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My Urban Garden (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter E Street Brat
- Start date
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
You picked four. Any combination of them would be a high priority idea for me. The cherry has the best chance to achieve my ends (desert production); any combination of the other three is probably a more impressive less productive tomato. And you should be able to grow beauties where you are. Pick two.
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
My first harvested Creole tomato!!!!!!!!!
Serving it with some salt & pepper only at dinner. Later this week we will have the caprese salad with the other tomatoes nearly ready....I've been using the basil already and it is awesome.
How long should my plants produce tomatoes? We are starting to push 90 or more every day now and I'm worried it will be too hot.
Serving it with some salt & pepper only at dinner. Later this week we will have the caprese salad with the other tomatoes nearly ready....I've been using the basil already and it is awesome.
How long should my plants produce tomatoes? We are starting to push 90 or more every day now and I'm worried it will be too hot.
urbanhack
Fight The Power!
you ever bake any stuffed tomatoes? I tried this the other night, just like a stuffed mushroom. Put some shrimp, breadcrumbs, cheese, garlic, mushrooms and artichokes inside of some hollowed out beef tomatoes and baked them for about 40 minutes. Unreal.
boots11234
Footballguy
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
I generally don't like cooked tomatoes as much as just eating them raw, unless of course I am using them in a sauce. I've had a version of what you are talking about and it was good....just not going to be in my rotation anytime soon. Who here has a kicking tomato sauce from scratch recipe for all my maters?
zander_s
Footballguy
I'll go purple/cherry.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
Tipsy,
I came close to trying Creole in my heat seeking varieties, but it was bred for humidity and my conditions are very dry. It's a great tomato for your area that should produce for a long long season. It will slow down in the hottest part of the season but finish with a flurry next fall if kept healthy. Early blight, a yellowing and dying of the foliage from the bottom up, is normal come July/August, but it will still set and ripen excellent fruit higher on the plant into the early fall. I snip the blight as soon as a I see it. Good luck, nice tomato, want to swap some seed?
As an incentive to try I have a batch of two GREAT tomato seeds that were accidentally mixed, so I will send you some of those seeds ( a few of each, I'm sure) if you try a hybrid and promise to report results.
One is Black Prince:
I came close to trying Creole in my heat seeking varieties, but it was bred for humidity and my conditions are very dry. It's a great tomato for your area that should produce for a long long season. It will slow down in the hottest part of the season but finish with a flurry next fall if kept healthy. Early blight, a yellowing and dying of the foliage from the bottom up, is normal come July/August, but it will still set and ripen excellent fruit higher on the plant into the early fall. I snip the blight as soon as a I see it. Good luck, nice tomato, want to swap some seed?
Your female is tagged and emasculated. That's a good thing. I dubbed her "zander's big pink cherry". Nobody else wants to try this? It's pretty simple. Pick two varieties from that link. I'll cross pollinate them and save the seed, send it to you when it's ready next fall -- you plant next spring. I'll check back through the weekend, but Monday the 2nd will be the deadline for picking your hybrid as this works best early before the pollen gets too hot. I'm going to cross another dozen next week regardless.zander_s said:
As an incentive to try I have a batch of two GREAT tomato seeds that were accidentally mixed, so I will send you some of those seeds ( a few of each, I'm sure) if you try a hybrid and promise to report results.
One is Black Prince:
The other is Paul Robeson:
I wouldn't go that far but it is a terrific unique tomato and my seed comes from some beautiful fruit.
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tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
I have a catepiller or something eating my leaves. What do I spray....lots of tomatoes showing and many coming ripe....I don't want to kill my family.
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
Thanks for the info. Also....I know now that i planted my tomatoes too close together (common rookie mistake I hear) and they are choking off sunlight to each other as well as the herbs nearby. Can I transplant them at this stage? Should I wait until the hot months when fruit production stops (ha...hot months...its 90 right now)? Any idea if moving my herbs will upset them? I literally have no clue what i am doing.And as far as seeds go....we work real closely with a local farmer that has over 2K plants going in his field. We got our first real crop last week and it consisted of 20 varieties at least. This week should yield about 100 % more ripe fruit and most of the remaining varieties he is growing. So I'm good on seeds methinks. I have no idea what to do to get you some of the seeds from what we have access too.....what do I need to do?Yeah...im an idiot. I eat food, I don't grow it.Tipsy, I came close to trying Creole in my heat seeking varieties, but it was bred for humidity and my conditions are very dry. It's a great tomato for your area that should produce for a long long season. It will slow down in the hottest part of the season but finish with a flurry next fall if kept healthy. Late blight, a yellowing and dying of the foliage from the bottom up, is normal come July/August, but it will still set and ripen excellent fruit higher on the plant into the early fall. I snip the blight as soon as a I see it. Good luck, nice tomato, want to swap some seed?
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
Look for an insecticide named Bt (Bacillus Thuringiensis). I think Bonide sells it in residential quantities as Thuricide. We have it by the gallon. It's an organic approved product. It's also a little slow to work on serious infestations which are best handled by hunting, picking and squishing.
siffoin
Footballguy
Chaos Commish:
Thanks for thinking of me. I'm definitely in. I learned a lot already about growing from seed, and know I can do a better job next spring.
So I've got 2 smallish gardens going. One on the deck of my house that faces west. This is all containers...including 3 earthboxes. Everything in earthboxes is thriving and growing significantly faster than anything else. I have 2 EB dedicated to tomatoes with 4 plants total. I wound up finding some scrap wood and pvc and building a movable platform/trellis for these earthboxes.
I also have a raised bed garden with herbs, tomatoes (2 plants), carrots, onions and a potato box. I'm surprised at how well the potatoes are doing in the box...since sprouting 10 days ago they've grown close to a foot, and I'm about to recover the plants with soil as they continue to grow up in the box. The tomatoes are doing ok, but seem so small in comparison to the one in EB.
Here are some pics. It's still pretty early as our last frost date was only 10 days ago.
http://picasaweb.google.com/steelhedge/SiffoinsUrbanGarden#
Thanks for thinking of me. I'm definitely in. I learned a lot already about growing from seed, and know I can do a better job next spring.
So I've got 2 smallish gardens going. One on the deck of my house that faces west. This is all containers...including 3 earthboxes. Everything in earthboxes is thriving and growing significantly faster than anything else. I have 2 EB dedicated to tomatoes with 4 plants total. I wound up finding some scrap wood and pvc and building a movable platform/trellis for these earthboxes.
