Cool Tomatoes

What kind of idiot tries to grow tomatoes in the middle of the winter? Me :( (click the image for a massive photo): This was a big mistake on my part. I have 67 full-sized tomato plants that I'm probably going to have to kill because I can't plant them outside until March 20ish, and they're already too big for their pots, meaning they drink the dirt dry more than once a day, and no one is here to re-water them sometimes. *Waaaah*

But there's some good news too. Check out the tiny tomato plants on the left hand side of the image. They're called 'Tiny Tim' tomato plants. They only grow to about 20" tall, will never outgrow a 1 gallon pot, and will produce cherry tomatoes (5-10 a week) until they die from cold in the fall. They make great gifts for people who like vegetables. Once some tomatoes start to turn red, throw 4 tablespoons of osmocote or some other slow-release fertilizer on the dirt and give them to someone you like. Tell them that all they have to do is water it (since you pre-fertilized it for the life of the thing). You will be surprised how happy it makes people - especially people who assumed that growing vegetables was difficult.

Just a head's up - tomatoes grown at your home taste nothing like the ones you buy in the store. They are much more intense in flavor. If you don't like the flavor of tomatoes, you REALLY won't like the flavor of homegrown ones. On the other hand, if you like the flavor of tomatoes, you'll REALLY like the flavor of homegrown ones.

Buy some seeds today! It's plantin' time in the lower 23 of the lower 48, for tomatoes and peppers at least.