Author Topic: Gardening tomatoes, herbs, and some veggies for 2012 (Read 16278 times)

norma427 · « **on:** May 13, 2012, 10:21:52 AM »

I thought I would post about my gardening this year with tomatoes, herbs, and a few vegetables. I was lazy this year and didn’t start any of my plants from seed. The plants were all purchased. I purchased some different tomato plants to try out this year.

My garden doesn’t look the best, but will see how it does in producing tomatoes, herbs, and a few vegetables for pizzas. I had problems last year with insects, worms, and critters eating some of my plants, so decided this year not to plant as much.

If any other member is also gardening this year for pizza related products or general gardening, I would be interested in seeing your gardens.

Norma

Mick.Chicago · « **Reply #1 on:** May 13, 2012, 11:52:32 AM »

Norma, planting less might not be the best course of action if you had critter problems !! Plant more!! Secure more!

BrickStoneOven · « **Reply #2 on:** May 13, 2012, 01:36:10 PM »

Norma there are flowers that you can get that attract bugs, ie Ladybugs, that help planet growth by eating the ones that eat your plants. One of the flowers you can buy are White Cosmos if you can find them which attract Ladybugs.

Something worth reading about good bugs that eat bad bugs http://www.farmerfred.com/plants_that_attract_benefi.html

chickenparm · « **Reply #3 on:** May 13, 2012, 01:52:42 PM »

A greenhouse for 300 bucks maybe?

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-ft-x-8-ft-greenhouse-47712.html

norma427 · « **Reply #4 on:** May 13, 2012, 02:00:41 PM »

Quote from: Mick.Chicago on May 13, 2012, 11:52:32 AM

Norma, planting less might not be the best course of action if you had critter problems !! Plant more!! Secure more!

Mick,

Lol, I want less work not more.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #5 on:** May 13, 2012, 02:06:35 PM »

Quote from: BrickStoneOven on May 13, 2012, 01:36:10 PM

Norma there are flowers that you can get that attract bugs, ie Ladybugs, that help planet growth by eating the ones that eat your plants. One of the flowers you can buy are White Cosmos if you can find them which attract Ladybugs.

Something worth reading about good bugs that eat bad bugs http://www.farmerfred.com/plants_that_attract_benefi.html

David,

Thanks for the link and posting that Ladybugs help with eating other insects. We do have many Ladybugs in our area but they didn’t do their job last year. I can buy some White Cosmos to help attract more Ladybugs.

I will real over your link more.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #6 on:** May 13, 2012, 02:08:34 PM »

Quote from: chickenparm on May 13, 2012, 01:52:42 PM

A greenhouse for 300 bucks maybe?

http://www.harborfreight.com/6-ft-x-8-ft-greenhouse-47712.html

Bill,

Lol, I don't want to go to that expense for some tomatoes and other stuff. I might as well just go purchase the stuff. Thanks for the link though.

Norma

pizza Doug · « **Reply #7 on:** May 13, 2012, 04:50:55 PM »

I planted 40 plants this year, mostly heirloom varieties. Last year I did 15 and had a great crop.
I picked varieties that are supposed to do well in hot climates. I live in the California high desert.
No bug sprays, just organic mulch.
-Brandywine PL Red
-Brandywine PL Pink
-Radiator Charlie Mortgage lifter
-Costoluto Genovese
-Arkansas Traveller
-ACE 55
-Celebrity
-Box Car Willie
-Beefmaster VF
-Stupice
-Opalka
-Red Cherry
-Red Grape
-San Marzano
-Amish Paste
-Martino's Roma
-Burbank

Bunches of basil, parsleys, and other herbs. Tons of zuchinni and lettuce too.

norma427 · « **Reply #8 on:** May 13, 2012, 10:56:50 PM »

pizza Doug,

50 tomato plants sounds like a lot.

What do you do with all those tomatoes?

I wanted to ask you about what the Costoluto Genovese taste like. I never planted them before, but purchased one this year.