I also have a raised bed garden with herbs, tomatoes (2 plants), carrots, onions and a potato box. I'm surprised at how well the potatoes are doing in the box...since sprouting 10 days ago they've grown close to a foot, and I'm about to recover the plants with soil as they continue to grow up in the box. The tomatoes are doing ok, but seem so small in comparison to the one in EB.
Here are some pics. It's still pretty early as our last frost date was only 10 days ago.
http://picasaweb.google.com/steelhedge/SiffoinsUrbanGarden#
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
Man. I am jealous of that set up siffoin.
I have a 30' x 50' backyard and only herbs & tomatoes going. You have a whole farm in a true urban setting. Love the potato box. Would that work with onions too?
I have a 30' x 50' backyard and only herbs & tomatoes going. You have a whole farm in a true urban setting. Love the potato box. Would that work with onions too?
Love it!
Mr. Yuk
Footballguy
Chaos,
I'd love to give it a try, but I've never had much success growing tomatoes from seed here in Minnesota. Our growing season is so short, but maybe I could give a try starting them indoors next year?
If you want to include me, I think I would try a Moskovich/Black Prince combo. Sounds like they both can do well in cool weather and the Prince is intriguing.
I'd love to give it a try, but I've never had much success growing tomatoes from seed here in Minnesota. Our growing season is so short, but maybe I could give a try starting them indoors next year?
If you want to include me, I think I would try a Moskovich/Black Prince combo. Sounds like they both can do well in cool weather and the Prince is intriguing.
siffoin
Footballguy
That outdoor "raise bed" is only 10' x 3'...so you have a lot more growing space than me. I bought onion sets (tiny onions) and just put the in the bed (you can see them growing next to the potato box.Here is what I know about the potato box. Typically potatoes are grown in a trench...with the soil mounded on top. The potatoes grow out along the trench. In a box the potatoes grow UP. So as the leaves and stems grow 6" above the soil, you cover them with more soil. You can see my box is only 2 6" slats high right now, but by the end of summer it will be 6 6" slats high...with the leaves (hopefully) spilling over the top.Being the kind of impatient person I am...I'm sure in July, I'll be removing the lower slat and getting a hold of some baby potatoes to try. Supposedly, you can get 100lbs of potatoes from this set up...I have my doubts...but if I got 25lbs...that would be awesome.
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
Ok....i just saw this (i think?) and I'll see what I can do with the seeds from the farmer down here. Is it as simple as getting the seeds out of the tomato itself & drying them or something? If that is the case, I'm about to be very flush in tomatoes and will do what i can to get you the seeds.An offer:
A rule of thumb I try to stick with (since burying the bodies ten years ago) is to not get into my personal or professional life much online. But as E Street Brat guessed, I do have a side business growing tomatoes, and it is probably going to expand in a big way in the next few years. I've had a contract with a wholesaler for a particular tomato (no big deal, tasteless yellow paste type) since 04. That contract has allowed me to grow and sell some other varieties that catch a better price. I live a half hour from the greenhouses, one costly employee and one minimum wager do the real work. Bla bla, it's been growing steadily, threatening to make a real profit, and I have big ideas for expansion (in my retirement) that I cannot really afford but I'm moving forward anyway.
Here's the thought. I'm seeking my own hybrid. Something that will perform beautifully in hot conditions that's unique (and good). I don't have to succeed in the search because there's dozens of worthy varieties readily available. Nonetheless, I have the time to do this. This is both a passion and a past time for me, so I'd like to make some of you an offer for you to grow a tomato that perhaps has never been tried before. You can even pick the hybrid (limited to crossing types that I am growing). Sound like fun?
Everything I am growing (for this purpose) has one or more of three traits. It is known to be heat tolerant, it is from a strain believed to be heat tolerant, or it is very early to ripen. Early works in the desert because you can bring in a crop by July 1, destroy those plants, and get a second fall crop if you do it right. You can grow all of these anywhere, so don't worry about that.
I'm crossing 20 some varieties with Super Sioux, which is as far as I can tell the best heirloom for my conditions. God only knows what I'll get, which is part of the fun. Some of these will fail, I'm sure. Everything is in bloom right now, and who knows maybe some combo of those 20 not including Super Sioux will come out awesome. I was planning on trying a few, but I cannot decide which, so I'll let a few of you do that. And your efforts may help me learn something about a combo. Who knows?
If interested, I ask a couple things. I'm going to spend a few hours on your hybrid, so unless you die or worse, I want you to be certain you can give this seed an honest effort next spring and be around to report your results. I will be sending you some seed and saving some of the same for here in my various conditions. I doubt 12 of you are IN, but I am limiting this to a dozen combos. I'm reserving one for siffoin, who I suspect will want to give this a try, so it's fcfs for 11 of you. I'll ask for your mailing information when the seed is ready. I don't want it now. I'm keeping track of too many things already.
I'll list the 20 varieties you can cross with links about them later this weekend when I have the time.
Ugh. I think I have them memorized, so without links (do your own looking here and here):
I arranged these in order of my own interest and anticipated success:
Moskvich (a nice choice for any cross, imo)
Dona (excellent French market mater)
Carmello (similar but more productive than Dona)
Porter's Dark Cherry (ate six yesterday, saved 200 seeds)
Mule Team
Tropic
Amana Orange
Red Beefsteak (strong western strain, sort of unidentified)
Florida Pink (vigorous like a hybrid)
Great White
Goliath (not the nursery hybrid, an heirloom from the 1800s)
Pruden's Purple
Arkansas Traveler
Rose
Cherokee Chocolate
Cherokee Purple
Eva Purple Ball
Sudduth's Brandywine
Black Prince
Green Zebra
Delicious (world record size holder, early for a beast)
Yellow Pear (I'd hesitate, we sun dry them for a farmer's market vendor)
As a caveat, when I take apart a bloom to give it another's pollen, I need to see the fruit from that flower set to believe I have a successful cross. That doesn't always mean it's own pollen didn't do the job, nor does it mean that that fruit will mature viable seed. But it is fun to try and "we've" been successful more often than not. If I fail to get a cross, I'll send you some good seed from the plants anyway. That may alter your thinking on a combo.
Pick two.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
Siff, that's a nice looking setup. Pick two varieties to cross from my post near the bottom of page 3.
