I see you grew a tomato with a zipper- that’s VERY clever of you.
2 Likes
EZ Peel!
1 Like
Here’s some tomato garden drama. I purchased and planted just four seedlings this year, all four a different, specifically-chosen variety. I swore I wouldn’t plant more, having drowned in tomatoes the past couple years. Newbie mistake I was bound and determined not to repeat. I dutifully planted them and marked each variety carefully with the tag that came with the plant: two heirloom slicers (purple Cherokee and black Krim), one heirloom cherry (black cherry, the undisputed cherry tomato champion of the world, and I won’t debate that) and one non-heirloom, a Roma type best for canning (which I actively do.) Anyfuckinghow, it’s exceedingly obvious that one of the seedlings was mislabeled, as I am the proud owner of TWO threateningly enormous heirloom cherry tomato plants, which means I will soon be in possession of literally thousands of cherry tomatoes. They are delicious, but even a nightshade fetishist like myself cannot consume that quantity of them. And they’re not great for preserving . So. That’s the tea.
3 Likes
Well, since you actively are a canner, you may be aware the Italians do can cherry tomatoes and they come in handy when cooking. Yes, they aren’t as rich as some; but the secret is to take a bunch of them and run them through a food mill, squeezo or similar tomato mill, and cook down a puree void of seeds and skins. It’s very important to remove the seeds in any sauce cooked down from cherry tomatoes; they can give the sauce an off and bitter taste. Whole cherry tomatoes, canned in a thick tomato sauce (reduced puree) are much better than if canned in juice.
I needed fresh tomatoes for a biryani dish and used canned cherry tomatoes instead, which worked fine.
I’m a big fan of the Fabio Leonardi tomato milling “machines”. They’ll process gallons in minutes, removing seeds and skins.
2 Likes
Lordy, that is some big operation!
Can you gift them? Food bank?
I kinda feel your pain. Last fall I found a lime mint locally, which I’ve never seen in town before, and having found out here that in my area, mint is more of a winter crop, so I bought it. I’ve killed more mint than the law should allow by planting it in spring. Anyway, it has done spectacularly well, just like people say about mint taking over one’s property. The only thing is, it doesn’t resemble lime mint at all. It has very little taste and smells like cat piss. Charming.
1 Like
I roast cherry tomatoes with a little olive oil, garlic and herbs and then run through a food mill. I freeze in 1/2 pint jars.
1 Like
Does anyone know what these berries are? There is a clump of them along side my road. They look like some kind of raspberry, the branches look like grapevine. My neighbor behind me planted a bunch of berries along the road years ago. I’ve picked black raspberries and huckleberries but I don’t remember seeing these before.
1 Like
I’ve been using Japanese beetle traps the last 5 years. They destroy my eggplants, my cherry tree and some roses. They arrived about 2 weeks ago.
2 Likes
Thimbleberries. They are edible, however I wouldn’t consume anything found along a road unless you are absolutely sure that they were not sprayed by local road crews.
1 Like
Sometimes some catnips smell that way, it is in the mint family.
2 Likes
Thank you. No worries, I live at the end of a private road.
2 Likes
Then, enjoy! I think they’re best eaten off the plant or drizzled with a little honey. The deer here usually get to them first!
I’ll go sample that ripe one tomorrow, if I’m not to late. Lots of deer and we have a bear this year too.
1 Like
That was 2021 and there were three more crates not pictured. I put up enough tomato products to skip a year or two of large scale growing. 2019 and 2020 were also bumper-crop years.
This year, the eight plants are mostly for fresh eating. It’s nice having more floor space in the kitchen!
4 Likes
I was lucky in that last year, I only spotted a handful of Japanese beetles in and around my garden. It may have been that the excessive heat and drought didn’t help them either. I’ve heard that Japanese beetles can sometimes come in cycles (i.e., light a year or two, and then heavy one year) but no idea if there is truth to that. I gave milky spores a try last fall and spread it as instructed through my entire back yard. To be determined if this is truly effective. This week, I spotted 3 dead ones floating in my rain collectors (thankfully they seem stupid). Fingers crossed the milky spores do the trick and they don’t come back in droves.
3 Likes
I don’t remember seeing them in southwestern Ontario until the last 7 or 8 years.
I sometimes sprinkle baby powder or cayenne on leaves to repel them and other bugs.
Cayenne powder, bought cheaply at the dollar stores, is my go-to for buggies I don’t want on my leafies. It works on annoying tree squirrels, that is until it rains. I am very careful not to apply it on a windy day, too. I make a home-made scotch bonnet pepper spray for tree squirrels and the deer friends. Tree squirrels dismantle my prayer flag strings, those crazy varmints!
1 Like
