Tomatoes

[nikkie]

Anyone elses plants flowering?

Anchovy - love your post!! Agree with you about the whole gardening language thing - I though doctors were bad with their secret language, and then I started gardening...

It's trusses not tresses, ks

Pincching out side shoots is v important - hope you're all doing that.

Pinching out tips and side shoots means that the plant diverts all its energy into the remaining 4/5 trusses and you get nice fat tomatoes (in theory)

KS - Am going to go and measure the circumference of my biggest tomato and report back

anyone else for a spot of competition?

OK have measured - it's just 8.1 cm in circumference

BTW am not an expert, just read this link to the BBC

the truss is just the stem/stalk/branch that the spray of flowers (soon to be tomatoes) grow on

Iota does this mean only 5 "bunches" of tomatoes per plant? (Sorry, am a bit of a tomato muppet!).
Think I have more than this already (swanky quantity not size emoticon).

I am going to use the gunky liquid that comes out of the bottom of my designer composting drum to feed my tomatoes. Can honestly say I feel like a cross between Barbara from the Good Life and Laura Ingalls Wilder!

Anchovy - have already confessed to not being an expert, but what little I know, I'm willing to share

just been looking at my trusses [ooh er missis]

I have between 12 and 30 flowers on each truss, so, with 4 x trusses each plant should produce between 148 and 120 tomatoes - seems plenty to me

48 not 148 -oops

I have at least 3 different type of tomato growing - not sure what they are - my mother (an expert tomato grower) gave me half a dozen plants and I've instantly forgotten what they are, and we grew some ourselves - some were beef tomatoes some were ordinary ones.

and then we got them all mixed up when we planted them, so I don't know which ones are which [shrug]

did I mention that we have 20 plants? - so that's between 960 and 2,400 tomatoes on their way - aaaaargh

Thanks for the link Iota - I'm growing tomatoes for the first time, and was wondering about pinching out etc. I've got a Gardener's Delight, and an Alicante cos I liked the names. They're both flowering but no fruits yet. I've also got a courgette plant which has loads of flowers, and a couple of tiddly courgettes so far. It's all very exciting!

I will keep you all posted (I'm sure you're all desperate to know how they do! )

Ah, Iota, I love your tomato insouciance. I am a true tomato amateur and am watching mine anxiously like a little Russian peasant woman with only her tomatoes to stand between her and scurvy this winter. Well those and the courgettes (unremarkable to date) and garlic.

Can we have a virtual vegetable show in late August? we can all submit pictures of our tomatoes and maybe a nice certificate for the winner!

sorry - just X posted with you Iota. 20 plants Are you going to be supplying your local supermarket?

Amiable. I now have courgette envy .

I have "money maker" brand tomatoes. I choose it because the name has good feng shui.

Anchovy - like the idea of a virtual veg contest - it'll be like an MN village fete. Maybe we could have other categories too - cakes, flowers etc...

I really do have too much time on my hands don't I?!

hello Amiable, was too busy doing my calculations to see your posts - I too have courgette envy - next year I'm going to grow lots of stuff (peppers for one)

ks - mine's probably grown since I measured it - perhaps I'll do it again, after you post your result

oh ks, you're in the lead

any other contenders?

forgot to say , yes let's have a harvest festival in late Aug and display the fruits of our labour