Yuk-- Moskvich X Black Prince would be nice and early for your short season. In that regard, my blazing desert conditions and your late spring/short summer require similar tomatoes... fast ones. There's so many options, I never considered this one beyond considering crossing Moskvich with everything. When people say this or that is the best tomato in the world, yeah whatever. We all have different tastes, but Moskvich really has a big bang of sugar and acid, definitely delicious sweet and juicy with clean tomato tang. I'm going to start to cross these today, because my Black Prince is already a little old, started in December, so he has to be papa and give me some healthy pollen. I can't think of a clever name, so you can dub your own hybrid -- Princevich? I wouldn't call him black because he will most likely be red. And yes, start this seed indoors, early March. I'll send instructions for my mini water bottle greenhouse for starting them. Fanatic uses cloches (covers) outside to get them in the ground earlier and that will work for you too. You can grow great tomatoes in Minnesota if you plan it in advance.
If YOU WANT (or anyone wants), I'll post two methods for saving tomato seeds (the approved fermenting method, and a simple effective shortcut that's working fine). It's a little more complicated with tomatoes than most veggies because they have a coating that prevents them from germinating. Dissolve it via fermentation or Comet, sterilize them and dry them. I can post details if any of you really want to save seed. I save a lot of seed and donate most to a seed exchange for freebies. I got Morell mushroom spores for about a pound of tomato seed and can't wait to see of those expensive buggers grow.
I wouldn't transplant those tomatoes, Tipsy. Once they're established and producing it's a messy job with poor results. The good news is that I am a big believer in the Mittleider Method -- growing tomatoes 9 inches apart. Around my house in the burbs, I plant many of them that close because space is limited and I like lots of varieties. I've even grafted different varieties together. I'm sure some of you have bought a nursery six pack and noticed two plants in one slot. They grow as one if you plant them as one. I will sometimes plant a Better Boy one inch away from a weaker heirloom and grow them as one (two to four stems max and everything else pruned). A big Lemon Boy with bright yellow slicers growing together with a hundred floating cherries around it gets a lot of compliments in August. My daughter wants me to grow "one" that's red, white and blue (but there really isn't a blue tomato available at the moment).
I tell a lot of backyard gardeners that I grow tomatoes while they grow leaves. I will often have more tomatoes on a plant than leaves late in the season. I prune a lot of leaves and remove most all suckers.
So rather than transplant -- prune. Go down to the base of the plant. Find the first branch (that's two stems). Follow both of them up and remove one of the next branches on each stem. Pick the one with the least flowers and/or fruit. You will have to do some foliage detangling to remove it. Wait two days for it to heal then follow the remaining bottom stems you haven't pruned to their next branch and do it again. Prune these big branches when everything is dry and don't water for at least twelve hours as they form a callous. I know it's painful and all that lush growth has little maters on it, but in the end you will have plenty of better fruit and much more manageable plants that live longer and take up less space. At this point you've taken out almost half the plant. Now find Fanatic's info in this thread on suckering and follow that advice all year. It's therapeutic for me to go out and sucker the maters a couple times a week while looking at what's ripening. It takes no extra time or effort once you get used to breaking off suckers instead of just looking at all that growth. Pic of smartly pruned plant late in the season. Notice all the pruned parts and missing leaves. Also notice all the room around the soil for basil or a pepper plant or whatever.
Yuk-- Moskvich X Black Prince would be nice and early for your short season. In that regard, my blazing desert conditions and your late spring/short summer require similar tomatoes... fast ones. There's so many options, I never considered this one beyond considering crossing Moskvich with everything. When people say this or that is the best tomato in the world, yeah whatever. We all have different tastes, but Moskvich really has a big bang of sugar and acid, definitely delicious sweet and juicy with clean tomato tang. I'm going to start to cross these today, because my Black Prince is already a little old, started in December, so he has to be papa and give me some healthy pollen. I can't think of a clever name, so you can dub your own hybrid -- Princevich? I wouldn't call him black because he will most likely be red. And yes, start this seed indoors, early March. I'll send instructions for my mini water bottle greenhouse for starting them. Fanatic uses cloches (covers) outside to get them in the ground earlier and that will work for you too. You can grow great tomatoes in Minnesota if you plan it in advance.
No worries about the seed. I can get Creole easy enough. There's a nerdy factor with exchanging seeds. Maybe if we do it with samples of local microbrew?Thanks for the info. Also....I know now that i planted my tomatoes too close together (common rookie mistake I hear) and they are choking off sunlight to each other as well as the herbs nearby. Can I transplant them at this stage? Should I wait until the hot months when fruit production stops (ha...hot months...its 90 right now)? Any idea if moving my herbs will upset them? I literally have no clue what i am doing.Tipsy,
I came close to trying Creole in my heat seeking varieties, but it was bred for humidity and my conditions are very dry. It's a great tomato for your area that should produce for a long long season. It will slow down in the hottest part of the season but finish with a flurry next fall if kept healthy. Late blight, a yellowing and dying of the foliage from the bottom up, is normal come July/August, but it will still set and ripen excellent fruit higher on the plant into the early fall. I snip the blight as soon as a I see it. Good luck, nice tomato, want to swap some seed?
And as far as seeds go....we work real closely with a local farmer that has over 2K plants going in his field. We got our first real crop last week and it consisted of 20 varieties at least. This week should yield about 100 % more ripe fruit and most of the remaining varieties he is growing. So I'm good on seeds methinks. I have no idea what to do to get you some of the seeds from what we have access too.....what do I need to do?
Yeah...im an idiot. I eat food, I don't grow it.
If YOU WANT (or anyone wants), I'll post two methods for saving tomato seeds (the approved fermenting method, and a simple effective shortcut that's working fine). It's a little more complicated with tomatoes than most veggies because they have a coating that prevents them from germinating. Dissolve it via fermentation or Comet, sterilize them and dry them. I can post details if any of you really want to save seed. I save a lot of seed and donate most to a seed exchange for freebies. I got Morell mushroom spores for about a pound of tomato seed and can't wait to see of those expensive buggers grow.I wouldn't transplant those tomatoes, Tipsy. Once they're established and producing it's a messy job with poor results. The good news is that I am a big believer in the Mittleider Method -- growing tomatoes 9 inches apart. Around my house in the burbs, I plant many of them that close because space is limited and I like lots of varieties. I've even grafted different varieties together. I'm sure some of you have bought a nursery six pack and noticed two plants in one slot. They grow as one if you plant them as one. I will sometimes plant a Better Boy one inch away from a weaker heirloom and grow them as one (two to four stems max and everything else pruned). A big Lemon Boy with bright yellow slicers growing together with a hundred floating cherries around it gets a lot of compliments in August. My daughter wants me to grow "one" that's red, white and blue (but there really isn't a blue tomato available at the moment).
