Gardeners

[street]

I'm getting excited for the small garden we put in. I learned the love of gardening from my mother. We had fun planting and harvesting and many memories of the two of us. Days gone by!!

Here are tomatoe plants wife and I seeded 3 weeks ago today. Heat pads and try to get them in as much sun as possible. I melt snow for water, and I think it helps but have no science to back that up though.

We give away a lot of the plants away but looking forward to watch things grow and harvesting is great.

 

[Graybeard]

Do you grow hybrids or OP tomatoes?

 

[TheWizard]

What are OP tomatoes?
Original Poster tomatoes

 

[street]

Do you grow hybrids or OP tomatoes?

No hybrids that I'm aware of and the pack doesn't say they are. Just a pack of seeds we got from Walmart (Early Girl/Super Boy) and I ordered a pack of Jet Setters. We have great luck and lots of fruit from the Jets.

I like to start my own just to have fun and nice to have that when winter hangs on. I'm sure I could go buy them a lot cheaper than hand growing them but.... I enjoy it.

 

[like2]

Good stuff!! Nothing beats home grown tomatoes!!!

 

[Gumby]

What are OP tomatoes?
Original Poster tomatoes

Open-pollinated. i.e. - heirloom tomatoes

 

[swakyaby]

Ahhh, tomatoes! I do love a good home-grown brandywine.

 

[street]

Open-pollinated. i.e. - heirloom tomatoes

Thanks, I didn't even know that. Lol Just tomatoe plants to me.

 

[swakyaby]

I live in gardening zone 9a (very warm, long growing season), and my favorite tomato to grow are brandywines. I start them indoors under growlights and a warming pad underneath.

 

[Gumby]

I grow Amish Paste, San Marzano, Brandywine, Mortgage Lifter, Principe Borghese and Sungold tomatoes. I start them all from seed under the lights in the kitchen and then put them out in the garden around Memorial Day. They are all heirlooms, except the Sungolds, which are hybrids. For the heirlooms, I save the seed from year to year. It's not hard.

 

[simple girl]

Avid vegetable gardener here. I grow solely in earthboxes on my patio. No weeding ever!

I'm in Zone 9b and garden from ~ October to May. We have a ton of beautiful red cherry tomatoes on the vine right now, as well as red bell peppers, patty pan squash, green onions, basil, cilantro, and lettuce producing. I have new yellow sun gold cherries as well as early girl tomatoes going as well - those are my third round of tomatoes and they are still small green fruits. Should be able to start harvesting in late April/May, I think.

Gardening brings me so much joy. I start the majority of my plants from seed indoors, then transplant after they are established.

 

[simple girl]

They are all heirlooms, except the Sungolds, which are hybrids. For the heirlooms, I save the seed from year to year. It's not hard.

This is my first year attempting to save seeds. I grew some romas that weren't hybrid and saved those - will see how they do next year! I absolutely loved the romas!

Most everything else I grow are hybrids. This is my first time growing sungolds. I understand they can get fairly tall. I will have to prune them back since I can't have super tall plants growing on my back patio. The HOA might complain, lol.

 

[street]

I the north country less than 175 miles to Canadian border (as the crow flies) I always get 70-to-50-day varieties. Always seem to do well on harvesting whatever we plant.

 

[Winemaker]

DW has various peppers, and tomatoes, started already. She was so excited about the new greenhouse, she started way too early. We have lettuce, cabbage, spinach, carrots, beets started, also. We are also trying to re-establish our asparagus bed. We started the original bed by seed back in 1985 at our first house. We transplanted it here in '91, and it grew til 2010, then croaked. I've tried purchased crowns but they never lived. The greenhouse sits there now and we'll try a new location. We have started some with seeds, and have ordered crowns. We can't wait to get the peas and onions in the ground.

 

[Ronstar]

We have too much shade for gardening. But one year I made a planter on wheels and planted one tomato plant in it. And moved it around the driveway during the day to get as much sun as possible. The container wasn't big enough and it stunted the plant's growth. Got a few tomatoes, but quit gardening after one season.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

I enjoy a big garden too. I give most of it away.

Only 4 tomato plants for me. Celebrity is my go to variety, I try a new one every year too. Always one Cherry Tomato for snacking.

I'm also about 175 miles south of the Canadian border, I don't do much in the garden until after May 15.

 

[street]

DW has various peppers, and tomatoes, started already. She was so excited about the new greenhouse, she started way too early. We have lettuce, cabbage, spinach, carrots, beets started, also. We are also trying to re-establish our asparagus bed. We started the original bed by seed back in 1985 at our first house. We transplanted it here in '91, and it grew til 2010, then croaked. I've tried purchased crowns but they never lived. The greenhouse sits there now and we'll try a new location. We have started some with seeds, and have ordered crowns. We can't wait to get the peas and onions in the ground.

Asparagus is one thing I have not had much luck at. I have two asparagus small patches that grow wild at the ranch. About 6 years ago I dug one large crown and broke it out and planted the roots. That is what research said to do. I think I would have had some of that to take but the wild turkeys got in the fresh new worked up dirt.

