Tomatoes

Tomatoes can be divided into two types: determinates and indeterminates.

Indeterminates can grow and bear fruit throughout the whole summer season up till first frost or so. They grow like pseudo-vines, (I call them "pseudo" because they can't climb themselves.) so usually they seem some sort of support such as trellis or cage. They don't need to be pruned. Many cherry tomatoes are of this type.

Determinates tend to ripen their fruit all at once and then die. They are bushier and more compact. Can be trellised as well. There are conflicting accounts on whether these need to be pruned or not. Currently conducting an experiment right now. Will be reporting results.

As far as I know, beefsteak and cherry tomatoes are indeterminates, and romas are determinates. I've never planted determinates before, so what I wrote are simply what I read. I will update this with my experience at the end of the season.

Tomatoes are very versatile. Cherry and grape tomatoes are often eaten off the vine or in salads. Romas and other sauce tomatoes tend to have fewer seeds and more meat that when cooked, produce thicker sauces. The big ones such as beefsteak or celebrity are used more for general cooking or for slicing for sandwiches or hamburgers. However when cooked, they pretty much dissolve.

For my garden, I think it's a good idea to have a mixture of the three. Generally, two to three cherry or grape tomato plants are more than enough for one person to eat like a 6oz box a week. I know my mom has six cherry tomatoes plants (don't ask me why she planted that many when she self-professed that she hates small tomatoes), and they are producing enough tomatoes to fill a 16 oz box per day...if we bothered to pick them...which we don't...because it's too much work. So they languish on the vines. Oh well. This is my first year planting romas. I don't have enough experience yet with the other to advise on their yields.

Varieties of tomatoes that I planted this year:
Sweet 100 (cherry): high yield. Very sweet when ripened on the vines.
Beefsteak: not growing as big as I thought it would. Seems to need more water than others. Probably still need to tweak a few factors.
Roma: quite vigorous. Produces flowers and fruits rather easily.

Varieties of tomatoes I would like to try:
Celebrity (determinate): similar to beefsteak
Rosalita (grape tomato)
Sugary (grape tomato)
Momotaro: supposedly very good
Suncherry extra sweet (cherry)

I would definitely want to try different types of heirloom tomatoes each year and try to optimize yields for each variety.

Awesome nurseries

I've been wanting to do write about this for awhile. I found two great nurseries down in San Diego. One is the Walter Andersen Nursery which has two locations, one in Point Loma and another in Poway. The other is City Farmers Nursery. Both of these have excellent, knowledgeable staff who are friendly and happy to answer all questions. They also have a wide selection of plants, more so than places like Home Depot.

For the Walter Andersen Nursery, the staff are on a first name basis with the owner of the place. From talking to them, it seems like they have tried a lot of the products there. Hence, I do trust their recommendations for the plants. The types of products they carry are very similar to a regular nursery but with many more choices, especially in fertilizers. They also sell worms for vermiculture, something I'd definitely like to get started again.

City Farmers Nursery is on an acre and a half piece of land. It is family owned. In fact, the family lives right on the property. As far as I know, they own one horse, two goats, two coops of chickens, three tortoises, three rabbits, baby turkeys, a colony of bees, tilapia, and other varieties of fish. They practice aquaponics, a combination of aquaculture, the practice of raising fish, and hydroponics, growing plants in a watering medium. On the lot, they also have a patch of their own garden with corn, tomatoes, squashes, and other plants. They have a water garden section, succulents, bonzais, berries, tropicals, and, of course, vegetables.

When Kathryn and I went there, we met both Sophia and Bill, the owners. Sophia was extremely helpful in answering all of our questions about blueberries. She gave us a little manual to help us determine the difference between the different varieties. She did not try to sell us anything. In fact, she told us to just experiment with different things and see what happens. Bill was extremely friendly as well. He was manning the cash register and we chatted a bit about plants. Will definitely go back again if I need seeds.

On a completely separate note, I found out a while ago that each San Diego resident can pick up two cubic yards of mulch or compost if we self-load. That's 12 32-gallon trash bags worth of compost for each person. Total score.

The temporary home of the new mint plants. There's a regular mint as well as a bunch of peppermint.

It seems like mints grow by rhizomes right underneath the soil. I dug some up and Patty told me to pull some more up. So I did, and hence the giant long thing in the back. I think as long as they can establish their roots in the next few days, they will be able to thrive...until they are moved to their permanent homes.

Oh yes, did I mention that I will be getting some worms? Very excited. Love worms and seeing things decompose.

Like minds

Over the weekend, I found out that Sprite's friends have their own garden as well.

They grew some fruits such as avocadoes, kiwis, and mangoes from seed. It amazed me that it did not occur to me at all to grow what we want from seed. I now want to find the best avocado ever and sprout it.

Note to Kat: for the mangoes, if you'd like to try it, they said to scrape off the furry stuff around the outside of the mango pit. Dry it and split it open. The seed is inside. Then you can plant it. We should go on a perfect mango hunt. Also, they have extra kiwis plants if we want them. I have no idea whether kiwis are a tree, bush or vine.

