I am so excited...I had to share my tomatoes with y'all! Hubby finally cut the stakes this weekend and now they can grow to their hearts content!



I had to plant in front of the porch...only place I could talk hubby into putting them. Does make it easy to water, tho!

And a close up of a couple of the actual maters...



I am sooo having fried green tomatoes this year!! YUM!

Tonya...they look GREAT!! So healthy!
I understand your excitment!! I must check my tomatoes 10 times a day...I don't have fruit yet but they're all flowering.
Keep the pictures coming as they progress!

Christina

Same with mine Christina, mine all have flowers on them, same with the pepper plants too.
I am so excited !!!

I tried to start some Jalepenos from seed, but nothing happened...I will try some bell peppers next time. Some of my tomatoes are about 2" I will post more pics later...

They look GREAT!!!
Talk hubby into a bit more room next year,
you''ve got a great tomato thumb there Tonya!!

Do you do anything with *recipe wise* the green tomatoes??
We've got a recipe section with some green tomato recipes, see if you can find the thread and add yours if you'd like..

I already added it. It is my mamaw's recipe. Mmmm-Mmmmm good!!

I now have an area cleaned up for next year...I want to add pole beans, cucumber, peppers, cantaloupe and potatoes...I could keep going, but... Thanks!

You've got some lovely tomatoes there and the little one is a cutie-pie--looks like he's admiring your tomatoes too! And I'm glad to see I'm not the only person going out to check their plants 10 times a day!!

sarah

Thanks Sarah! That would be Mackenna and she LOVES to help mommy garden. So does Big Sis Summer...We all check the tomatoes a ton! If Mack gets fussy- we go look at them, among the other plants we have around.

My daughters like to help me in the garden too. In fact, they got to be so "helpful" that I had to get them their own little bed and some sunflower seeds. That way they can dig/throw dirt wherever they please! Once my youngest realized that you can pick off tomatoes, it's been a HUGE chore keeping that kid out of there. She doesn't discriminate--if its hard, green, and small it gets picked too!! Then she starts eating it saying "yum, yum, s'mato"

Sarah

AWWW! too cute! Summer has some sunflowers and a few weeds she has "rescued" and put in pots. But, I'm getting my diva to play in the dirt with me...

I wish my maters were that big. I got all mine for free but they were only 4-5 inches tall when I planted them, and that was just a couple days ago.

Ciao Tonya,

I hope those stakes are tall enough. Tomato plants can get up to 10' high in the right growing conditions...

Plants look nice and healthy, though. What varieties are they?

Cheers,
Julianna

They are Big Boy tomatoes, and if they out grow those stakes, I'll just make hubby cut some more, we have LOTS of unused lumber laying around!

I grew a Better Boy last year and it got about my 7 foot stakes.

I hope mine DO get that tall, but I will definitely have to break out some much longer stakes. We almost bought Better Boy- are they good and flavorful?

Tonya,

Those look very nice and healthy! Keep up the good work.

And I learned this year about trying to grow peppers from seed . I found out it is easy to us the milk jug until they get a big enough to put outside. I wish I would have known this before hand .

Nicky

Not nearly as tasty as the Big Beef that were planted next to them.

We usually grow Romas, but this year I wanted some real tomatoes for sandwiches, not just cooking. I love a 1/4 inch or thicker slice of tomato on some whitebread with mayo, salt & pepper...my mouth is watering already!!

Aww c'mon! What about the crispy bacon!? I can't wait for my first ever BLT with a real heirloom tomato slice on it!!

Mmmmmmmmmm... You guys have me drooling.

White bread? You mean that spongy stuff that squishes together in a ball if you take the crust off? LOL, Italians call people who eat that kind of wimpy bread 'mangiacakes' because to us, it looks like you're eating cake, not bread. Bread-making is almost as therapeutic as gardening, I think.

I only eat white bread with tomato sandwiches and peanut butter and jelly. I LOVE fresh baked crusty Itallian bread. I love food in general!

I can't wait for my first BLT either!!

Tonya, me too ! Heartier breads seem to overwhelm the P, B and J and worse, the tomato sandwich !
I tuck some basil leaves into my tomato sandwich-add a Coke-bliss !!!

Nothing wrong with eating good bread with a BLT, but I must agree that coarse, whole grain breads are NOT what you want. I don't want anything to interfere with the taste of my 'maters and bacon! In fact, I'm not sure if I need the L part! Just B, T and Hellmans!