I tell a lot of backyard gardeners that I grow tomatoes while they grow leaves. I will often have more tomatoes on a plant than leaves late in the season. I prune a lot of leaves and remove most all suckers.
So rather than transplant -- prune. Go down to the base of the plant. Find the first branch (that's two stems). Follow both of them up and remove one of the next branches on each stem. Pick the one with the least flowers and/or fruit. You will have to do some foliage detangling to remove it. Wait two days for it to heal then follow the remaining bottom stems you haven't pruned to their next branch and do it again. Prune these big branches when everything is dry and don't water for at least twelve hours as they form a callous. I know it's painful and all that lush growth has little maters on it, but in the end you will have plenty of better fruit and much more manageable plants that live longer and take up less space. At this point you've taken out almost half the plant. Now find Fanatic's info in this thread on suckering and follow that advice all year. It's therapeutic for me to go out and sucker the maters a couple times a week while looking at what's ripening. It takes no extra time or effort once you get used to breaking off suckers instead of just looking at all that growth. Pic of smartly pruned plant late in the season. Notice all the pruned parts and missing leaves. Also notice all the room around the soil for basil or a pepper plant or whatever.
siffoin
Footballguy
How about Sudduth Brandywine and Arkansas Traveler?Siff, that's a nice looking setup. Pick two varieties to cross from my post near the bottom of page 3.
Yuk-- Moskvich X Black Prince would be nice and early for your short season. In that regard, my blazing desert conditions and your late spring/short summer require similar tomatoes... fast ones. There's so many options, I never considered this one beyond considering crossing Moskvich with everything. When people say this or that is the best tomato in the world, yeah whatever. We all have different tastes, but Moskvich really has a big bang of sugar and acid, definitely delicious sweet and juicy with clean tomato tang. I'm going to start to cross these today, because my Black Prince is already a little old, started in December, so he has to be papa and give me some healthy pollen. I can't think of a clever name, so you can dub your own hybrid -- Princevich? I wouldn't call him black because he will most likely be red. And yes, start this seed indoors, early March. I'll send instructions for my mini water bottle greenhouse for starting them. Fanatic uses cloches (covers) outside to get them in the ground earlier and that will work for you too. You can grow great tomatoes in Minnesota if you plan it in advance.
No worries about the seed. I can get Creole easy enough. There's a nerdy factor with exchanging seeds. Maybe if we do it with samples of local microbrew?Thanks for the info. Also....I know now that i planted my tomatoes too close together (common rookie mistake I hear) and they are choking off sunlight to each other as well as the herbs nearby. Can I transplant them at this stage? Should I wait until the hot months when fruit production stops (ha...hot months...its 90 right now)? Any idea if moving my herbs will upset them? I literally have no clue what i am doing.Tipsy,
I came close to trying Creole in my heat seeking varieties, but it was bred for humidity and my conditions are very dry. It's a great tomato for your area that should produce for a long long season. It will slow down in the hottest part of the season but finish with a flurry next fall if kept healthy. Late blight, a yellowing and dying of the foliage from the bottom up, is normal come July/August, but it will still set and ripen excellent fruit higher on the plant into the early fall. I snip the blight as soon as a I see it. Good luck, nice tomato, want to swap some seed?
And as far as seeds go....we work real closely with a local farmer that has over 2K plants going in his field. We got our first real crop last week and it consisted of 20 varieties at least. This week should yield about 100 % more ripe fruit and most of the remaining varieties he is growing. So I'm good on seeds methinks. I have no idea what to do to get you some of the seeds from what we have access too.....what do I need to do?
Yeah...im an idiot. I eat food, I don't grow it.If YOU WANT (or anyone wants), I'll post two methods for saving tomato seeds (the approved fermenting method, and a simple effective shortcut that's working fine). It's a little more complicated with tomatoes than most veggies because they have a coating that prevents them from germinating. Dissolve it via fermentation or Comet, sterilize them and dry them. I can post details if any of you really want to save seed. I save a lot of seed and donate most to a seed exchange for freebies. I got Morell mushroom spores for about a pound of tomato seed and can't wait to see of those expensive buggers grow.
I wouldn't transplant those tomatoes, Tipsy. Once they're established and producing it's a messy job with poor results. The good news is that I am a big believer in the Mittleider Method -- growing tomatoes 9 inches apart. Around my house in the burbs, I plant many of them that close because space is limited and I like lots of varieties. I've even grafted different varieties together. I'm sure some of you have bought a nursery six pack and noticed two plants in one slot. They grow as one if you plant them as one. I will sometimes plant a Better Boy one inch away from a weaker heirloom and grow them as one (two to four stems max and everything else pruned). A big Lemon Boy with bright yellow slicers growing together with a hundred floating cherries around it gets a lot of compliments in August. My daughter wants me to grow "one" that's red, white and blue (but there really isn't a blue tomato available at the moment).
I tell a lot of backyard gardeners that I grow tomatoes while they grow leaves. I will often have more tomatoes on a plant than leaves late in the season. I prune a lot of leaves and remove most all suckers.
So rather than transplant -- prune. Go down to the base of the plant. Find the first branch (that's two stems). Follow both of them up and remove one of the next branches on each stem. Pick the one with the least flowers and/or fruit. You will have to do some foliage detangling to remove it. Wait two days for it to heal then follow the remaining bottom stems you haven't pruned to their next branch and do it again. Prune these big branches when everything is dry and don't water for at least twelve hours as they form a callous. I know it's painful and all that lush growth has little maters on it, but in the end you will have plenty of better fruit and much more manageable plants that live longer and take up less space. At this point you've taken out almost half the plant. Now find Fanatic's info in this thread on suckering and follow that advice all year. It's therapeutic for me to go out and sucker the maters a couple times a week while looking at what's ripening. It takes no extra time or effort once you get used to breaking off suckers instead of just looking at all that growth. Pic of smartly pruned plant late in the season. Notice all the pruned parts and missing leaves. Also notice all the room around the soil for basil or a pepper plant or whatever.