I planted a few plants last year and hoping I see them this spring. The asparagus is the first thing to say HI each spring.

 

[Gumby]

This is my first year attempting to save seeds. I grew some romas that weren't hybrid and saved those - will see how they do next year! I absolutely loved the romas!

Most everything else I grow are hybrids. This is my first time growing sungolds. I understand they can get fairly tall. I will have to prune them back since I can't have super tall plants growing on my back patio. The HOA might complain, lol.

Sungolds are indeterminate and they grow like crazy. If anyone complains, just give them some of the tomatoes. I have never met anyone who doesn't like Sungolds. They're like tomato candy.

 

[street]

Last year a lady that we know that owns a nursery gave my wife a Chocolate Cherry Tomato plant. I planted it and in all my years in gardening I never have tasted a better tomatoes!! The plant produced so much fruit it was unreal. I would go out every other day and pick a dozen to 20 cherry tomatoes. They have the color of chocolate and I gave some to people and they couldn't believe the taste either.

I'm hoping she has them this year. I see you can buy them at most gardening outlets.

 

[simple girl]

Sungolds are indeterminate and they grow like crazy. If anyone complains, just give them some of the tomatoes. I have never met anyone who doesn't like Sungolds. They're like tomato candy.

Ha ha ha! I'm super excited!!! I have been looking for a super sweet cherry tomato but they all grow super tall. Not sure how I am going to stake it...my current stakes only go about 3-4' high. Should be interesting! Lol

 

[Sojourner]

Avid veggie gardener here

This year I'll be growing my usual mix of tomatoes (hybrids and some heirloom), corn, squash, cucumbers, peppers, and various herbs. I'm going with two Roma tomato plants this season (up from one last year) because DW and I love sun-dried tomatoes, and we always end up running out over the winter because we didn't make enough!

 

[Gumby]

Avid veggie gardener here

This year I'll be growing my usual mix of tomatoes (hybrids and some heirloom), corn, squash, cucumbers, peppers, and various herbs. I'm going with two Roma tomato plants this season (up from one last year) because DW and I love sun-dried tomatoes, and we always end up running out over the winter because we didn't make enough!

If I may, let me suggest Principe Borghese for sun dried tomatoes. They were developed specifically for that purpose, being very thick walled and low moisture. They are also very prolific. In the years I have been growing them, I have never been disappointed. I also use them to make tomato jam.

 

[Sojourner]

If I may, let me suggest Principe Borghese for sun dried tomatoes. They were developed specifically for that purpose, being very thick walled and low moisture. They are also very prolific. In the years I have been growing them, I have never been disappointed. I also use them to make tomato jam.

Thanks for the recommendation! Definitely will give it a try. If I may ask, where do you order the seeds from? They're not available via my usual supplier.

 

[Gumby]

Thanks for the recommendation! Definitely will give it a try. If I may ask, where do you order the seeds from? They're not available via my usual supplier.

I have been saving seeds for several years now, so I get them from last year's crop. I don't recall where my original seeds came from, but I have ordered other seeds from "Seeds From Italy" and have been happy with them.

https://www.growitalian.com/tomato-principe-borghese/

or, if you like, PM me and I will mail you some.

 

[anethum]

Thanks for the recommendation! Definitely will give it a try. If I may ask, where do you order the seeds from? They're not available via my usual supplier.

If you google a vegetable or flower variety name, the names of seed companies selling it will appear. One company which has Principe Borghese is Pinetree Garden Seeds, and I order seeds from them in most years.

Two excellent sources for tomato seeds are: Totally Tomatoes and Seeds 'n Such. I've ordered from both in the past. Both have huge selections of both heirlooms and hybrids.

I grow only hybrid tomato varieties. I've tried open pollinated/heirloom varieties and I get lush foliage but few tomatoes. I have found that modern hybrids bred for home gardeners taste as good as heirlooms, have superior disease resistance, and produce much better yields for me.

In the last 2 years, several new hybrid varieties have become available which are resistant to a disease called Late Blight, which is a problem here in the mid-Atlantic area. Last year I tried one of these new varieties called Mountain Rouge, which is actually a pink beefsteak tomato despite its "rouge" name. The seeds are quite expensive, $6.95 for 10 seeds in the Totally Tomatoes catalog. The seeds are expensive because 2 crosses are required. One cross brings in late blight resistance, and the 2nd cross with the heirloom variety Pink Brandywine is for flavor. It produced well, the flavor was delicious, and it continued to produce into the fall when late blight usually causes my larger tomato varieties to stop producing.

The problem with growing hybrids is that I can't save seeds, and some of my favorite varieties are no longer available.

I read an interesting (to me) book a couple of years ago titled Epic Tomatoes: How to Select and Grow the Best Varieties of All Time by Craig LeHoullier. He did some tests in his own large garden and has tables showing the yields he got, and I think he also rated the flavor. He grew both heirlooms and hybrids. Sungold is one hybrid variety which always gets rated highly by everyone for flavor.