For me it's just BT and Mayo alot of the time. Hope in two weeks I'll get to start eating them. The cooler weather here is bound to help.
Peppereater are you getting the cooler weather? We finally got some rain also and the garden has sure perked up. JD

Hey JD! Yep, it's a little cooler. Many of my plants have yet to set fruit, but some have just exploded! Looks like I'll have a good crop (fingers crossed.)
We've had a couple good rains, too, and yes the garden has perked up...but so have the weeds!
BTW, Bloody Butcher seems to be my best yet for the heat, it's loaded with fruit, and German Red Strawberry is nearly as prolific. I'll post pics of GRS in a new topic.

I love good hearty breads for other things, but those two things(PB&J and Maters...) gotta have white bread. Oh and Dukes Mayo!

I gotta weigh in here on the breads...
I used to only eat white bread..
But somewhere's along the path I switched to
a wheat bread, it's strohman's... not the hunky and chunky kinds, those are a bit tooo textured for me... *although, they are THE healthiest*

and I love BLT's, only seperate...lol!!
I don't eat sandwiches like that...
I'm wierd in the food catagory..

I loveeeee Fresh Italian bread... nothing better,
but have you seen the carbs' *where's the gremalin spinning it's head around in a circle*?

And my most allllllllltime favoritest sam~ich in the whole wide world is......
Tomato, Lettuce and Cucumber w/Mayo....
ooooooooooh, I could eat those everyday of the summer..Yummmmmmmmmmyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!

Mayo, tomato and avacado on toasted sourdough ain't bad, neither!
Maybe add a slice of swiss cheese, or some creamcheese. And bacon.

That does sound good!!!

Got my first Red Tomato last night, been picking green ones for about 2 weeks.

problems with making your own bread is its so yummy when it comes out of the oven there's none left by tea-time

Who was that neat lady here who introduced me to radish sandwiches on a dark bread? Those are really good too.

Peppereater, yep, same here, but I add a few alfalfa sprouts. Deee-licious !
Internet Owl, me too ! I bake a basic white loaf, slather on the butter...... Oh, yum !

NOw I can't wait until mine are ripe so I can have a sandwich!! Dave, that sounds SOOO good ! I LOVE avocado!

Oh, this is just painful!

I'm drooling !

I hate to say this but I ate my first ripe tomato yesterday, sliced it with bit of salt and pepper.

I'm not going to tell you how good it was.

Sheesh, how could I forget? It was Marina's radish sandwich.
Hope you're feeling better by now and that the new plants are doing well.
I forgot my radish seeds and planted on top of them. Argh !
I'll wait until fall to try again.
I am determined to grow normal radishes !

Oh yes, have to have the avocado. My BLT's have evolved into BAT's...Bacon Avocado and of course Tomato. Damn, after reading this thread, I'm having BAT's this week.

If only my Maters were producing. Ah well, soon I hope...got lots of flowers, and growing well.

My BATS.... bacon, avocado, tomato, sprouts.

Here is a new pic of mine!


Soon, maybe I can have a BAT or BATS...wait, I'm already bats!!!

Ciao all,

*Read at your own risk*

The bread we make isn't overly coarse..it's not whole wheat but it does have a denser texture, so when you have a lusciously ripe bursting with juice tomato slice from a 2 lb Brandywine Sudduth overlapping your sandwich, it's a sturdy bread that can sop up the juice and not fall apart or turn to soggy mush. Duane, my boyfriend, makes a sundried tomato-basil Ciabatta that works wonderfully well for our BLTA's and also open-faced Bruschetta sandwiches. I make a peasant loaf with zucchini..a no big deal yeast bread that tastes superb with tomatoes. We make a lot, freeze it well after slicing and it's ready to go at a moment's notice. If people are keen, I'll post recipes.

Cheers,
Julianna

Please do post themin the recipe section...I LOVE homemade bread!

Mmmmmm.. bacon, tomato, avacado sammiches.

I'm jealous that you are already picking ripe tomatoes!!

LOL, Tonya !

I WOULD love the recipe, but would also like everyone to be able to find it.... Besides, this is about tomatoes... and THEIR uses!

I wish I had some ripe ones now...I REALLY want to try the BAT or BATS!

LOL, I'd put it in the recipe section..don't want Weezie mad at me!

Thanks!