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TheFanatic
Footballguy
I'm in Chaos... I'll take a Goliath Mule Team. In fact I would love some Goliath seeds as well.
I live in St. Louis. I can do either container or in the ground. Which do you prefer? We have VERY hot and humid summers here. My soil is really dense clay after the first 6-8 inches I turn over every year to add compost, epsom salts and bone meal to the soil before planting...
I live in St. Louis. I can do either container or in the ground. Which do you prefer? We have VERY hot and humid summers here. My soil is really dense clay after the first 6-8 inches I turn over every year to add compost, epsom salts and bone meal to the soil before planting...
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
No you don't.
TheFanatic
Footballguy
Summers in St. Louis are brutal. They may not be New Orleans brutal but they are brutal none the less.....
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
Snack time at the McStaggers.
My 19 month old went nuts over the tomato....couldn't get enough.
Couldn't get the 4 year old to even think about it, even though he helped me plant them, and he just picked that one.
Note: Need to pick up some fresh mozz tonight.
My 19 month old went nuts over the tomato....couldn't get enough.
Couldn't get the 4 year old to even think about it, even though he helped me plant them, and he just picked that one.
Note: Need to pick up some fresh mozz tonight.
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tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
St. Louis is pretty brutal in the summer....I will give you that. But call me when its 90 degrees at 3 am. For the 4th week in a row.
TheFanatic
Footballguy
Oh, it drops into the 80's at night here in the summer. The temp, not the humidity. The humidity stays around 110% which never made any sense to me how that was possible.St. Louis is pretty brutal in the summer....I will give you that. But call me when its 90 degrees at 3 am. For the 4th week in a row.
Mr. Yuk
Footballguy
Yea that was my thinking as well. And the more juice with a kick of acid the better imo, so the Mosk sounds like a good one.Brainstorming names:Chaos Commish said:
Red Prince
Moscow Prince (honoring its Russian heritage)
Tsarevich (term for a Russian Tsar's son, or prince. plus it gets the 'vich' in there.)
Black Moscow (if it turns out black)
I think I like Tsarevich the best.
It would be kinda
to mix a Black Prince with a purple variety, and just call it 'Prince.' (as in, the artist formerly know as)If you feel like sending any other varieties my way, I have a lot of raised bed garden space to experiment with. Looking forward to next spring
siffoin
Footballguy
So the worms have pretty much completely composted the original bin. At least I think so as they now live mostly near the surface. I'd say the population has increased 150% in 3 months, but that is tough to say...I do know when i check on them they seem to be everywhere...when originally I had to search for them. Recently, I've seen lots of "babies" who seem to either live in or are born in egg shells. Anyway, I think it is time to have them migrate to a new bin. I set that up today...and we'll see how that goes. Here are some pics of the process...http://picasaweb.google.com/steelhedge/Wor...LGNi6b3_pempAE#
Men-in-Cleats
Footballguy
CC, I'd be interested in trying your seeds but have no idea what varieties to choose. I am in Redding, CA where we have wet winters and very hot and dry summers. I have typically grown my tomatoes from seedlings bought at my local farmer's market but would definitely be up for trying to grow some from seed. I've been growing them in some quarter whiskey barrels but think I need to start them in something deeper like some earthtainers next year as it seems that with these ones I've struggled to get the optimum amount of water to them and those would solve that problem for certain. I would definitely need something heat tolerant as we spend a good bit of July and August at 100 degrees or more.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
You have the conditions that interest me most. I have some acreage in even hotter dryer weather. The Mojave. My plan is to build desert greenhouses like those working in Vegas. There's land that will not be covered in plastic and it appears a short season or very heat tolerant crop is doable outside to supplement the greenhouse operation. The tomato called Tropic has great reviews from Vegas gardeners. I have never tested or tasted it, but it is in bloom, looks good, and just started to set fruit. Pair it with something else that interests you and I'll cross them. Everything from Florida Pink up (except Amana Orange) has commercial yield production potential. So maybe Tropic and one of the top nine on my list makes an interesting hybrid for your conditions and my hunt. There's more interesting tastier tomatoes lower on the list and any mix with Tropic will be fine by me. I went to Chico State, btw. Good times. I miss your neck of the woods.
Men-in-Cleats
Footballguy
Try it with the Porter's Dark Cherry. Sounds interesting not knowing much about the different strains.Chico is a cool place, most I know that went to school down there have some fond memories and some great stories to tell. I've got some inlaws that went down there that had way too much fun in school.You have the conditions that interest me most. I have some acreage in even hotter dryer weather. The Mojave. My plan is to build desert greenhouses like those working in Vegas. There's land that will not be covered in plastic and it appears a short season or very heat tolerant crop is doable outside to supplement the greenhouse operation. The tomato called Tropic has great reviews from Vegas gardeners. I have never tested or tasted it, but it is in bloom, looks good, and just started to set fruit. Pair it with something else that interests you and I'll cross them. Everything from Florida Pink up (except Amana Orange) has commercial yield production potential. So maybe Tropic and one of the top nine on my list makes an interesting hybrid for your conditions and my hunt. There's more interesting tastier tomatoes lower on the list and any mix with Tropic will be fine by me. I went to Chico State, btw. Good times. I miss your neck of the woods.
Mr. Yuk
Footballguy
How about 'Tropical Cherry'?Try it with the Porter's Dark Cherry. Sounds interesting not knowing much about the different strains.Chico is a cool place, most I know that went to school down there have some fond memories and some great stories to tell. I've got some inlaws that went down there that had way too much fun in school.You have the conditions that interest me most. I have some acreage in even hotter dryer weather. The Mojave. My plan is to build desert greenhouses like those working in Vegas. There's land that will not be covered in plastic and it appears a short season or very heat tolerant crop is doable outside to supplement the greenhouse operation. The tomato called Tropic has great reviews from Vegas gardeners. I have never tested or tasted it, but it is in bloom, looks good, and just started to set fruit. Pair it with something else that interests you and I'll cross them. Everything from Florida Pink up (except Amana Orange) has commercial yield production potential. So maybe Tropic and one of the top nine on my list makes an interesting hybrid for your conditions and my hunt. There's more interesting tastier tomatoes lower on the list and any mix with Tropic will be fine by me. I went to Chico State, btw. Good times. I miss your neck of the woods.
