Tomatoes take over south Minneapolis

Once the tomato season starts, there's no stopping the flood of fruit

By MJ Smetanka

August 9, 2010 at 3:58PM
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A couple of weeks ago, I went on vacation and asked my neighbors to water the tomatoes and take any fruit that ripened.
When I returned six days later, I picked 69 tomatoes off that plant. The deluge had begun!
Sweeter than candy, with that hint of tomato tartness, my Sweet 100 is going bonkers, producing fruit faster than I can eat them. I'm putting them in salads, eating them as a side dish and giving them to friends. In 10 days, I've picked at least 200 tomatoes. And still they come.
Other Master Gardeners around the state report that this is not a good year for their tomatoes, with hail damage, disease and plants that just aren't thriving. Mine are doing great! This year I built raised beds in a newly sunny area where a tree had been taken down. Rather than fight the roots and debris from a construction project, I built boxes that were four feet by four feet and 18 inches high and filled them with a mix of top soil and composted manure.
The tomato plants have done better than I could have hoped. I have peppers and cucumbers too, but they are buried behind the tomato plants. The Sweet 100 is the Godzilla of the group, four feet high and sprawling over the cukes and the other tomatoes. I keep hacking it back and it just keeps growing!
I think my plants are doing well because they're in new soil that's uncontaminated by the viruses that tomatoes are prone too. I have tried to prevent disease by watering only with a hose.
If you're having disease problems with your toms, this website may help: http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/M1274.html
Okay, it's your turn. Are your tomatoes making you happy or sad this year?

(The Minnesota Star Tribune)
about the writer

about the writer

MJ Smetanka

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