So we have to start at the beginning and that is getting the tomatoes planted. Finally done. This year, we planted 28 tomato plants!! We have to make sure we have enough for canning, salsa, drying, chili sauce, slow roasting, tomato sandwiches, grilling, and just popping in our mouths right off the vine.
We must also plant a few extra for the squirrels. The damn squirrels! They are such jerks about it! They don't just find one that has dropped on the ground and then run away with it to enjoy in the privacy of their own homes. Oh no! They actually pick a tomato, and only the ripened ones. They take ONE bite out of it and then leave it on top of the gate or in some other prominent place for us to find. Just to say, "nyah, nyah, na, nyah, nyah! You can't eat this one because I took a bite out of it" Stupid squirrels. Joke's on them because I DO still eat it sometimes, so there!
We got a variety of tomatoes to try this year. I have to ask, who is naming these things? Among others we have Better Boys, Big Boys, Early Girls, and then the ever popular Old German. We purchased some from The Talking Farm, some from Anton's, a local greenhouse, some from the farmer's market and then some from Home Depot. I am going to try to keep track of which ones we like best and which ones fared the best. I say that every year however, and by August I can't remember a thing.
I am not an expert in planting tomatoes. I do exactly what I have watched my dad do with his tomatoes since I was 4 years old:
Find a sunny spot. Dig a hole. Put the plant in and bury it deeper than you think you should. Cover with a little compost or grass clippings. Hammer in stakes. Tie them to the stakes with some torn strips of fabric. Pinch the suckers off as you see them. Flip off the squirrels. Water. Wait. Enjoy.
pretty maids all in a row
we also planted lots of peppers and herbs but they are kind of second fiddle
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