I am in Chicago and tried growing from seed this year under lights in March. I used a fish tank with flourescent lights. Things went well and then I lost a bunch to damping off disease. I then bought a Jiffy pellet "mini greenhouse" for $6 that can start 100 plants. I figured for $6 it's worth a shot. Started in April and just about all seeds germinated and took off. This is what I am going to do again next year.
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
The farm we work closely with has tons now. These are a few of what we brought back to the restaurant yesterday.
The whole bounty from yesterday. (btw...this all goes on the menu tonight)
Tony's set up for tomatoes.
I have all of the individual varieties on here.....sorry about the photo quality....chef can cook but can't use a camera.
The whole bounty from yesterday. (btw...this all goes on the menu tonight)
Tony's set up for tomatoes.
I have all of the individual varieties on here.....sorry about the photo quality....chef can cook but can't use a camera.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
Nice haul.Somewhere in this thread someone asks for a good sauce tomato. That heavily ribbed red one in the second link is called Costoluto Genovese. That is a great old fashioned Italian sauce tomato. Seed is easy to find. I can talk processing/paste/sauce tomatoes for hours but that one is as good as I know for cooking and the best looking sliced. I also see plenty of SunGold cherries. That's my favorite cherry. My kid calls them tomato candy.
tipsy mcstagger
Footballguy
The chocolate cherry tomatoes are perhaps the best ones I've ever had.Nice haul.Somewhere in this thread someone asks for a good sauce tomato. That heavily ribbed red one in the second link is called Costoluto Genovese. That is a great old fashioned Italian sauce tomato. Seed is easy to find. I can talk processing/paste/sauce tomatoes for hours but that one is as good as I know for cooking and the best looking sliced. I also see plenty of SunGold cherries. That's my favorite cherry. My kid calls them tomato candy.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
She was spread wide hot and sticky this morning so I tapped her with some pollen. I don't have the recovery power I used to but if her little ovary isn't swelling after dinner I might just hit her again.Yuk's pollen is in the fridge and his woman is exposed.
Men in Cleats is borrowing man juice from zander and seeking females for denuding.
Fanatic and Siff are waiting. A comment on those. Fanatic, I will send some Goliath seed along with the hybrid. I know most of you don't have tons of space, but you'll all get some extra seed varieties in this deal. I only ask you earnestly try to grow the one you picked. I'm in my 3rd year with this Goliath strain. It was the taste test champ in my urban garden last year, imo. But, it can be stingy with fruit. It's a big plant that loads up like a determinate, then really slows down after a fast eight to ten pounds of 14-16 oz.perfect crack free toms. Still, I looked forward to every one. It was also the first plant I pulled last year. This is my first year with Mule Team, but it sounds like a great combo because it reportedly is a non stop producer, just what Goliath needs. I'm growing 20 MTs out in the country test plots. They were spindly at first, slow to get moving, but they're putting on a couple inches a day right now, looking excellent. My farmer's market vendor gave me the seed and has offered me a good price for the yet unseen fruit. I'll snip a half dozen flowers tomorrow and use them for the pollen over the weekend. Goliath will be the female. I'll go expose her in a few minutes.
Siff, your choice is similar. Sudduth's Brandywine was purchased as a live plant from one of the links I've posted. As I understand, it's a little stingy with great tasting fruit. This is my first try with it. It's supposed to be the most heat tolerant Brandywine and some argue it's the original (like many do about others). Anyway, my Traveler is also in it's third year, hardy, maybe not as heat tolerant as advertised, wilts late in the day, but keeps on growing and producing deep pink tennis ball sized fruit early and racketball sized late; and happens to be the prettiest tomato plant I grow, imo. I think I have seen a Traveler/Brandywine cross before which is a good thing because most people doing crosses know what they're doing and I don't. If I have an issue here, both are a little late, so this seed will be the last that is ready and the future plants better be very heat tolerant to survive August with slow ripening fruit exposed. Both just got their first flowers so I'll give them a month to get going before crossing them. Traveler would have been ready sooner, but I accidentally stepped on it right after transplanting and had to put it in a splint for a month. Growing strong after a brief setback to heal. Like I said, hardy. I could see this combo grown indoors if it produces heavily. It should taste great and be excellent for backyards.
zander_s
Footballguy
We may end up with tomatoes and a trashy novel at this rate!She was spread wide hot and sticky this morning so I tapped her with some pollen. I don't have the recovery power I used to but if her little ovary isn't swelling after dinner I might just hit her again.Yuk's pollen is in the fridge and his woman is exposed.
Men in Cleats is borrowing man juice from zander and seeking females for denuding.
Fanatic and Siff are waiting.
siffoin
Footballguy
I ####ed up the worm migration...and had an escape attempt last night. When I placed the new bin on top of the old...the bottom holes were covered with bedding...and the worms began to suffocate...I hope it is fixed...I may have to try some other method of worm sorting.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
What's sprouting in the compost?
siffoin
Footballguy
I tossed in some old broccoli sprouts that we'd put on sandwiches and they have kept on sprouting on the bin.
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
If you'd like to try growing a hybrid tomato from a cross that you selected, this is your last day to pick two to cross.
So far I am crossing Porter's Dark Cherry with Pruden's Purple and Tropic, Traveler with Brandywine, Goliath with Mule Team, Moskvich with Black Prince. The more I thought about Tropic the more I wanted to work with it, so I am crossing it with heavy producers Carmello and Dona. That's seven. Five to go, last chance to pick one is today, because I want all these done this week.If interested, I ask a couple things. I'm going to spend a few hours on your hybrid, so unless you die or worse, I want you to be certain you can give this seed an honest effort next spring and be around to report your results. I will be sending you some seed and saving some of the same for here in my various conditions. I doubt 12 of you are IN, but I am limiting this to a dozen combos. I'm reserving one for siffoin, who I suspect will want to give this a try, so it's fcfs for 11 of you. I'll ask for your mailing information when the seed is ready. I don't want it now. I'm keeping track of too many things already.
I'll list the 20 varieties you can cross with links about them later this weekend when I have the time.
