Devv-2018-Loving life in the dirt

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Bhuter said:
It's a beaut, Scott!!! Leggy it is, but I see it's bushy at the bottom and those branches will be a big part of production, I'd say. Great looking maters, as well! The gf said, "Mmm...they look good. I want a tomato from someone's garden." You will have. Lol. I always start two kinds: German Pink and Black Cherry. Last year, the German Pink had big, beautiful fruits. Black Cherry...not so much. Lol. Looking fantastically!

Thanks Adam

I had the German Pink on my grow list and never got around to ordering it. Perhaps next year?

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Sawyer said:
Ever think about making piccalilli? Hot pepper piccalilli?

Hi John,

I had to look that one up. It surely seems doable!

Bhuter · Apr 21, 2018

Devv said:
Thanks Adam

I had the German Pink on my grow list and never got around to ordering it. Perhaps next year?

I save seeds every year from them. I can send you some, if you'd like. I don't really eat plain tomatoes, but I hear they're delicious when eaten like an apple. I'll eat them in salsa or pico or cooked in something. Just not by themselves.

Sawyer · Apr 21, 2018

One of the food manufacturers in my cohort makes a (non-hot) piccalilli based on a grandmother's recipe. Gave me a sample jar, a quart, I think. It was all I could do not to eat the whole jar in one sitting.

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Bhuter said:
I save seeds every year from them. I can send you some, if you'd like. I don't really eat plain tomatoes, but I hear they're delicious when eaten like an apple. I'll eat them in salsa or pico or cooked in something. Just not by themselves.

That would be great!

Me too! Most go to our family tomato sauce recipe http://www.devtex.net/recipe.html it's down around the middle of the page. My Grandfather who passed about 48 years ago used to make it all the time; he came over from Italy in 1917.

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Sawyer said:
One of the food manufacturers in my cohort makes a (non-hot) piccalilli based on a grandmother's recipe. Gave me a sample jar, a quart, I think. It was all I could do not to eat the whole jar in one sitting.

Now I'm really going to have to make some, thanks for the tip!

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Sawyer said:
One of the food manufacturers in my cohort makes a (non-hot) piccalilli based on a grandmother's recipe. Gave me a sample jar, a quart, I think. It was all I could do not to eat the whole jar in one sitting.

Now I'm really going to have to make some, thanks for the tip!

Bhuter · Apr 21, 2018

Here are a couple pics of German Pink's from a couple of years ago.

They look pretty red against the black background, but they're more like a faded red. They're a "potato-leaf" tomato plant.

Devv · Apr 21, 2018

Bhuter said:
Here are a couple pics of German Pink's from a couple of years ago.

They look pretty red against the black background, but they're more like a faded red. They're a "potato-leaf" tomato plant.

Cool!

Always ready to try a new type!

Good luck with yours this season!

PtMD989 · Apr 21, 2018

Bhuter said:
Here are a couple pics of German Pink's from a couple of years ago.

They look pretty red against the black background, but they're more like a faded red. They're a "potato-leaf" tomato plant.

Is that the same as a German Johnson? I grew some last year, it had potato leafs also. I read that there are 2 varieties for GermanJohnson ,potato leaf and tomato leaf. Not sure what the difference is though.

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stickman · Apr 21, 2018

With my sandy soil and low rainfall the last few years I've noticed most of the Roma-type tomatoes have been prone to BER. The variety that seemed to have the fewest problems in that area was the Speckled Roman. I may end up foliar feeding with Calcium like you do Scott... what do you use, and how do you mix and apply it?

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Blitz527 · Apr 21, 2018

Scott, list looks promising like always, hope you have a great season.

Devv · Apr 22, 2018

stickman said:
With my sandy soil and low rainfall the last few years I've noticed most of the Roma-type tomatoes have been prone to BER. The variety that seemed to have the fewest problems in that area was the Speckled Roman. I may end up foliar feeding with Calcium like you do Scott... what do you use, and how do you mix and apply it?

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Same here Rick, the Roma's always give us issues. Trying the Amish Paste x 6 plants this season. Eric sent me a few seeds last season. Although a late start for me, they did well.

I bought a gallon of Calmag 5 years ago. At the time I though that was the brand, now I see many other versions. I use mine as directed; which is 1 teaspoon per gallon. I mix in a simple watering can and do my best to hit the plants twice a week, in the mornings. I start when they flower and keep it up for the duration.