Norma

petef · « **Reply #9 on:** May 14, 2012, 02:43:33 AM »

I have 2 small 100 sq ft garden plots

24 tomato plants: Early Girl, Better boy, Big Beef, San Marzano, Cherry Tomatoes
15 pepper plants: Jalapeno, Habenaro, Long Red Cheyanne, Green Bell
8 Lettuce plants
6 cucumber plants

Not much to see now.
Will post pics later in the season.

I turn most of those tomatoes into spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce, freeze it and it lasts me to about April the following year. Some I liquefy and freeze which gives me some flexibility on how to use it. I never seem to have enough tomatoes, so this year I planted a few more plants than I normally do. First time planting the San Marzanos. I've planted Romas in past years but I often have problems with blossom end rot and hollow flesh, so hopefully the San Marzanos will do better.

---pete----

norma427 · « **Reply #10 on:** May 14, 2012, 07:35:48 AM »

Quote from: petef on May 14, 2012, 02:43:33 AM

I have 2 small 100 sq ft garden plots

24 tomato plants: Early Girl, Better boy, Big Beef, San Marzano, Cherry Tomatoes
15 pepper plants: Jalapeno, Habenaro, Long Red Cheyanne, Green Bell
8 Lettuce plants
6 cucumber plants

Not much to see now.
Will post pics later in the season.

I turn most of those tomatoes into spaghetti sauce and pizza sauce, freeze it and it lasts me to about April the following year. Some I liquefy and freeze which gives me some flexibility on how to use it. I never seem to have enough tomatoes, so this year I planted a few more plants than I normally do. First time planting the San Marzanos. I've planted Romas in past years but I often have problems with blossom end rot and hollow flesh, so hopefully the San Marzanos will do better.

---pete----

---pete----,

Hope your San Marzanos tomatoes and garden does well this year. It would be great to see pictures of your garden after everything starts growing more.

I planted different San Marzanos last year and most of them did okay. There are a few San Marzanos plants growing from seeds that were dropped from last year. I didn’t post a picture of them, but did put the small plants in containers. I will see if they grow.

Norma

petef · « **Reply #11 on:** May 14, 2012, 09:27:45 AM »

Quote from: norma427 on May 14, 2012, 07:35:48 AM

Hope your San Marzanos tomatoes and garden does well this year. It would be great to see pictures of your garden after everything starts growing more.

Thanks Norma. One other new thing I did this year was start some plants using seed saved from one of my tomato varieties that I can't buy anymore. This was a large 1.25" diameter cherry tomato named Chadwick Cherry. So it will be interesting to see if these seeds produce the same sized fruits. Now saving tomato seeds, that's a whole topic in itself. It's not as simple as drying them. ---pete---

norma427 · « **Reply #12 on:** May 14, 2012, 10:54:15 AM »

Quote from: petef on May 14, 2012, 09:27:45 AM

Thanks Norma. One other new thing I did this year was start some plants using seed saved from one of my tomato varieties that I can't buy anymore. This was a large 1.25" diameter cherry tomato named Chadwick Cherry. So it will be interesting to see if these seeds produce the same sized fruits. Now saving tomato seeds, that's a whole topic in itself. It's not as simple as drying them. ---pete---

---pete---,

I didn’t know someone could take saved seeds and then start plants from them.

I would be interested in hearing how to go about that method. I would guess it would be a complicated process.

I took a picture of the San Marzanos that started coming up again this year from seed, that I now put into small containers. The only problem is I don’t know what variety they are. Hopefully they will grow. There is also another tomato plant that must have come from some seeds that were dropped last year and I sure don’t remember what kind of tomato it was. I just left that plant in the ground.

Norma

SquirrelFlight · « **Reply #13 on:** May 14, 2012, 12:43:45 PM »

Is anyone familiar with the German Queen tomato variety?

For no other reason than they were the seeds I had available (can't remember why now), I've been using them in my attempts at hydroponics.

I'm on try number 4 now, which is going much better than the previous 3. It turns out Tempe tap water is far too hard to use as a base for a hydroponic nutrient solution; because of the way the minerals in the water bind with the nutrients, the resulting solution simultaneously underfeeds and overfeeds (chemical burns) the plants. Things seem to be going much better using RO filtered water.