Ugh. I think I have them memorized, so without links (do your own looking here and here):
I arranged these in order of my own interest and anticipated success:
Moskvich (a nice choice for any cross, imo)
Dona (excellent French market mater)
Carmello (similar but more productive than Dona)
Porter's Dark Cherry (ate six yesterday, saved 200 seeds)
Mule Team
Tropic
Amana Orange
Red Beefsteak (strong western strain, sort of unidentified)
Florida Pink (vigorous like a hybrid)
Great White
Goliath (not the nursery hybrid, an heirloom from the 1800s)
Pruden's Purple
Arkansas Traveler
Rose
Cherokee Chocolate
Cherokee Purple
Eva Purple Ball
Sudduth's Brandywine
Black Prince
Green Zebra
Delicious (world record size holder, early for a beast)
Yellow Pear (I'd hesitate, we sun dry them for a farmer's market vendor)
As a caveat, when I take apart a bloom to give it another's pollen, I need to see the fruit from that flower set to believe I have a successful cross. That doesn't always mean it's own pollen didn't do the job, nor does it mean that that fruit will mature viable seed. But it is fun to try and "we've" been successful more often than not. If I fail to get a cross, I'll send you some good seed from the plants anyway. That may alter your thinking on a combo.
Pick two.
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Chaos Commish
Footballguy
Speaking of starting seed. I ate a tomato last Monday that had seed I wanted to save. I fermented it til Wednesday and instead of sterilizing and setting out to dry, I only had time to rinse away the gunk and decided to just leave the seed in clean water until I had time for it (in a plastic bag). On Friday I remembered it needed drying but it was too late. The seed had sprouted roots underwater. So not wanting to just throw it away (great tomato), I filled a half flat with potting soil, spread the seed around and covered the roots with seed starting formula. This morning the tomato I ate a week ago has produced over 40 healthy seedlings.
I know some people like to soak seeds overnight, but this sprouting underwater method may deserve a little more testing.
I know some people like to soak seeds overnight, but this sprouting underwater method may deserve a little more testing.
siffoin
Footballguy
Chaos Commish:
I have a stupid tomato question. Do I prune off the low branches of the plant...especially the ones so low they will not flower. Can I use scissors to do that...and is there anything I need to be concerned about in regards to the health of the plant if I do prune?
I have a stupid tomato question. Do I prune off the low branches of the plant...especially the ones so low they will not flower. Can I use scissors to do that...and is there anything I need to be concerned about in regards to the health of the plant if I do prune?
Nick Vermeil
Footballguy
Good question. And a part two question to that, now that the plants are tall, healthy and flowering, how about a few tips not to screw up the fruit? I've been watering every other day when it doesn't rain and fertilizing once every two weeks or so.
TheFanatic
Footballguy
Maybe I should try this with my German Reds? The 10 or so seeds I planted 3 weeks ago have not sprouted
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
It's getting very late for starting a big slow ripener. Very late. You can learn something by soaking a few and maybe get some started. When seed is saved you discard any seed that floats. Viable seed sinks. Bad seed is hollow, so once it escapes the gel it floats. Good seed is storing the energy that gets pumped into those first two false leaves (cotyledon). That's why there's no need for fertilizer until the first true leaves appear. The seed had enough energy to get that far on it's own. That energy had mass and makes good seed sink. Old seed may take a few hours to sink because it is very dry so don't give up immediately if it floats. It can't hurt to try if you really want to get one going. About a half cup of water and five drops of rooting hormone would be a good experiment for a couple three seeds. The hormone is cheap, helpful but unnecessary. Plain water is fine. Store it above the fridge or somewhere warm. But don't let it sprout roots like I did. All you want to see is the seed crack. Cracking means a little white stub appears on one end. If you see that it's good to go in the soil and will produce a plant. Get it out of the water asap. Mine had inch long roots dangling in the water. Those seedlings were stressed and struggling to take in nutrients (purple stems). I think oxygen deprivation from soaking too long caused this, but I remedied it with hydrogen peroxide (a hydroponic oxygenation trick I sent to the soil). They're greening up nicely and true leaves are showing on half of them.Maybe I should try this with my German Reds? The 10 or so seeds I planted 3 weeks ago have not sprouted
Chaos Commish
Footballguy
DV, you can screw up the yield with too much nitrogen fertilizer and or too much water. Your fertilizer will have three numbers (the NPK). A balanced fertilizer (like 15-15-15) is good early in the season. Once they start blooming you want the middle number (P phosphorus) to be at least double the first number (N nitrogen). K should be equal too or higher than N. Miracle Gro has a 10-15-10 that's not great but decent because it also has calcium, which can be very important. So use that if you cannot find a good "bloom" fertilzer. A common mistake is growing a big lush nitrogen rich plant that barely sets fruit. Some grow leaves. I grow tomatoes. It's tough to advise because every soil and plant is a little different. But, in general, back off on the fertilizer once the blooms start. Your soil may be rich enough to get them through the fall. Heavily mulched tomatoes are happy watered once a week in my area. I will only use some foliar sprays from here in for fertilizing. I'm using SeaAgri, but fish emulsion, sea kelp, and some basic superbloom type stuff is fine. Seek calcium in the ingredients. BER = Blossom End Rot and it sucks. It comes from a lack of calcium. A good read on calcium, nitrogen and BER. Interesting that too much leaf surface can cause calcium deficiencies in the fruit of high calcium plants. Another plus for us pruners.
Catfacing is another ugly problem with ripening tomatoes and it comes from poor pollination. Probably the best/safest advice I can give sight unseen, that few are aware of, is that you should help pollinate the tomatoes. Tomatoes are self pollinating, sort of, and they can be helped with great results. Honey bees and normal insect pollinators do little for tomatoes. Bumble bees are the best because they get close to a flower and vibrate like mad causing the pollen to drop (and get stuck in their fuzz) and cover the stigma for thorough pollination. Nothing works better. Not everyone has busy bumble bees. But second best is vibrating the flowers yourself. You can use an electric dildo or toothbrush for great results. Whichever you're more comfortable with. Just hold it right up to every open flower every couple of days and you will have a bigger yield of better fruit. Seriously.
