Anticipating the Tomatoes

Here on the farm all we can think about are tomatoes. OK maybe that's not entirely true; we also think a lot about weeds, the weather, and where exactly to put the baby. But what we're really eager for are the tomatoes. Since we planted our crops so late in the season, it seems everyone but us already has beautiful fruit on their plants. And if you were one of the many who took a gamble and put your plants in the ground early this year you got especially lucky. No late frost means many of you have have been enjoying vine-ripened tomatoes for weeks. Our day will come though. Our first bright orange Sungold Cherry Tomatoes started appearing last week and soon enough we'll be drowning in heirloom varieties as well. With about a hundred plants in the ground in Roswell and 600 on the Canton land, the days of hurry-up-and-get-here(!) should soon be replaced with overwhelming abundance.

While we wait on the tomatoes, the land here in Roswell has been busy producing lots of chard, summer squash, basil, and okra. The peppers, eggplant, melons, onions, potatoes, and herbs are taking off as well, while the carrots, beans, turnips, and beets are just getting started. The two crops we've been disappointed by are the cucumbers, which haven't really been producing, and also the kale...it seems to be a favorite among the flea beetles. Luckily we haven't had to battle the bugs too intensely so far this season (knock on wood). Joaquin's picked off a few potato beetles and squash bugs, but overall the plants seem healthy and happy.


The crops in Canton are, once again, bearing fruit a-plenty. Allan, Alex, and Mike built another impressive fence and spent long days planting the field alongside my mom. They work hard keeping up with the garden as well, but specifically those 600 tomato plants. That's a LOT of trellising!





So, where can you find us this year? We're still deciding on markets. We have a vegetable stand on the corner of our property in Roswell where we decided to sell last weekend. We'd like to set up produce there if not regularly, at least sporadically. I haven't had much luck in contacting the coordinator of Roswell's Riverside Market, so we may be looking into other nearby Saturday markets as an alternative. And like last year, once the tomatoes start rolling in, you'll find us at a Tuesday market as well. I'll keep you posted!

EGGS! Stop by the house and pick up a dozen at your convenience. 1595 Old Riverside Road. We'll be putting the eggs in the carport refridgerator daily as we collect them. $4 donations are welcome. If you feel like sending me an email before you stop by I'll reserve a dozen with your name on them. And we'd be happy to re-use your empty egg cartons.

Finally I'd like to thank everyone who comes out to Volunteer on Wednesday mornings. We are lucky enough to have a few regulars, whose company I greatly enjoy, and without whom the garden would be over-run by weeds. I can't thank you all enough for your help. And the animals are glad for their weekly visitors as well :)
There's always room for more! If you have Wednesday mornings from 9:30 - 11:30am available and you'd like to come out and spend a little time in the garden, we'd love to have you. See my Volunteer Day post for more information.

The Sungolds are Oscar-approved

Until next time...happy eating!

Jessica