Did you grow something new in your garden last year?

[Soggy Bottom Outdoors]

Thanks 2lane, I may try that. I sell a lot of tomatoes and they need to be big, smooth, and red. German Johnson produces well but they are not as "pretty" as customers like. Also raised Mariglobe and celebrity.

 

[TCJatko]

Speaking of tomatoes, does anyone have experience with growing them upside down in hanging pots? I have an area that would be suitable, but don't want to go to the effort if I'm not going to get exceptional results.

 

[DFB]

I grew Celebrity commercially for a very long time I really like the flavor. Makes a great tasting tomato sauce too. Another long time main crop tomato for me was TT hybrids Goliath and Early Goliath. Probably the sweetest tasting I grew and would get really really ripe was Pink Girl. Most folks only understand a red tomato but once they tried Pink Girl they always came back looking for it. And always had a yellow one too...usually Sunny

After I got into heirloms the old burpee "Delicious" also became one of my favorites for real tomato taste. I kept them all for myself

I've probably grown close to 100 different tomatos (hybrids and heirlooms combined) over time. For heirlooms Caspian Pink and Prudens Purple were big, easy to grow tomatoes. Rose was another good one. The Purple Russian, German Red Strawberry, and Orange Oxheart were unique shapes and sold good. Tasty too. Druzba was another flavorful tomato and good producer. Cherokee Purple is probably my favorite for great taste.

If anybody grows eggplant another fav of mine is Applegreen developed at the Universty of NH is great on the grill oiled and roasted. They say it an heirloom does really well in cool weather where most eggplant wont produce

I like that lime idea for blossom end rot I always used water soluable calcium nitrate

 

[DFB]

Speaking of tomatoes, does anyone have experience with growing them upside down in hanging pots? I have an area that would be suitable, but don't want to go to the effort if I'm not going to get exceptional results.

We sold upside down tomato plants at the greenhouse. Hanging bags they were. At first we werent going to but customers kept asking for them. IMO big fad I think. Sales have fallen off and couldnt get rid of them this year. Never had much postive feedback with them. I think people either water them to much or not enough. Seem to perform best with small vining tomatoes too.

What really "works" for us are hanging basket tomatoes. Right side up! :thumbsup: Cherry varities mostly traditonal size or slightly larger bushy varities developed for container growing and drape down over the sides. We cant grow enough of them and commit at least 2 greenhouse to them and customers are always pleased and come back every year looking for more.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Thanks 2lane, I may try that. I sell a lot of tomatoes and they need to be big, smooth, and red. German Johnson produces well but they are not as "pretty" as customers like. Also raised Mariglobe and celebrity.

Super Fantastics are not a big tomato in the sense of Big Boy or some of those, as I recall, it's about the same as a Celebrity, but it seems to always produce a crop of some kind ... except year before last, and nothing produced even one edible tomato for me. Last year I planted some Bush Champions and a couple varieties of heirlooms; the Bush Champions turned brown and died, the heirlooms produced very modestly and the Super Fantastics came on like Gangbusters.

 

[cmhyland]

Super Fantastics are not a big tomato in the sense of Big Boy or some of those, as I recall, it's about the same as a Celebrity, but it seems to always produce a crop of some kind ... except year before last, and nothing produced even one edible tomato for me. Last year I planted some Bush Champions and a couple varieties of heirlooms; the Bush Champions turned brown and died, the heirlooms produced very modestly and the Super Fantastics came on like Gangbusters.

We're going to try some of these this year for canning....

SuperSauce Tomato Seeds - 2lb. Largest Sauce Tomato Plants at Burpee.com

Regards,
Chris

 

[forgeblast]

Penn and Cord's Garden - Penn's Blog
had a really interesting take on gardens and tobacco. I didnt realize tobacco mosaic virus was so devistating. they say that Tobacco Mosaic Virus present in 40% of commercial tobacco, and they dont allow anyone who smokes to touch their tomato plants.

 

[TCJatko]

We sold upside down tomato plants at the greenhouse. Hanging bags they were. At first we werent going to but customers kept asking for them. IMO big fad I think. Sales have fallen off and couldnt get rid of them this year. Never had much postive feedback with them. I think people either water them to much or not enough. Seem to perform best with small vining tomatoes too.

What really "works" for us are hanging basket tomatoes. Right side up! :thumbsup: Cherry varities mostly traditonal size or slightly larger bushy varities developed for container growing and drape down over the sides. We cant grow enough of them and commit at least 2 greenhouse to them and customers are always pleased and come back every year looking for more.

Thanks for sharing your experince. I'll give it a try this year. Several years ago I stumbled across a variety of cherry tomato called Sweet Million. A little hard to get going, but once they start producing, look out. I'd estimate several hundred tomatoes per plant.