The current line up of survivors.

I put out a live trap for the squirrels, baited it with some of my Tennessee red seed peanuts and a picked off green tomato. I’ve subsequently had one day with zero squirrel attacks and a second day where a squirrel destroyed a few low hanging sweet 100s or sun sugar cherries just inside the nets. They really just bit into the tomatoes and then the tomatoes were resting there on the mulch inside the nets with teeth marks on the fruit.

The nets most definitely slow the squirrels down. They can’t randomly wander or easily get into the garden at their leisure and pick off tomatoes at will as has been in years past. The nets make them work hard for the fruit. The squirrels panic if they happen to get inside the nets as they cannot find their way out quickly and get trapped in the folds of netting. This has resulted in two squirrels early demise.

I can stand a trickle of losses to the squirrels and will give them that. Squirrel tax, worm tax, BER tax, cost of doing business. Squirrels were here first. But, when they get completely greedy, then the will be a Revolution and a war. When they took out five perfect and close to ripening Black Krim, that was too much to bear.

I’ll feed them all my peanut seed stock, I’ll buy more if need be or whatever they want as tribute just to protect my tomatoes if I cannot beat the squirrels on the battlefield. My tomatoes are under siege and the perimeter walls are battered, yet standing. Each side, me and my tomatoes and the squirrels have each had painful losses. We shall see how this conflict unfolds. There will be a large block of time today were the garden will unattended. I’m more than a little uneasy about this.

karstopography wrote: ↑Thu May 12, 2022 4:02 am I put out a live trap for the squirrels, baited it with some of my Tennessee red seed peanuts and a picked off green tomato.

I have 3 live traps in the lower garden. I don't use any bait, too much work for me to monitor and maintain the bait. They are curious creatures. I place the traps where I think they will travel. I catch about one or two per week, sometimes none depending on the season.

Haven’t caught any squirrels in the live trap. I did catch a young raccoon. The trap does seem to scare the squirrels from the area, they won’t go near it or my scarecrows. Squirrels have largely abandoned the garden ove the past few days. But, they have gotten a few sweet millions that set outside the net in the far corner of the garden today. A few cherry tomatoes lost to the squirrels is a win.

Anyway, I’m getting ripening tomatoes inside and we are eating a nice variety. Hoy and Kellogg’s Breakfast are impressing me with their size.

In spite of all the attrition to worms, squirrels, accidents and BER, some tomatoes still manage to make it inside. Things are picking up steam here.

The biggest ones are still out on the vines.

From (groan!) four (4) hardiness zones away: Jeepers @karstopography, I may not be alone on this, but I'm feeling like a kid outside a Candy Store...lookin' in...

The Gotch

Our consensus family favorite tomato of the season so far is Hoy. Very Meaty, good, deep tomato flavor, balanced, not too sweet or tart. They are a tall boxy tomato, not really a globe, though. Tall tomatoes slice better than the short, flat oblate types.

Productive enough and extra good size fruit. Strong stems to support the plus size fruit. Reasonable heat to better than average heat setting ability. Healthy plant, not prone to being fussy. Not overly sprawling, but has good foliage to protect tomatoes from sunscald.

I might have to give Hoy a try next year.

Just ordered some Hoy seeds. I might have time to try a couple plants this year. Now if I could just find some Crimson Crimson Crush seeds on this side of the pond.

Both Hoy and one of the Kellogg’s Breakfast in the background are each one pound, 8.7 ounces. One more Hoy on the vine that might challenge the ones just picked.

Likely will be the biggest tomato from the garden here in 2022. Biggest I’ve ever gotten inside without a squirrel getting it first. The variety is Hoy, from my only Hoy plant and so that one plant gave me two tomatoes over 1 1/2 pounds. Hoy isn’t done yet, there’s still tomatoes on it, I guess I’ll see what kind of stamina it has in our increasingly warm and humid weather.

Anyway, it’s been a fun year. Feels like I have found some traction on solutions to the various detrimental things that pop up, squirrels, BER, caterpillars, fertility, water, pruning, etc. Whatever the effort expended, I feel like it’s been worth it and there’s still a ways to go.

eeewww standing on tomatoes. Is that like stomping on grapes?

People do make tomato wine or so I have read. I don’t know if they stomp on them. I made a mustang grape pyment (honey based wine) and I didn’t stomp on the grapes, those acidic grapes would likely burn your toes off.

Seems like some places in Europe have big parties where everyone throws around and stomps on very ripe tomatoes . Here’s one in Spain. Btw, I like this way of relieving pent up tension over the usual invasions or other violent ways.
https://www.tomatofestivalspain.com/

120 tons of red tomatoes with 22,000 people stomping on them and slinging them at each other. Wonders never cease.

I've always said that Tomatina is the one Free-For-All in which I'd participate without a second thought.

The Gotch

Vanman wrote: ↑Mon May 30, 2022 7:42 am Just ordered some Hoy seeds. I might have time to try a couple plants this year. Now if I could just find some Crimson Crimson Crush seeds on this side of the pond.

The Hoy seeds arrived this morning. They are planted under grow lights in the basement next to the 3 inch tall plants for my second planting.

Tomatoes still chugging along. My one lemon boy has gotten a case of spider mites, but most everyone else is doing pretty well. BER is a trickle, squirrels mostly in check, I let them have a cherry tomato once in a while. Should be getting slicer tomatoes way into July, fingers crossed nothing unforeseen hits the plants, anyway, still plenty of small relatively new sets out there. Cherry types show no signs of giving up.

Most every tomato has been setting plenty of fruit this season. Once I get the soil dialed in on the two new beds, I believe BER will be back like it was the last three years, not even a factor.

Wow, @karstopography, foliage is still looking great. My plants are starting to show a fair amount of septoria, etc. So lots of leaves being pulled every day.
Are you spraying with anything?

I have sprayed liquid kelp, Bt, and some diluted foliar feeding. I haven’t sprayed any dedicated labeled fungicide, bactericide or anything along those lines. Maybe kelp gets sprayed every two weeks on the foliage.

Other than the spider mites in the one bed and mainly on the Lemon Boy, the tomatoes have been essentially pest and disease free. Most are open pollinated. Only two Carmello, one Big Beef, one Beefmaster, one Purple Boy, and one Lemon Boy, plus the cherries are hybrids. I’ve pruned off some worn out lower leaves on some.

Bt tames the caterpillars pretty effectively. I hand pick leaf footed bugs, the earlier instars, and smash those. I had a few earlier, but now those seem gone for the time being.

Still going strong here June 16th. All the tomatoes have fruit and some of the big types like Hoy, 1884, and Kellogg’s Breakfast are still setting some fruit. Kellogg’s Breakfast has a lot of fruit on the plant still so that would be sort of going against its reputation for low productivity. It’s hot enough to stop fruit set, but somehow they are finding a way. Fingers crossed, I’ll be picking some slicers in August. The lemon boy still has spider mites and I’ve done nothing to stop them other than pull leaves.

I’m pleased with my season. The earlier battles with BER, caterpillars, and squirrels have largely been resolved in my favor. Diseases seem to be in check or nonexistent. Getting more confidence with the perhaps fussier heirloom/OP types with each season.

Started some tomato seed today. What the heck, maybe I’ll do tomatoes this fall! Our county has transplants going in during August.

Momotaro, Carmello, Sungold, SOTW, Gold Medal, Rosella, Evil Olive, Persimmon among the mix.

The spring tomatoes are hanging in there so well maybe I won’t need to add any or many new plants for the fall. Oddly enough, still getting some flowers and a few sets on the slicers in spite of the temperatures.