On 1/31/2015 9:29 AM, The Cook wrote:
On Fri, 30 Jan 2015 22:32:57 -0600, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

Boron Elgar wrote:
On Fri, 30 Jan 2015 20:08:06 -0600, George Shirley
wrote:

On 1/30/2015 5:58 PM, Terry Coombs wrote:
Well , I've got lots of tomato seedlings now ... and two in most
cells . When do y'all thin your seedlings ? I can do it now , but
then if one dies ... or I can do it when they're bigger , and the
dominant one is more apparent . That approach however uses more of
the finite amount of nutrients available , and maybe thinning now
will make one that wouldn't have been dominant actually be stronger
than ... Decisions decisions !

If there were two or more seeds planted in the same cup I just pinch
off all but the sturdiest seedling. Don't have enough space to plant
a lot of tomato plants. The plants themselves need plenty of room
around here and I keep them pruned so that sunshine gets into the
plant.

On occasion I have transplanted extra seedlings from a group and
mostly they succeeded but not as well as the primary. And, like you
said, the secondaries suck up all the energy for the primary.


I tossed caution and common sense to the wind a few years ago.

I have a bed up front that is about 8' x 8'. It is enriched with
compost every year in the spring - just after I pull the tulip bulbs.

Yes, I put in about 80-100 tulip bulbs each fall (maybe $10 worth,
with a careful eye to local offerings). I think of the tulips as
annuals and get rid of the bulbs after bloom...some go to neighbors,
some wind up in other parts of the yard, some just get composted

After the pull, the new compost goes in, as do tomato seeds of many
varieties. I am a seed saver and some of the seeds that get used are
the older ones in the collection or ones I have picked up or ordered
from end-of-season sales. Way too many tomato seeds go into that plot
than any intelligent or knowing gardener would deposit. They come up
like crazy, as do any number of volunteers from the compost or the
tomato husks left as drops the previous fall (you know... when I pull
up the tomato plants before I put in all those bulbs).

Oh, it means I do not get huge tomatoes up there early in the season,
and that is ok. I tend to plant those that bear smaller fruits in that
plot.

The wonder is that the plants come in so thick and lush and flower and
fruit like crazy even though logic says they'd block the light from
each other and be undernourished. Nah....that plot is incredibly
productive....and it does not get a full day's sun, either...not once
the neighbor's huge oak leafs out.

It is odd to direct sow here in northern NJ, but seed is cheap, and
after the first experiment, I have continued it the last 5 years or
so.

Then this starts daily happening in late July and continues until
frost in October.

http://i57.tinypic.com/11rdkp5.jpg

Nice ! Not exactly what we're looking for though . This year I'm trying to
maximize the type of tomato that we use a lot of for cooking . There will
also be slicers and cherry tomatoes , but the biggest portion will be San
Marzanos along with a few Romas . We're growing for later use , not only the
tomatoes but several other veggies - green beans , squashes , peppers ,
berries and other fruits will all be preserved for next winter .

About this time next year check the supply of foods you have
preserved. Figure out how long it will last you at your present rate
of consumption. Allow for a bad year and decide how much you really
need to plant and preserve. We went hog wild the first few years we
lived here and I am still finding stuff that is 5+ years old. I am
trying to go through everything and toss anything that is old and we
have not eaten much of any of it.

I am going to get back to arranging the shelves so I can find things.
DH's idea is to stick stuff anywhere there is spot. I like to have it
organized so I can walk to the spot where an item should be (and find
it there.)

My lovely wife would fit into your husband's ideas immediately. I'm the
one who sets everything up so I can eat the oldest stuff first. I always
put things back exactly where I got them, she just shoves stuff in
storage willy nilly. Aggravating to say the least but after being
together since 1958 it's a little late to change plus we like arguing
with each other. G

Good to hear from you Susan. Need more posters on rec.food.preserving
nowadays.