This site is an archive of ChiotsRun.com. For the latest information about Susy and her adventrures, visit the Cultivate Simple site.
Thank you for all your support over the years!

I Spy Something Exciting!

June 26th, 2010

Earlier this week while tying up tomatoes I spotted a tiny green tomato. Oddly enough I posted last year on June 22 about spotting baby tomatoes. Seems that even though I started my tomatoes earlier last year, this warm spring has made my tomatoes very productive. It is the same variety of tomato as the first last year, it’s a Zapotec Pleated Tomato.

I don’t think I’ll be getting my first ripe one on July 6 like I did last year. I don’t have any cherry tomatoes this year. I must remember to start some each year for early tomatoes. Perhaps I’ll also try starting my Sub-Arctics in January and put them outside in April in order to get tomatoes as early as possible.

Any tiny tomatoes in your garden yet?

24 Comments to “I Spy Something Exciting!”
  1. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by mark mile, Susy Morris. Susy Morris said: I Spy Something Exciting! http://goo.gl/fb/WodHA #edible #tomato #tomatoes […]

    Reply to Tweets that mention I Spy Something Exciting! | Chiot’s Run — Topsy.com's comment

  2. tj on June 26, 2010 at 8:29 am

    …I know. There’s an art to getting early tomatoes and I want it. :o) I see people put there tomatoes out early then protect ’em with walls o’ water, straw bales, etc… a lotta work it seems but worth it I guess in the end… :o)

    …Our first tomato is about the size of a baseball and slowly turning. Our other plants have lots o’ tomatoes on ’em, all small yet but we’re waiting on that one. lol…

    …Blessings… :o)
    .-= tj´s last undefined ..If you register your site for free at =-.

    Reply to tj's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:04 am

      Yes, I refuse to use wall-o-waters and that kind of thing. I do have a cold frame that I may try planting in, but generally I fill it with lettuce and spinach, which we love eating in the spring.

      I am going to try planting some Sub-Arctic tomatoes early to see at what temp they will set fruit.

      Cherry, currant and other tiny tomatoes are really the best bet for an early tomato crop for those of us that live in colder climates. They ripen quickly since they’re so small.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  3. Teresia on June 26, 2010 at 8:33 am

    I have LOTS of green tomatoes… but havent gotten a red one yet. I think the excessive rain we have had has put a damper on the ripening.
    In one night we got 3.5 inches of rain.
    I thought my garden was going to drown.
    Keeping my fingers crossed the I dont get any blossom end rot, or anything else rotting in the ground.
    Mother Nature is a force to be reckoned with.

    Reply to Teresia's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:05 am

      Yes, it’s been hot here, but lots of rainy gray cloudy days, which does seem to put a hold on the ripening. I guess tomatoes are like gardeners, they like a little vitamin D to get them going.

      I think mother nature likes to remind us that we’re not in control :)

      Reply to Susy's comment

  4. Justin on June 26, 2010 at 9:25 am

    I have 3 or 4 green ones on my “Early Girl” plant that are slowly creeping up to their max size. The plant is in good shape–nice and bushy and ready to support fruit. I had excellent luck with this variety last year on a 3rd-story balcony in a pot with a cold, rainy spring. The fruits were small but it was productive. This year, it’s in a picket-fence garden that gets quite a bit of sun and it’s doing just as well. I hope it’s a good producer. I’m not a huge fan of fresh tomatoes but I love a fresh diced slightly-cooked “tomato sauce” over pasta with some basil as a summer dish.

    My other tomato plants are doing well–mostly San Marzano’s for canning. I’m crossing my fingers! I’d love nothing more than to have quarts and quarts of home-canned tomatoes and sauce this year. One plant has a few funky-shaped fruits already on it. The rest are chugging along.

    I love seeing the garden start to produce…
    .-= Justin´s last blog ..When Did Marketability Overtake Reliability =-.

    Reply to Justin's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:06 am

      I must try growing ‘Early Girl’ some year.

      I can hardly wait for fresh tomato sauce over homemade pasta – delicious!

      I’m also super excited about ‘San Marzano’ for canning. I’ve spotted a few teeny tiny fruits on a few of those plants.

      Reply to Susy's comment

      • sarah on June 26, 2010 at 3:27 pm

        We are growing (1st time) San Marzano – we can’t wait either!
        .-= sarah´s last blog ..Garden Pictures June 2010 =-.

        to sarah's comment

  5. Kjirsti on June 26, 2010 at 9:40 am

    So funny. I just posted something nearly identical to this this morning before visiting your blog. They look beautiful!
    .-= Kjirsti´s last blog ..Autumnal beauty all summer long =-.

    Reply to Kjirsti's comment

  6. Janice on June 26, 2010 at 10:06 am

    We’ve harvested 1 small tomato this season and there are 2 more on the plant that are ready to eat. We only have a few plants this year, but it looks like there will be enough to eat fresh every day… probably not enough for canning though.

    ITM!
    .-= Janice´s last blog ..Training for the Tour de Fleece =-.

    Reply to Janice's comment

  7. tom alphin on June 26, 2010 at 10:09 am

    I went a little crazy and started all my tomatoes in January. (I live in Seattle.) I was sure to transplant them into larger pots as needed, and some of the plants reached 4 feet tall indoors. I even got my first ripe cherry tomatoes about a month ago, even though the plants were only going outside fron 9am-5pm. Very funny.

