No, not the Fatali grow, that's several hours away. It's the Home vs. Office, Sunlight through the Window vs. 105 watt CFL in a cabinet contest.
The plant - a Siletz tomato. An early (55-60 days) determinate plant that produces 10-12 ounces slicing, nearly seedless toms.
Two containers, one a former 3-gallon bucket full of kitty litter, the other a normal, run-of-the-mill hydro chamber. One sits in a huge, south-facing window in Reading, the other in a cabinet upstairs in Hartwell.
The temps will vary - we turn the thermostat down to about 60 degrees at the office when we leave, though the heater warms the front of the office to maybe 90 degrees for a few minutes; the upstairs stays 65-72 with temps inside the chamber slightly higher.
To keep the tom happy, I have a companion bucket (also made from a kitty litter bucket) that has Black Seeded Simpson lettuce growing in it. I plan on adding more plants every two-three weeks since the lettuce will be ready before the tomatoes are.
The final goal - besides the H/O competition - to get enough ripe produce for a BLT sandwich. Invite business people from up and down the street to stop in one morning for a home-grown (or office grown as the case may be) treat.
This is where the subplot comes in. I rent the office from a guy who is in his late 70s, early 80s. Benson St. in Reading is not the main drag, but it is the second most popular street in the city and is home to one of the bigger Bridal Districts in the county. All the brides-to-be will walk past my office window and see the lettuce and tomato.
Several years ago, I gave Charlie the honorary title of Mayor of Benson Street and often make mention of him in my weekly newspaper column. He likes it and gets kidded about it from time to time.
Follow along here, if you will. I'm growing the lettuce and tomatoes, and the office staff has volunteered to bring the bread and mayonnaise, as well as the skillet to fix everything in. All we need is the bacon and I suggested to Charlie that since he has a fenced in back yard, he could raise a pig we could butcher. That would be his contribution. Being a former farm-loving boy many years ago, I thought maybe I had him sold on the idea. Then he shocked me:
"Mike, I can't. I like the idea and think it would be great but you dubbed me the Mayor of this street. You know I am a conservative when it comes to politics so I have to decline raising the pig for bacon."
I wasn't sure what being a conservative had to do with killing a pig but he clued me in:
"I don't believe in pork projects, even if it benefits the people I represent."
Mike
The plant - a Siletz tomato. An early (55-60 days) determinate plant that produces 10-12 ounces slicing, nearly seedless toms.
Two containers, one a former 3-gallon bucket full of kitty litter, the other a normal, run-of-the-mill hydro chamber. One sits in a huge, south-facing window in Reading, the other in a cabinet upstairs in Hartwell.
The temps will vary - we turn the thermostat down to about 60 degrees at the office when we leave, though the heater warms the front of the office to maybe 90 degrees for a few minutes; the upstairs stays 65-72 with temps inside the chamber slightly higher.
To keep the tom happy, I have a companion bucket (also made from a kitty litter bucket) that has Black Seeded Simpson lettuce growing in it. I plan on adding more plants every two-three weeks since the lettuce will be ready before the tomatoes are.
The final goal - besides the H/O competition - to get enough ripe produce for a BLT sandwich. Invite business people from up and down the street to stop in one morning for a home-grown (or office grown as the case may be) treat.
This is where the subplot comes in. I rent the office from a guy who is in his late 70s, early 80s. Benson St. in Reading is not the main drag, but it is the second most popular street in the city and is home to one of the bigger Bridal Districts in the county. All the brides-to-be will walk past my office window and see the lettuce and tomato.
Several years ago, I gave Charlie the honorary title of Mayor of Benson Street and often make mention of him in my weekly newspaper column. He likes it and gets kidded about it from time to time.
Follow along here, if you will. I'm growing the lettuce and tomatoes, and the office staff has volunteered to bring the bread and mayonnaise, as well as the skillet to fix everything in. All we need is the bacon and I suggested to Charlie that since he has a fenced in back yard, he could raise a pig we could butcher. That would be his contribution. Being a former farm-loving boy many years ago, I thought maybe I had him sold on the idea. Then he shocked me:
"Mike, I can't. I like the idea and think it would be great but you dubbed me the Mayor of this street. You know I am a conservative when it comes to politics so I have to decline raising the pig for bacon."
I wasn't sure what being a conservative had to do with killing a pig but he clued me in:
"I don't believe in pork projects, even if it benefits the people I represent."
Mike