I went out to help the bees pollinate the tomatoes this evening. I use a Q-tip and go from flower to flower. But, I found three ripe tomatoes. They aren't very big but I bet they will taste good anyway. I picked six short fat cucumbers. I picked the Japanese long eggplant. It was about 8 inches long but I don't think it was going to get any bigger. I picked one banana pepper. It wasn't very big but the bugs had started to eat it. I didn't take any pictures, Sorry! We ate the pepper and the eggplant for supper. I stirfried them with store bought zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes and half an ear of corn. I added basil and oregano from the garden and some grated cheese. It was very good. There are a couple dozen tomatoes out there. I think after the farm market tomorrow I will need to feed them a little. Maybe they will get bigger. dooley
Way to go,Dooley! A ripe tomato--it may be red, but I'm green with envy. Your garden is thriving, despite somewhat adverse weather. You are so-o-o--o ahead of us. Our eggplant and cukes are just beginning to blossom, and we've only picked five small squash. One cherry tomato is beginning to start to color up, and our peppers are only blossoming. Enjoy the vegetables of your labor!
Hooray! Dooley, you make me so jelous. A tom already. I only have a couple of flowers on my plants and they are not very tall either. It sounds like you had a good garden day all-round. I see your apron every day when I go to the cabinet to take out the garden bag. I am waiting for the day that I take it to the lottie and begin harvesting....but that's a ways off.I am only harvesting lettuce at the moment.
I just went out to the garden to help the bees so when I picked the stuff I had no apron to carry it and not even a basket. I had to make two or three trips to the deck with the stuff and then go get a basket to carry it. I do have an apron hanging just inside the back door. dooley
Tomato is a perfect bloom. Simply shake the plant to assist with pollination. Unless you are intentionally making hybrid tomato.
I'm happy for you but I'm green with envy! My neighbour's tomato plants are about 20 cm - 8 inches - tall and won't bear fruit for a couple of months at least, depending on the summer.
Thats early for a tomato but great news! You can also give them a gentle shake if you have a lot of plants to do rather than the q tip
And I've just set my tomato's out. It is still cold and wet here, yet I have to get them out ASAP. They're rootbound, and I don't have anything larger that quart pots to move them to, and they were already in those. The peppers are sitting on the deck awaiting some drier, warmer weather. I really hate gardening in the mud. 'Grats on the ripe tomato already.
I went out and watered this morning and picked one more tomato. It is bigger than the ones I picked the other day. I saw a couple more turning but not ready to pick. The cucumbers and peppers are too small to pick yet. The farmer from the market on Saturday gave me a basket of yellow summer squash. I shared it with neighbors on either side. I think tonight we will have asparagus and yellow squash, but maybe not in the same dish. I like to mix squash with onions and peppers and tomatoes and cover it with some sort of Italian cheese. Sometimes I stirfry the asparagus and sometimes I steam it in spears. I might cut the pork chops into strips and layer them under the cheese. I hope everyone can get their tomatoes in soon. Mine have been in since about the first of March. We've had a lot of 90 deg days since then. dooley