Anyway, they also have various herbs including two types of mint. I'm going to see it we can get both.

It's amazing how many different varieties of vegetables are growing from their garden. They already have small watermelons growing. We are still waiting for ours to sprout, which I hope they will do soon.

I've also invited them to comment or maybe even guest author an entry. I think they have lots of different ideas, and we can all benefit from each other's experience.

Year 1 Beginning of summer crops

These are the current edibles in the garden:

Six roma tomatoes. They are determinate, so no staking needed. Planted two weeks ago.








Garden beans. Seeds from my mom. Planted two weeks ago, and staked last night. I can't believe how great they look after transplanted two days ago!

Dwarf lime tree.











Dwarf lemon.











Zucchini squash.








Mango tree.











Washington navel orange.











Basil plant. We were thinking about planting another batch. I've kind of noticed that if they are grown in sun, they flower faster than if planted in shade. So we'll try shade next time.









Butternut squash. Planted last Sunday. Finally sprouted. Now we are just waiting for the rest of them. I think we are only going to plant three of them. Can't wait. Mmm...Butternut squash soup. Or baked.









Brussel sprouts. Lady at nursery said to plant them in partial shade.











Current state of compost pile. Need to chop it down a bit.








Future site of blueberry bushes. Thinking about planting eggplants during this season to prepare the soil for the blueberries. Speaking of which, better get started with planting the seeds.

7/16/09: the palm is archontophoenix alexandrae.




Canby raspberries.











Misty blueberries.











O'Neal blueberries. I forgot which is which, but one of them is supposed to be more flavorful and the other is smaller and sweeter. Having two is nice since they can cross-pollinate, something blueberries need.









A pepper plant. (I think.)











Beefsteak tomatoes (indeterminate). Staking is good.











Another pepper plant or maybe eggplant? I'm not too sure.











Future site of raspberry bushes.








And just because. Rabbits.

Potato Growing

I like Potatoes.



I am also a geek, and as such will try to mix in a little engineering when it comes to producing a crop. So here is my proposal for the garden: The Hundred Pounds of Potato producing garden High Rise! Maybe using the term 'High Rise' to describe something 4 ft cubed is a bit of unmitigated hyperbole, but I read it on the Internets somewhere...



I think Potatoes are fascinating because they grow where the branches/stalk of the plant are submerged in dirt (supposedly this is why the Irish grew potatoes to such a huge degree, because they are one of the few crop that will remain edible even after some army marches over your field). Problem being, traditionally potatoes are labor intensive and involve a lot of digging up and replanting the satisfy the demands of the thrice cursed spud. The basic idea is that you plant seed potatoes in the earth, and as the plant grows you keep submerging the plant as it grows. The planks divide the growing mass into layers, which will help you keep track of what potatoes will be ready when.

The hope is that this construct skirts the labor intensity issue by giving ready access to all the different layers of tubers.

My only concern is the feasibility of all this. I tend to trust the experience of your experience B^2 and that of your green-fingered mother, and I believe when you discussed Potatoes with her it was decided that they simply weren't worth it. On top of that , I don't know how down Kathryn will be with erecting a squat shrine to carbohydrates.

I still think it's a nifty idea, although maybe I should focus on growing a potato instead of diving right into making the monolith.

Linky Seattle Times
Linky Lifehacker (they have a cool diagram of the potato box thingamabob)

My vision of a perfect garden

My perfect garden should be mostly edible, self-sustaining, and pleasurable.

Because my garden will be mostly edible, there is very little use for lawns, except as a tool to keep the dust level down. However, there are other ways to accomplish that. Ornamental flowers sometimes can be edible. Plus, they fulfill the pleasurable aspect.

As for self-sustaining, I want animals as well. Chickens for eggs and meat, alpacas for their fibers, goose for eggs and watchfulness, horse to ride to neighbor's place, bees for pollination and dogs for herding and companionship. Of course all of them except bees provide fertilizer as well. I will raise them all together so they can hang out. Thus, their waste can be composted along with everything else and then go back to the soil.

One may argue that many of these, vegetables and animals alike, may be purchased in a grocery store. However, with the commercialization of food production, less emphasis is placed on flavor and healthfulness as on quantity and speediness to ripeness. Hence, flavors of vegetables and sweetness of fruits are often sacrificed. Sure the strawberry is beautifully big and red, but why such tartness? I prefer sweetness over size. As for animals, we really don't know what long term effects of all the antibiotics and hormones have on the human body. I'd rather not find out. Plus, one really doesn't need to eat all that much protein anyway.

In the garden, I would also love to experiment with a new plant each year. See what comes out.

I think I would love to have about two to two and a half acre of land. Seeing how much can be done on an acre and a half land, think about the possibilities of a 2 acre piece of land. So many fruits to plant, avocado, lime, lemon, orange, mandarin, kumquat, jujube, blueberry, apple, and pear. And maple trees for maple syrup. More to be added later as they come up.