I've also read that they can grow 10-16 feet tall, and mine are currently growing in a closet... but that's a problem for another day

Anyway - is anyone familiar with the variety enough to recommend how the fruit may be used (pizza or otherwise)?

petef · « **Reply #14 on:** May 14, 2012, 08:01:55 PM »

Quote from: norma427 on May 14, 2012, 10:54:15 AM

I didn’t know someone could take saved seeds and then start plants from them. I would be interested in hearing how to go about that method. I would guess it would be a complicated process.

Here's a short video on saving tomato seeds.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMh9aYtK57M" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMh9aYtK57M</a>

If you want to know more watch similar videos by the guy in the tie-dye shirt.

---pete---

norma427 · « **Reply #15 on:** May 14, 2012, 08:36:19 PM »

Quote from: petef on May 14, 2012, 08:01:55 PM

Here's a short video on saving tomato seeds.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMh9aYtK57M

If you want to know more watch similar videos by the guy in the tie-dye shirt.

---pete---

---pete---,

Thanks so much for the link to the video about how to save tomato seeds to be able to plant them. The videos of the guy in the tie-dyed shirt showing what to do are interesting. I never would have thought the seeds also would need to be fermented. The tie-dyed guy says the ferment smells.

Goes to show there is always something new to be learned.

These are the other videos if anyone is interested.

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qQ3_a8m5Y4&list=UU8FUyKfuLx8Y74rGf-7RQ-Q&index=27&feature=plpp_video" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qQ3_a8m5Y4&list=UU8FUyKfuLx8Y74rGf-7RQ-Q&index=27&feature=plpp_video</a>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK7dlEuTtKE&feature=fvwrel" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UK7dlEuTtKE&feature=fvwrel</a>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK6BJWRPDuM&feature=relmfu" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK6BJWRPDuM&feature=relmfu</a>

Norma

rcbaughn · « **Reply #16 on:** May 14, 2012, 09:01:42 PM »

Nice looking garden Norma. We have ours planted right now and it's coming up pretty well. Ours is pretty big though, it's slightly smaller than an acre I think. Dad has a whole row of tomatoes right now, half of them Roma which makes me excited for fresh pizza sauce soon. Oh and the glory of all the pepper varieties. Here's a couple pictures, we always plant more than we need because of the deer taking out some of the plants, especially our sweet potatoes and melons.

P.S. - There's my boy dog in the second picture with dad. He's gotten big since my picture to the right was taken.

BrickStoneOven · « **Reply #17 on:** May 14, 2012, 09:34:16 PM »

Quote from: rcbaughn on May 14, 2012, 09:01:42 PM

Nice looking garden Norma. We have ours planted right now and it's coming up pretty well. Ours is pretty big though, it's slightly smaller than an acre I think. Dad has a whole row of tomatoes right now, half of them Roma which makes me excited for fresh pizza sauce soon. Oh and the glory of all the pepper varieties. Here's a couple pictures, we always plant more than we need because of the deer taking out some of the plants, especially our sweet potatoes and melons.

P.S. - There's my boy dog in the second picture with dad. He's gotten big since my picture to the right was taken.

norma427 · « **Reply #18 on:** May 14, 2012, 09:35:13 PM »

Cory,

Your garden is very big.

The Roma tomatoes can make good pizza sauce. It would be interesting to see how your garden grows during the summer.

Your dog sure did grow since you posted the other picture on your avatar.

Norma

rcbaughn · « **Reply #19 on:** May 15, 2012, 01:45:32 AM »

Yeah he has. He's about a 100 lb. now and was only about 45 lb. when that picture was taken Christmas 2010. He's like my kid, I probably have more pictures of him than some people do of their children. LOL.

I hope the Roma come in good though, I wanted to plant some San Marzano tomatoes, but waited too late to seed them in the sprout trays so none this year at least. I suspect they wouldn't be as good as the canned ones from Italy though since my soil composition probably isn't anything like it is over there. I need to learn the techniques that companies use to can tomatoes so I can get the same tastes that you get from a good quality can. I suspect that little bit of cooking they do to them to make them safe for long term storage is the biggest thing that affects taste.

If you need any dried peppers though let me know, I plan on drying quite a few cayenne and jalapenos toward the end of the season or even earlier if they come in strong.

-Cory