, but I wonder if they would do as well in pots? We have a couple of really nice nurseries that carry seeds/seedlings of heirlooms but I was always concerned that they might be more temperamental? I used to buy heirloom tomatoes all the time at a wonderful produce mart in Berkeley when I lived in the Bay Area.

Could be the high nitrogen. One way they can soften a little is to allow them to sit indoors and ripen up some more. You do need to carefully watch them for spoilage. Never put uncut tomatoes in the fridge. Many times the people how come up with these strains of tomatoes will have heat problems that make the tomatoes crack badly. I had soem 7 foot tall yellow and white cherry tomatoes that were dropping off teh plant in te dozens per day. 90% were cracked and looked terrible once the insides swelled a little and the open cracks dried out some. I like growing grape type tomatoes for eating and find that these have much more flavor compared to most cherry types. Last years tomatoes were all supposed to be big jumbos,and several of them cracked badly too. AT the back of the rows, I had some cherry and grape types on only 4 plants. I was so impressed with the grape tomatoes, I saved seeds from them and grew just these this year. They are just now flowering profusly. A help for tomatoes is in the form of Gibberalic acid. This is the main component for a spray-on product called 'Tomato Blosson Set'. Dont confuse that with teh cacium based blossom end rot spray as they are quite different. The blossom set spray helps to strengthen the stems of the first tomatoes, so the flowers remain and will not easily fall off. Heirloom tomatoes are many types and sizes. Some can be grown in large pots, provided the plants mature hieghts aren't reaching 7 foot tall. Some of mine were over that, but were obvioulsy not a true heirloom type. Decide on the kinds of tomatoes you like. A very good, reliable one is the brandywine, whic has a very good flavor and is in the top choices for really tasty toms. Heirlooms have very little change from their ancestors, and can be big or small. They are usually less resistant to heat cracking and diseases, as well as the 'cat face' malidy if they are big types.

Zabby, I'm growing several Stupice plants as well and have one fruit that should be ripe soon. I tried Kimberly 2 years ago and the plants were virtually identical next to each other. I actually liked the Stupice better for taste but it was very close. Lori

rachelellen,

Heirlooms are not necessarily any more temperamental or tricky to grow than hybrids---they all have different characteristics. The main thing with tomatoes in pots (as I am sure you know since you've been growing them successfully) is to keep 'em watered. In the height of summer even here in the Great White North they need watering at least once a day, sometimes twice.

Also, to pick varieties that don't grow too huge. Stupice is good that way---I have grown it myself in a pot with good results, but my conditions are SO different from yours; I don't know how it does in really high heat (it is originally Czech, though I don't know that that means much; I've also had good luck with some varieties of African origin...).

Maybe ask the folks who sell the heirloom seedlings for advice on what would be good for pots in your area, or check the Tomato forum---I used to hang out there a lot and there were often threads on good varieties for high heat.

But you also want to be sure to get a productive variety; if you only have a few plants in pots, you don't want a stingy Brandywine giving only a few toms at the end of a long season!

Happy growing, Zabby

Zabby

Lori,

Thanks, that's interesting about Stupice and Kimberly!

I actually have found, I think, Matina to be my fave of the heirloom earlies I've tried, but they are all very similar, and the conditions from one year to the next may be what actually makes any difference. Or, frankly, my imagination. ;-)

Zabby

Just a follow up about those tough tomato skins...I think it must have been the nitrogen, because the skins are getting progressively more tender. The couple I picked yesterday were back to normal (Yummy, but chewable!)

I have got volunteer tomatoes springing up everywhere, even in places where no tomatoes were ever planted. I've kept a few of the strongest looking and potted them...we'll see what comes of it. I expect that my husband and I will be hip deep in tomatoes by the end of the season.

rachelellen,

That's weird about your tomatoes changing, but I'm glad they're getting easier to eat! I wonder how the nitrogen could have done that, but I have no reason to say it couldn't have. Interesting.

I know that in many years, I find myself somewhat disappointed by the flavour of the first few tomatoes of the crop; I end up wondering if the weather that year is not conducive, or if somehow I have just in my mind built up the memory of how good a fresh garden tomato tastes that nothing in real life can actually live up to it! But within a few days of regular tomato picking they seem to improve greatly.

Zabby, who won't be harvesting any for three or four weeks, sigh. (But had another great garden-centric meal tonigh, featuring fresh snap peas with mint, and fresh basil with brie and garlic and olive oil on pasta)