It was not a good year for tomatoes!
I neglected my tomatoes this year due to illness in the family and my own personal inability to get help with the regular garden maintenance. I hope that improves next year as I love my tomatoes. My best harvest was the summer of 2011. I had no idea how fortunate I was that year to acquire all of the varieties I was looking for and then for them to flourish as they did. If you are in zone three and want to learn more about what to plant, read that article. Above, the Stupice are to the right of the basket on the bench. The cherry tomatoes are not identified inside of the basket, but all others are.
Don’t get me wrong. I am very thankful for the bounty I did harvest. The Green Zebra are outstanding. In the past, I haven’t been able to get them to the point of harvest, but moved them to a very sunny corner and they fared well. You can only tell if they are ripe by the touch, as you can see how green they remain when ripe. I was very surprised to find them not highly acidic as the yellow sometimes tend to be. They are almost sweet with a very old fashioned tomatoey flavour that found me eating three in a row. I thought they were a little over ripe, due to their soft touch. And, they possibly were, yet they were still lovely and fresh.
I have described the flavours and textures of the remaining tomatoes in my earlier tomato post. I did want to rave about the gorgeous basket I didn’t expect I would harvest this year. I was tickled as the bushes were not fairing well at all. The fruit was thick skinned and very acidic and tart earlier in the season.
My bushes are almost spent, but I haven’t pulled them up yet. So, until next year, I will be enjoying the oven roasted tomatoes I have frozen Here is another post on how to make these. This is how I preserve my harvest through the winter and one of my most cherished personal recipes.
If you’re interested in trying what I think is the sweetest mini yellow, I’ll save you some seeds. It’s called an aiko, and we got a packet from Japan a few years ago and have been saving seeds ever since. Just like candy.
William!
You bet I am interested in that! Will make arrangements to get them from in you January. Thank you so much.
I am excited.
🙂
Valerie
I’ll try to remember but don’t feel shy about reminding me.
Tomatoes are such an undervalued vegetable, it’s amazing to see the pictures of your harvest this year. Considering how versatile they are, how easy they are to grow, and how rich they are in potassium and Vitamin A I find it a little surprising they aren’t a feature in more gardens around the country.
David,
I completely agree! The very fact that I cannot purchase the gorgeous variety of tomatoes I grow every year at a local market is testament to what you have said.
🙂
V