On Fri, 24 Apr 2015 19:35:35 -0400, songbird
wrote:

Boron Elgar wrote:
...
I find a measure of unpredictability and variability, even when I have
grown the same varieties over several seasons.

well sure, but after ten years of growing
them you should have some idea of which kinds
will produce.

I am too adventurous (the older I get) and try many new varieties each
year.

I am an inveterate seed saver and off-season seed buyer. Whenever I
see an unusual tomato or other yummy cultivar, I grab the packets and
stash 'em.

I brought back two tomato plants from California this past Monday.
Happened to pass a sale at an arboretum and saw some tomatoes I had
never noticed here in the east or online in my usual haunts. What the
heck...we will see how they do.


I see this in many of the kitchen garden crops, though. It is not
unique to tomatoes. Some year I get a lot more of a particular bean
variety, or huge broccoli, or more cukes than I can shake a stick at
and another year even a tried and true favorite may do poorly.

yeah, last year a lot of our crops were eaten by
animals and the weather wasn't very sunny. that
along with the rot in the tomatoes meant a pretty
varied and lower harvest of a lot of things than
all of our other years. still, we had enough of
some things and more than we could eat of others.

As it is almost every year.

Obviously, one can only "control" for so much in these observations,
as my garden is outdoors and subject to the elements, but I still love
to try to outsmart the critters, the bugs, the weather and the rain
each season.

sure, it helps to plant a diversity of crops if
you have the space for it. it also helps to have
different soils to try things in.

I have very little space. Other than asparagus, garlic, blue and
blackberries, everything I grow is in tubs up on my deck. Even then,
it is hard to keep the groundhogs away.

i'm enjoying things too, it's a lot more fun than
many other things and i like the schedule. part-time
and when i want to, leaves time for reading during
the winter and best of all the boss, once in a while,
actually listens to me...


Yup.


Boron