No comment on that George but I got their catalog and saw your name in there. I admire their work and will be ordering more from them.

No idea, but your presence keeps reminding me about sweet potatoes. You'll be hearing from me before too long, I imagine.

Let us know how these Black turn out. Love black tomatoes.
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There's at least two different varieties sold as black---one is indeterminate and produces fruit that are a lot like Cherokee Purple, though I don't think they're quite as tasty as CP. Still, they are good. This probably is the one that is referenced in the SSE yearbooks, and it seems like most everyone who's grown it has liked it just fine. I think this would be the one you got from Glenn Drowns but I'm just guessing because I haven't grown his version of Black. I may have gotten it from Gleckler's Seedmen back when they were in business. Or, maybe Jay sent it to me. It's been a few years.

The one sold by TGSC is, if my memory is correct, a semi-determinate and it didn't really make much of an impression on me. I grew it probably not in the first year they offered it, but maybe the second or third. It tasted like a typical black tomato, but it wasn't as good as some of the ones I love like Black Krim, True Black Brandywine, Black From Tula and Black Sea Man. I'd rank it right along with the similar dark-fruited one they used to sell as 'Blue Fruit' back when there really weren't any blue tomatoes, and 'Blue Fruit' was nothing special either (and the fruit weren't blue, but I didn't expect them to be)....just like their version of Black is nothing special.

Your mileage may vary since flavor is subjective.

Thanks, all! We'll see.

The first "black" tomato I grew was Black Plum, which literally left a bad taste in my mouth. I'm one of the few who really don't like that one. But Black Cherry taught me that "black" can taste good. So we'll see.

They sure do germinate well!

I will be producing my sweet potato slip list in the next day or two. They're starting to sprout in their trays now.

Last year made me actually think that it may be possible to put sweet potatoes in the ground too early, even when temps are just great. I had a decent harvest, wherever my irrigation didn't malfunction and rodents didn't get them. But the majority of the roots were over 2.5 lb a piece. My wife vastly prefers 1 lb. We actually harvested a couple roots at 4.5 lb, if I recall.

George I am shooting for may 1 for sweet potatoes is that too late? Last year I didn't get them in till middle June til mid July and was to late.

Good to see you George! How was the quality of the bigger roots? When shopping for sweets, I always try to get them all nearly the same size so they cook in the same amount of time. I always wondered if big roots would be woody or stringy.

Amy I wondered that.

I did find out from last years potatoes that stringy is not limited to large. I am at the end of my edibles and there are some very stringy small ones. I am using those for chips. I hate stringy sw pot.

Large roots are not woody or stringy. However, cooking time will vary due to size. With almost all things cooking, I always say, "Cook until done, not by the clock." Some of the really large ones took twice as long to get done as a small root.

I would add, that I've concluded that almost any sweet potato is benefited by a longer cooking time. It is incredible how much the flavor improves when they get "the fire cooked out of them." I want to cook them, not just until I can easily stick a fork in them, but rather, until they are as soft as they're going to get.

Last year I planted all my slips on May 25th. I might well shoot for June 1 this year. I have planted as late as the second week of July, which is getting late, but produces a decent harvest. You know, there are so many factors in what makes them produce well or not, it's hard to say, sometimes, why they don't do so great. I grow two varieties, which typically almost never excel in the same growing season. One will do fantastic, and the other so-so, then... SWITCH!... the other way around!

In 2016 the westernmost third of my 100' row produced very little usable roots. Then, the rest of the row produced giant roots, making up in weight, for what the western end failed. I planted under plastic and used drip irrigation. Upon harvest, I realized that the irrigation never got to the last third of the row, while the plastic kept the plants from receiving rain and other watering from overhead.

This year, my Red Wine Velvet is already sold out, probably until May. I've had standing orders since last summer. RWV is a great variety. It's the one and only we'd grow, if it were up to my wife. However, I would be very sad if that were all we grew. I LOVE the different flavors and textures, and have discovered that I gravitate more to the drier varieties.

Thanks, George, let us know about your list.

Sweet potatoes are always a surprise. You never know just how they are going to turn out. It is all about the soil and weather.

Auther, there's a lot of wisdom to that!

I had a whole post in here and somehow gw ate it.

I grew 3 different s.p. last year and my favorite was a red skinned white flesh from shpc. I have no idea until I find my records from 2 years ago but they are creamy texture but drier than orange. Great all around for chips fries baked or fried in bacon grease with cinnamon for breakfast.

I going to go sort my puny s.p. today and get them in their hot bed.

George do I need to have a license to sell sweet potatoes slips? I thought I could sell some at my market if they are ready.