Thursday, June 11, 2020

Finally! Success With Tomatoes

there are over fifteen tomatoes on this one compact plant
 
This is the first time in twenty years of gardening that I have had an abundance of fruit appear  on a tomato plant.  As the joke goes, I was one of those hopeful gardeners that grew a single, $14.00 tomato.  It always depressed me, and I didn't know why I had such a difficult time with this popular plant. 

After a few attempts, I stopped trying.  I stuck to growing things that  did well: hollyhocks, pumpkins, citrus, zucchini and herbs.  Deep down, though, I still really longed to grow tomatoes, like the ones in Italy.  I don't even know the name of this variety.  I threw away the tag after planting it, assuming I would fail again.  I bought it at the Tractor Supply shop, right after the virus hit.  This, a single pepper plant, several packets of organic Seeds of Change vegetable seeds and seven more fruit trees. 

I think part of the reason my three rose bushes  and lone tomato plant did well this year is that I piled  straw mulch on the soil before the rain.  It attracted loads of red wiggler worms.  I have fed the plants compost tea once a week, and reapplied the straw mulch after it decreased.  It keeps the soil cool and moist. 


healthy green leaves and sunlight

Sometimes when you least expect it, what you've wanted will creep up on you, unexpected.  It took me years and years to break into some of the shows that I really had a desire to do.  I continued to audition, and didn't give up.  When the timing is right, things happen easily.   Your heart's desire can come true.  Sometimes it's the little things that bring us the most contentment and sense of reward.  Do you grow tomatoes?

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20 comments:

  1. Woo hoo! Tomato success! That is so exciting! I've been like you - trying to grow tomatoes with varying degrees of success, usually getting 3 or 4 tomatoes! This year, I have single plant and I am waiting to see what happens. :)

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    1. Good luck, Bless. It can be a challenge to grow them with super hot summers, like we have here.

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  2. I do grow tomatoes, Stephanie. I stick to different varieties of cherry-like tomatoes as I find them hardier. It's wonderful to grow something that has been problematic for you before. The soil sounds like it's just right! MegXx

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    1. I find those easier, too, Meg. I discovered some baby chili peppers on another plant today. I'm so excited!

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  3. Yay! Lovely, healthy tomato plant, well done. They do say that everything comes to she who waits, Stephenie. The tomatoes will taste extra sweet for all that waiting. We have 3 plants in the garden all with tiny fruits on them. Now we just need sun to swell and ripen them.

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    1. Thanks PP. That's true. I hope you get plenty of sunshine to ripen your tomatoes.

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  4. Yay! They look amazing. Mine are much further behind than yours but I'm hoping for a reasonable crop this year. X

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    1. Let me know how you do, Jules. I didn't plant any from seeds, just this one plant at the cottage. I like how dense it is.

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  5. Well done. It's such a joy, isn't it?
    xx

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  6. Tomatoes love the heat but not strong sunshine which just scorches them. The ones I discovered in the top of my strawberry planter are doing amazingly well. The ones I have tended and nurtured are way behind them.

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    1. Oh, that's good to know, Cherie. This one is in a good spot, then. It's lightly shaded. Glad to hear that yours are doing so well.

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  7. I don't grow tomatoes because I do not like them. Yours look very healthy. My neighbor accidently dropped a Halloween pumpkin in a front flower garden last year, breaking it open. It must have spilled out some seeds because she has the most beautiful pumpkin vine and 4 large perfect pumpkins growing there now. Not the look she was going for in that flower garden, but what a bonus plant.

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    1. How exciting, Anita. I think that pumpkin plants are magical.

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  8. I dont but seeds I just remove the seeds from the supermarket ones I buy and sow. Success is mostly very good.

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    1. My neighbor gave me some; I'll have to try that, Frugal.

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  9. Woohoo! Home-grown taste sooo much better than store-bought. They are looking great. Mine have just started blooming - fingers crossed:-)

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    1. Thanks, LL. It is so exciting. It won't be long now. I hope yours do well, too.

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  10. Yay! That’s so exciting!
    I’ve also grown some very expensive tomatoes. 😀

    I have a single tomato on one of the plants I rescued from the compost pile. Florida summer is too hot and humid for tomatoes.

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    1. I can imagine, Nil. It works best to grow the plants that do well in your area. Citrus can take the heat. I love growing them.

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