Tomatoes, tomatoes.

Posted on 19 Jul, 2008 18 comments

For the past few days I have been seeing and reading tomatoes here on GOY. And I happen to love tomatoes, in many ways, raw, cooked, dried, fried. When we were young and inexperienced growers of many things except for apple trees, we decided to grow some tomatoes, because we remembered the ones we had in the South of France, huge, lush and delicious, when just picked. As with everything hubby does it thoroughly. Ploughed up an area, put irrigation in, trellisses, fenced it off and then he went off to buy the tomato plants. He came home with 12 dozen plants! “What?”, I asked,” 144 plants? ”. But I knew better not to question his ideas, as I must admit they usually work out all right. So, that day we set off on hands and knees and planted these tomato seedlings, then watered and fertilised them. Every other day we gave them water for about half an hour, until there were puddles amongst them. They took off! The grew and grew and we worked in them pinching the flowers, tieing them up and kept hoping. Soon we saw the first tiny green balls appearing: tomatoes! Every day now we had to spend some time training them and looking and admiring them. They did really well. As soon as we came out of the “plantation” we had a shower, as we were as green as a frog. They smelled nicely though. Then we picked our first tomato and tasted it. Delicious. These were Grosse Lisse and they were big tomatoes. Soon we had a bowl full, then a bucket full. The fridge was full, we gave some to friends. We looked at each other and knew we’d planted too many seedlings for just ourselves. We picked every day. We ran outof buckets. So we dragged the baby bath there. That too was full. It was time we did something sensible with them. So hubby set off with a baby bath as a sample to the local grocery store. They bought the lot. I put a sign up at the Post Office, 10 cents a kilo tomatoes, bring your own container. People came with small and large containers, buckets, baskets, etc. And on my little kitchen scales I weighed them out duefully. It was fun, I must say. In those days 10 cents was still reasonable. Of course I had to compete with the shop, lol. All through the summer and until autumn we had tomatoes. It was an experience, we would not do it on that grand scale again, but it was worth while.
I actually never had so much luck with tomatoes again, when I put these in the vegie patch. When we moved to our new house on the farm I suddenly saw tomatoes, little cherry tomatoes, growing in between my rock garden. How did they get there? I tasted one: lovely and sweet. I asked my daughter what she thought of them. “Oh, they taste just like my friends cherry tomatoes”, she said.”Really?”, I asked. “I often got them at lunchtime at school but one day I forgot to eat them and they were all soggy in my lunchbox so I chucked them over the lawn”. Haha, there was the answer. Those few discarded cherries had been the source of my tomato seedlings. I never had to do a thing about them anymore. Each year they came up again, because always some were ripe before I picked them and had bursted in the hot sun.

Comments

Wohlibuli

Great story !
I tried tomatoes last year but they had so many pests that I decided not to have them this year.
They really aren't my favorite !

19 Jul, 2008

Popeymike

Good story. The are a bit hit-and-miss here, we need a good summer for outdoor ones, but I always grow a few in the conservatiory which do well. It only gets sun in the afternoon but stays warm and they do well here.

19 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

I keep forgetting Popeymike you are underpriveledged with your sunshine. Tomatoes really LOVE sun. Wohlibuli, if you eat those hot chillies you won't need tomatoes, the chilly has more vit C in, lol.

19 Jul, 2008

Wohlibuli

Right you are Marg. And they taste better too!!! lol

19 Jul, 2008

Spritzhenry

Loved the story, Marguerite! 144 plants - you could have fed the whole neighbourhood!!!! lol. We had blight over here last year, everyone was talking about their disastrous tomatoes (and potatoes for some people). Let's hope that this poor summer doesn't bring more of it!

19 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

I keep my fingers crossed for you UK people. Wohlibuli, chillies taste ok, but I don't like them on their own personally. But combined with onion or/and tomatoes they are yummy, especially in a paste or sauce. I forgot to say that we made tomato juice in desperation at one stage, so easy. Just in a bowl in the microwave and then push through a sieve, so you won't get all the seeds and skins. There is so much juice in them.

20 Jul, 2008

Lyd

exellent marguerite, i hope my 1st attempt is as good as yours on a smaller scale though. tomato juice now that sounds good.

20 Jul, 2008

Weemamabell

Loved the story ! ive got 5 plants on the go just now and pleading with the Tomatoes to start turning red , last year was awful and I got 1 red Tom !

20 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

I wish you good luck with your 5 plants Weemamabell, if you have sun, you have tomatoes. Well, 5 is more than I have at the moment. One cherry tomato plant has popped up outof nowhere, a seed from the former owners, lol. It has flowers and is growing like mad.

20 Jul, 2008

Charlie727

loved your story-we have got 6 plants at the mo,grown from seed ive spied 1 little green tom-we have used a little outdoor greenhouse/not heated so again fingers crossed for a good result :)

23 Jul, 2008

Terry60

Great story Marguerite. They sell crates of plum tomatoes everywhere in August here - the locals use them in massive quantities to make their annual reserve of bottled passata and peeled toms. I've often sundried them too and they are delicious preserved in olive oil, chopped garlic and flatleaved parsley.

28 Jul, 2008

Wohlibuli

OMG Terry that sounds fab.

28 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

Hi Terry, we call them Romano tomatoes, now if that doesn't sound Italian, nothing does, lol. I love them a lot, as they often are nicer than the round ones, depending on the variety. But these Romano's I always use for pizza's, delicious! I buy fresh oregano and chop that up on top oh yes, rosemary too a little bit. I love anything pasta and pizza like. One day I might even get to Italy. I've been to Lugano in Switzerland and then crossing the border into Italy, but not far, went to a pretty little island called Isola Bella. I love dried tomatoes too. But never made my own, my friend did and dried them on her roof! Here they are often tin roofs, you can imagine how quick that went. She too did them in garlic and olive oil and herbs. Anyway, this is not a cooking site, LOL.

29 Jul, 2008

Terry60

Yes you are right Marguerite this is not a cooking site - but food (veg and fruit) are gifts of nature - so I reckon we are quite legitimated to have the occasional spin-off regarding culinary appreciation of these natural benefits !!!!

29 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

Terry I think so too and I do like spin offs as you call them. I like your word choices a lot too.

29 Jul, 2008

Terry60

Thanks Marguerite.

By the way to go back to the tomatoes - you say you call them Romano - well actually the best plum version (and most tasty) is called San Marzano over here and exclusively from Naples not Rome - the Neapolitans would be quite upset if they knew!

29 Jul, 2008

Marguerite

Terry I haven't heard of San Marzano tomatoes and I certainly have never seen those here. We just call them Italian or Romano tomatoes, they are oblong, quite firm and juicy and....tasty. But one day I might come acros the other ones and will think of you!

30 Jul, 2008

Wohlibuli

San Marzano's are available here in cans and are supposed to be the best for sauces. i will have to try them.

30 Jul, 2008

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Tomatoes, tomatoes.

Tomatoes, tomatoes.

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