"Alan Gould" wrote in message
news
In article , Doug.
writes

Well, now!,- if I don't go to the foot of our stairs!.
I always thought homegrown were best, especially in taste. I plant one
or two of each, of Money Maker, Alicante and Golden Delicious, and for a
few years, Shirley, which outclasses them all for fruiting, size and
taste. All have excelled themselves
as to growth and productivity: however, that said, this year the taste
of all of them is very disappointing despite my this year's renewing of
their raised beds with
well mixed compost of balanced materials, plus excellent weather and
heat. The skins seem to be alright though, I haven't noticed any
difference in toughness in that respect.
As mentioned in another post, this year I didn't use any diluted *tank*
which I learned from my Dad. It's sheepsh, (his word, not mine.)
collected from the nearby fields' That is, a few dollops of sheepsh in
a Hessian bag in a bucket of water in late Spring and diluted
to a pale straw colour when fed to the roots area when the plants are in
full fruit stage, just as they start ripening.
The taste of Golden delicious tomatoes has disappointed for a few years
now. Shan't grow them next year.
Doug.

The flavour of tomatoes and the toughness of their skins are two
different issues. Skin toughness is bred into the variety and I don't
know of any cultural method which can affect it. Flavour can and does
vary with variety, but the biggest effect on that is how they are grown.
Tomatoes lose a lot of flavour by being pushed on to grow more and
faster than they would do naturally. That way they finish up as
tasteless bags of mush, fit only for supermarkets.

We grow mostly Alicante or Ailsa Craig indoors and Gardener's Delight
outside, all for their flavour and texture. Shirley and Harbinger too
always give a delicious results. We grow them organically, so they get
their nutrition from the soil, taking it in as and when they choose. If
we did wish to feed them at all it would be with nettle infusion. We
also use nettle infusion on them for white-fly as a foliar application.
Once the aphids are gone, the infusion is ingested into the plant where
it acts as a tonic, improving both the flavour and the texture of the
fruits. It may also add some nutrients, but we don't make more than one
or two applications in a growing season.

Tomatoes like plenty of ventilation in moderate warmth, unlike cucumbers
which prefer still, very warm air and high humidity. That causes a
little difficulty if they are growing in the same greenhouse. Having
said all that, we intentionally cut down our number of tomato plants
this year, and yes you guessed it, they responded by producing the least
fruits each we've seen for years. There are still plenty for fresh use
though and their flavour is as good as ever.
--
Alan & Joan Gould - North Lincs.

How interesting ! My experiences this year mirrors yours completely
regarding reduced cropping and varieties etc.
However, I would very much appreciate more info on the subject of "nettle
infusion" as a means of controlling white fly on greenhouse
toms.........recipe, rates of application etc. Does it harm the fruit if
sprayed on them? Do you also use it as a root applied fertiliser in the
normal way ?

Each year my infestations of white fly get heavier and I simply cannot find
an answer to the problem. I have clouds of flies comprising millions.
Leaves and fruit are covered in black gunge excretions and I've tried all
sorts of proprietary sprays and have now reached the stage where I am
seriously thinking of ceasing to grow tomatoes anymore.



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