Look at them now! Several already need to be re-potted!
This is the Amish Paste that I was excited to find. Hoping to make lots of tomato sauce for ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and salsa. There is nothing better when the snow is flying than homemade salsa and chips to warm you up!
Our apple trees are in full bloom. I don't remember a year that they looked so good. The weather men are saying we are in the clear for at least a week as far as frost is concerned. I'm hopeful we will have a great year for apples for more apple pie filling this year!
How is your gardening coming along?
We haven't bought any tomato plants yet. Last year we had as many volunteers as we purchased plants, so we may just buy a few and see if any come up on their own again. Seriously, with all the volunteers last year, we had too many tomatoes. I still have bag after bag after bag of whole tomatoes in the freezer. We only need enough this year to eat fresh.
ReplyDeleteOne year we had tons of volunteers also. They never produced much. I figured it was due to being hybrids. So now I either start seeds or buy small plants. The Amish Paste are heirloom and I will be saving seeds from them this year for sure. We never have too many tomatoes.
DeleteI made my tomato seedlings this year but looks like I can plant only about half of them. Still if they all produce I should have enough for sauces and for eating. Just don't aks what each variety is :(
ReplyDeleteYour apple tree looks beautiful! Ours is only 2nd year so we'll strip all blooms anyway, but not sure if they'll bloom at all since we had a hard frost.
There are a couple kinds of tomatoes hubby insists on growing that are hybrids, so I buy small plants of those every year. This year I wanted Amish Paste tomatoes, they are heirloom and I will be saving seed from them to grow my own next year. It was just as cheap to buy the small plants as the seeds for those.
DeleteI'm really excited about the apple trees and hoping we don't have a frost that will take them out like last year.
OK, rub it in! I can't even get to the greenhouse yet due to snow drifts. The plants are nice to look at though. :-{
ReplyDeleteIan I hope you start thawing out this week!
DeleteGrow great tomatoes outdoors, indoors, hydroponically, and in greenhouses using modified or general hydroponics techniques. Tomatoes are relatively easy to grow indoors or outdoors, but they have specific nutritional and environmental needs.
ReplyDeleteHere are some factors influencing tomato growth:
1. Temperature - Tomatoes do best within a range of 55-85 degrees F. Tomato plants can be severely damaged or killed by prolonged cold or even a brief exposure to frost. Tomatoes can handle high temperatures, but are damaged by prolonged temperatures over 93 degrees F.
2. Nutrients - Tomatoes need properly-designed nutrients that are easily absorbed, properly balanced, and rich in nitrogen and other components.
3. Light - Whether grown indoors or outdoors, tomato plants need exposure to full, strong light for at least five hours each day.
4. Pollination – If tomatoes are to bear fruit, they need to be pollinated. Unless growers are going to engage in artificial pollination, the plants must be accessible to pollinators, which can include insects and wind. Obviously, it is difficult to provide pollinator access to plants grown indoors or in greenhouses.
5. Overall environmental conditions - Tomato plants suffer when there are windy conditions, extreme heat or cold, polluted air or soils, or presence of insects, blight or disease. Tomatoes need adequate water, but they do not need to be drowned. Avoid overwatering as much as you guard against drought.