Siff, pruning isn't much of a debate for greenhouse growers and outdoor market farmers. They have various proven techniques that maximize their production based on their conditions. Pruning is a huge debate among very accomplished backyard gardeners. It depends on several factors. I advised Tipsey to prune because he needs some space. I like a giant productive unpruned plant sometimes too. I grow some dependable determinate plants that never get pruned. I prune because I plant high density gardens and like tons of variety in limited space. I have 18 plants in an 18x2 foot garden all pruned to two stems each winding up 36 strings. I don't need the dildo because I can strum the strings and the flowers vibrate. Anyway. It is always smart to prune the bottom leaves that touch the ground. There will be a shoot/branch just beneath your first set of blossoms. It will grow from the node at a leaf branch (petiole). That's the second most productive branch/stem on a tomato plant. Keep it along with the main stem. Prune everything below it. You will not harm the plant. Sharp scissors are fine. I use my thumb and pinch all the time. Now you have two branches (like mine) and can do what you please with the rest of the growth. All shoots (new stems/branches) grow from those nodes where the leaves extend from the stem. I pinch them off. You may prefer to let them grow. Pinching them off costs me fruit per plant. High density planting makes up for it. You'll get more production in the Earthboxes by keeping several of the "strong" shoots. There is one "strong" shoot and two weak ones for every set of blossoms (growing from the three leaf branches between blossom clusters). They will be obvious as your plants mature.
I don't want or need a lot of tomatoes. I want awesome tomatoes. This requires sacrifice. Every set of blossoms will be a cluster of set fruit. My SunGold has as much as 80 blooms on one truss/cluster. I could let them all grow, but I don't. The bottom of a truss is always small struggling slow to ripen fruit that I haven't no interest in nursing along while the good stuff gets too ripe. I snip those trusses down to about 20 tomatoes. Those 20 are awesome and plenty. On a plant like Better Boy or Pruden's Purple, five or six flowers will set a tomato on each cluster. I'll snip those down to two or three after examining the set. They will be great tomatoes, just a few less. But then I have 60 plants at my place so this idea may not work for everyone. I've just learned focusing the plants resources pays off nicely. If you hate this idea, fine, but do remove any funky looking or dwarfed fruit. Your costing yourself some production elsewhere on the plant.
Is this enough for now?
Nick Vermeil
Footballguy
Chaos Commish with some excellent posting, and a desperate cry for the touch of a good woman. Great advice here. I'm going to post some pictures in a second and the details of the fertilizer of been using. Unfortunately, with the amount of rain we are getting in NYC, I can't control the water too much more than I already am. But I was looking for an excuse to go to the sex shop for a dildo.DV, you can screw up the yield with too much nitrogen fertilizer and or too much water. Your fertilizer will have three numbers (the NPK). A balanced fertilizer (like 15-15-15) is good early in the season. Once they start blooming you want the middle number (P phosphorus) to be at least double the first number (N nitrogen). K should be equal too or higher than N. Miracle Gro has a 10-15-10 that's not great but decent because it also has calcium, which can be very important. So use that if you cannot find a good "bloom" fertilzer. A common mistake is growing a big lush nitrogen rich plant that barely sets fruit. Some grow leaves. I grow tomatoes. It's tough to advise because every soil and plant is a little different. But, in general, back off on the fertilizer once the blooms start. Your soil may be rich enough to get them through the fall. Heavily mulched tomatoes are happy watered once a week in my area. I will only use some foliar sprays from here in for fertilizing. I'm using SeaAgri, but fish emulsion, sea kelp, and some basic superbloom type stuff is fine. Seek calcium in the ingredients. BER = Blossom End Rot and it sucks. It comes from a lack of calcium. A good read on calcium, nitrogen and BER. Interesting that too much leaf surface can cause calcium deficiencies in the fruit of high calcium plants. Another plus for us pruners.
Catfacing is another ugly problem with ripening tomatoes and it comes from poor pollination. Probably the best/safest advice I can give sight unseen, that few are aware of, is that you should help pollinate the tomatoes. Tomatoes are self pollinating, sort of, and they can be helped with great results. Honey bees and normal insect pollinators do little for tomatoes. Bumble bees are the best because they get close to a flower and vibrate like mad causing the pollen to drop (and get stuck in their fuzz) and cover the stigma for thorough pollination. Nothing works better. Not everyone has busy bumble bees. But second best is vibrating the flowers yourself. You can use an electric dildo or toothbrush for great results. Whichever you're more comfortable with. Just hold it right up to every open flower every couple of days and you will have a bigger yield of better fruit. Seriously.
Siff, pruning isn't much of a debate for greenhouse growers and outdoor market farmers. They have various proven techniques that maximize their production based on their conditions. Pruning is a huge debate among very accomplished backyard gardeners. It depends on several factors. I advised Tipsey to prune because he needs some space. I like a giant productive unpruned plant sometimes too. I grow some dependable determinate plants that never get pruned. I prune because I plant high density gardens and like tons of variety in limited space. I have 18 plants in an 18x2 foot garden all pruned to two stems each winding up 36 strings. I don't need the dildo because I can strum the strings and the flowers vibrate. Anyway. It is always smart to prune the bottom leaves that touch the ground. There will be a shoot/branch just beneath your first set of blossoms. It will grow from the node at a leaf branch (petiole). That's the second most productive branch/stem on a tomato plant. Keep it along with the main stem. Prune everything below it. You will not harm the plant. Sharp scissors are fine. I use my thumb and pinch all the time. Now you have two branches (like mine) and can do what you please with the rest of the growth. All shoots (new stems/branches) grow from those nodes where the leaves extend from the stem. I pinch them off. You may prefer to let them grow. Pinching them off costs me fruit per plant. High density planting makes up for it. You'll get more production in the Earthboxes by keeping several of the "strong" shoots. There is one "strong" shoot and two weak ones for every set of blossoms (growing from the three leaf branches between blossom clusters). They will be obvious as your plants mature.
I don't want or need a lot of tomatoes. I want awesome tomatoes. This requires sacrifice. Every set of blossoms will be a cluster of set fruit. My SunGold has as much as 80 blooms on one truss/cluster. I could let them all grow, but I don't. The bottom of a truss is always small struggling slow to ripen fruit that I haven't no interest in nursing along while the good stuff gets too ripe. I snip those trusses down to about 20 tomatoes. Those 20 are awesome and plenty. On a plant like Better Boy or Pruden's Purple, five or six flowers will set a tomato on each cluster. I'll snip those down to two or three after examining the set. They will be great tomatoes, just a few less. But then I have 60 plants at my place so this idea may not work for everyone. I've just learned focusing the plants resources pays off nicely. If you hate this idea, fine, but do remove any funky looking or dwarfed fruit. Your costing yourself some production elsewhere on the plant.
Is this enough for now?