Just posting an updated pic of them...We ate a couple of fried green tomatoes Sunday, but no ripe ones as of yet...

Tonya,
They look great...

What time of day was it when you took that photo???

Weezie, It was at 1:47 today (gotta love digital cameras ) They get sun in the am and late afternoon.

Okayyyyyyyyyyy, cause that was my next question
to youuuuuu...
For me, I like sun on my mator's 6~8 hours *at least* full sun, as much sun as they can handle..
Makes them grow straighter, stronger and produce
fruit faster and more...


(***P/S I love digital camera's, just wish I was as fast as you are... whew... um, I guess I don't get how to down load, and am scared to LOSE them..so I wait for the ole hubby to get home and help...***)

Do you have room/area next year for full sun???
I think you'd get a riper tomato earlier with a wee~bit of more sun on them...

Yes, next year I am going to move my "garden" area to a spot that gets full sun all day and I anm going to grow several different things. This year I have just the tomatoes, canteloupe and potatoes(that have just sprouted! ) ) I got kind of a later start than I had intended to this year as well. I planted some dill and lettuce, but so far nothing has sprouted there...oh well. The seeds were from last year. Any pics of yours?

Start preparing the soil NOW!

We are. I am talking to a horse farm down the road and finding a place to get topsoil delivered...Anyone want to buy an 86 Nissan pick-up...it is RIGHT where my garden is going and MUST GO!! I am so excited. Next year will be my first real garden in about 15 years!

Tonya,
That is gooooooood to hear..

I agree whole~heartedly with John,
start getting that soil ready NOWWWWWWW!!!
If you can even a big piece of cardboard..
(or several) and throw it on top of the soil, NOW..***KEEP IT MOIST/WET and have close contact with the ground***
To kill the grass, and invite worms to do some underground tilling for you...

Then in the fall maybe... pull it up..
Add some aged manure, compost, orangic ammendments, and maybe even a green cover crop,
*Legumes' are one of the best kinds, they put nitrogen back into the soil, in their roots..
and can be alsoooo tilled in in the spring as a green manure crop*


Then come spring you are readddddddddddy to goooo!!!

Tonya looking good...I too love fried green mators
mmmmmmm also baked green mators with insides filled with cheese and herbs..yummy

Weezie, I am putting a few sheets of old plywood over there...I would do almost a "sod type thing and try to salvage the grass, but it is full of sandspurs and prickly pear... I'll keep you guys posted as to my progress this fall once I get the manure and all....

Maybe a recipe???

Angie- Somehow I missed this earlier...those baked sound GREAT!!! I have some dill sprouting. Mmmmmm green tomatoes stuffed with havarty and fresh dill...

Tonya, I was sitting outside this morning, staring at my garden while watering, and I realized that I am going to need more space next year. My garden is also my yard, so expanding is going to require lots and lots of weeding. But, I had an idea--I'm just going to buy some bales of hay and stack them out as far as I want my garden to be next year. I should only need 5 square bales or so. This way all that stinkin' grass and sandburrs will be nice and DEAD next year. Plus the straw will be breaking down, adding nutrients into the ground, and will make a great addition to the compost next spring or as a mulch for the garden. Just thought that I'd share since we're both fighting stinkin' grass and stickers.

Sarah, that is similar to a basic technique called sheet composting. If you really want to take care of the grass and weeds growing there put down cardboard or layers of newspaper and then stack the hay bales or spread the hay over the paper/cardboard. Come spring you can just till it all into the soil.

What is the purpose of the newspaper/cardboard? Does it suffocate the unwanted grass?

Not really "suffocates", but just ensures that zero light will reach the grass/weeds. Also adds more organic matter, which is always a good thing.

I see, thanks!! I'm all for additional organic matter!

I have PLENTY of unused cardboard boxes Now I know what to do with them!

Sarah, my garden is also MY yard as well...I sooooo wish I had more room!

Lay them on top of the soil where you want the future garden to go..
Make sure it's nice and wet/moist...
and has great contact with the soil..

It will block out any light to the weeds below,
and they will soon demise and will be food for the worms...

I haven't started on the ground for next year, yet...but- MY MATERS ARE RIPE!! Sorry, didn't mean to yell, but I am sooo excited!!


We have 2 more red ones and about 50 or so green ones!

That is beautifullllllllllllllll!!
I love that color!!

I just re-counted and I have 60 green ones! I am so excited to start getting reds! and they are Delicious!

Lookin good!