I tried using it in a watering program and it failed. I used to lose close to 50% of the mater crop, and that's with all varieties. You know the story of my soil

2 years ago when we grew 48 plants I had just a few with BER. I call that success!

Devv · Apr 22, 2018

Blitz527 said:
Scott, list looks promising like always, hope you have a great season.

Thanks Alex!

Devv · Apr 22, 2018

Another crazy windy day here! So glad I put up the reclaimed pool decking as a fence. The gals in the 15 gallon grow bags, out in the open look like crap from the weekly cool fronts. What doesn't kill them will make them stronger :shh:

Some of the Chinense plants are kicking in and setting quite a few pods.

PDN x Bonda White.

PDN x Bonda purple. So how do I know when these are ripe?

Zucchini squash, damn these are crazy growers. I have just 2 in 1 hill, and will have to hack them back, or they take over...

The gals are takin' care of business

First Long Orange Thai, we use the heck out of these for everyday cooking...

Aji Limo, just loving the dirt!

Padron's. Don't know what to expect, first time growing these...

B.O.C., Just starting to flower up.

Some saaaweeet looking P. Dreadie's were found this morning hiding under the thick foliage. Do I see a tail?

Hey Adam, I found the other "pumpkin"! Hard to get a good pic of it with all the green around it from the other plants. It too is a bit leggy.

Aji Dulce, coloring up. I only wanted 2 but somehow 3 are in the dirt. All of them are setting nicely...

Anaheim wants to be a producer. Bring it on!

We always have grown Bell's. Here's proof the soil test and amendments are working. And this is only year one. We've never had Bell's look this good before. And they say size doesn't matter :shh:

That's it for this Sunday. I hope this weekend was a good one for all!

Bhuter · Apr 22, 2018

Beautiful, Scott! You're doing a tremendous job! Lovin' that P. Dreadie (I didn't see the tail at first). Gorgeous PDN crosses with great poddage! Good question about the ripening of the purple variety. I'd like to know, myself. A regular PDN never changes color, at least in my experience. They look a little light purple if the sun hits just right. But I waited until some went soft before I harvested. Fantastic update and that pumpkin BBG looks awesome!

b3rnd · Apr 23, 2018

Damn, those early pods are making me miss Portugal. Give me some of that weather, Devv! Some massive bells for sure. I hope to learn some of those amendment skills too!

stickman · Apr 23, 2018

Devv said:
Same here Rick, the Roma's always give us issues. Trying the Amish Paste x 6 plants this season. Eric sent me a few seeds last season. Although a late start for me, they did well.

I bought a gallon of Calmag 5 years ago. At the time I though that was the brand, now I see many other versions. I use mine as directed; which is 1 teaspoon per gallon. I mix in a simple watering can and do my best to hit the plants twice a week, in the mornings. I start when they flower and keep it up for the duration.

I tried using it in a watering program and it failed. I used to lose close to 50% of the mater crop, and that's with all varieties. You know the story of my soil
2 years ago when we grew 48 plants I had just a few with BER. I call that success!

Thanks Scott! So, do you spray it on as a foliar feed or water it in around the roots as a soil drench?

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fcaruana · Apr 23, 2018

Wow, just amazing! Your plants are monsters, I can’t believe how many bells you’ve got set on that plant! Is there a secret to getting he pods to grow so big?? My poblanos never reached the gigantic grocery-store size last year, they were about 2/3rds as big at their best (still delicious though!)

Ah, beautiful padrons! Pick them now, otherwise they get HOT. I learned my lesson last summer - if you leave them on the bush they will get very big and very hot. At least in my experience, I found that the best thing to do was to pick them extremely early on/unripe - when they were about 2 or 3 inches long, light green, and the seeds inside were still underdeveloped (that way you don’t have to crunch through them when you fry them up in oil)! They’re absolutely delicious.

Keep up the good work, this glog is amazing!

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Devv · Apr 23, 2018

b3rnd said:
Damn, those early pods are making me miss Portugal. Give me some of that weather, Devv! Some massive bells for sure. I hope to learn some of those amendment skills too!

Thanks!

I wish I could send some of my weather your way! Although I don;t think July-August would suit your needs

I know you're across the pond and all, so the Logan's soil test is probably not an option. But do read the book: The Intelligent Gardener…Steve Soloman w/ Erica Reinheimer

It starts off rather slow, but the good info is later on.