    Now most are planted outdoors which has made them grow thicker and more vigorous, but the tomatoes themselves have been slow to form.
    .-= tom alphin´s last blog ..Energy Efficient Water Heater =-.

    Reply to tom alphin's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:00 am

      Yes, tomatoes won’t set fruit until the temperature remains at above 50 from what I read. You could try planting a few varieties early like Sub Arctic which is supposed to set fruit at a much lower level than regular tomatoes.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. deedee on June 26, 2010 at 10:37 am

    i’ve been so busy + we’ve had so much rain that i haven’t been in the garden for about a week… sounds like i have lots of work to do today! you can bet the first thing i’m doing when i get out there is to check out the tomatoes!

    Reply to deedee's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:08 am

      We’ve been having so much rain off & on here as well. It’s kind of all or nothing. Tons of rain for a week so you can’t work outside, and then nothing for a week or two. Hopefully all this rain will help provide a nice harvest of tomatoes this fall.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  9. Miranda on June 26, 2010 at 10:59 am

    I thrilled the husband last night with his favorite naughty dinner: marinated tomatoes and mozzarella on chiabatta bread. I made neither the cheese nor the bread, but the bread was fresh, the cheese melty, and the tomatoes and basil plucked freshly from the garden. SO good!
    Congratulations on your tomato babies. May they grow robust and flavorful and avoid incidents with hornworms or stink bugs!
    .-= Miranda´s last blog ..Veggie Burgers on Natural Buns =-.

    Reply to Miranda's comment

    • Susy on June 26, 2010 at 11:02 am

      That sounds delish. I love tomatoes sliced and drizzled with olive oil, freshly ground pepper, good sea salt and some diced fresh basil. MMMMM, what could be better on a hot summer day???

      Reply to Susy's comment

  10. Christine on June 26, 2010 at 11:41 am

    Our tomato season is over! We’re in florida, so I don’t even think it was February before we had them rolling in. It’s sad it was over so soon, but we have a few jars of homemade ketchup and memories of tomato sandwiches to hold on to.
    .-= Christine´s last blog ..Making radish chips- =-.

    Reply to Christine's comment

  11. Kelly on June 26, 2010 at 11:53 am

    Yay, Zapotecs! They’re one of my absolute favourites. Mine are just starting to form flower buds, I won’t be seeing any for a while yet thanks to the wet, cool spring we’ve had. But I do have some ‘Tiny Tim’ fruiting, and I think the ‘Stupice’ won’t be far behind. I cannot WAIT for my fresh tomatoes. I look forward to them all winter.
    .-= Kelly´s last blog ..A New Thing =-.

    Reply to Kelly's comment

  12. sarah on June 26, 2010 at 3:13 pm

    That is very exciting! I hope you have a very productive tomato year :) You had a warm Spring? Lucky you! We are still dealing with cooler temps and I think our tomatoes are showing it. Your pictures are beautiful – I really enjoy and look forward to reading your posts!
    .-= sarah´s last blog ..Garden Pictures June 2010 =-.

    Reply to sarah's comment

  13. Amy on June 26, 2010 at 8:13 pm

    Of the 14 gifted tomato plants I received from a greenhouse-cleaning friend, 13 ended up to be ‘Sungold’ cherry tomatoes. I was so cherry-tomatoed out last year that I didn’t plant any this year. I may regret that, too, as all but my ‘Cherokee Purple’ seedlings seem to be falling victim to early blight due to all our Washington rain and cold. :(
    .-= Amy´s last blog ..Another shade of green =-.

    Reply to Amy's comment

  14. MAYBELLINE on June 26, 2010 at 9:26 pm

    Not many tiny tomatoes. They are really beefing up.
    .-= MAYBELLINE´s last blog ..Strawberry Moon =-.

    Reply to MAYBELLINE's comment

  15. Turling on June 26, 2010 at 9:59 pm

    It looks like a tiny pumpkin. You sure it’s a tomato? Boy, that would be embarrassing.

    Reply to Turling's comment

  16. Rose on June 27, 2010 at 3:13 am

    My Hungarian Heart toms are setting small fruit! The pear tomatoes haven’t been quite so productive as it’s just too hot for them (in england, of all places!) and will be getting hotter soon. I’m really having to water in earnest at the moment to keep the plants from shrivelling as we’re going through a dry spell, the words “drought” are too panic inducing here in Britain but we’re having the hottest temps we’ve had since I came here.

    Still, looks to be great for toms and I may get a decent harvest for the first time in ages provided I can keep them from frying in the heat. I don’t think I actually needed their mini-growhouses this year, so now the issue is keeping them from overheating rather than underheating.
    .-= Rose´s last blog ..A boy with a dog =-.

    Reply to Rose's comment

  17. Seren Dippity on June 27, 2010 at 9:08 am

    I’ll be harvesting the last of our tomatoes over the next week or so as they finish up. This is my third year of gardening and the first time I’ve actually gotten a successful tomato crop. Needless to say, I’m so thrilled! We’ve been eating tomatoes like candy. I have spaghetti sauce in the freezer and today I’m putting up tomato soup. I have more tomato seedlings started to plant in a couple of weeks and with luck we’ll get a fall crop too. Happiness is a fresh tomato!

    Reply to Seren Dippity's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

Admin
Read previous post:
Oregon Sugar Pod Peas

This year I'm also growing 'Oregon Sugar Pod II' peas. I really like sugar pods, I always feel like they're...

Close