Big Red Tomato

My tomato plants are dying. I have raised them from seeds. Some are taller than most my kids but their leaves are growing all sorts of unhealthy colours. I finally have some little yellow flowers, but not many.

It has been one of my life goals to produce a Big Red Tomato from a plant I have raised from a seed. I have had many setbacks over the years. Travelling alot hasn't done much for my endeavors, from absentee gardening to gardening in new climates. In Scotland in 2000 I was a pretty good joke in the local town as it is too cold there to get tomatoes from green to red outside. They thought it would be funny not to tell me this til they saw my defeat.  Tomatoes live "under glass" in Scotland.  I didn't know this, now I do. I have become more observant over the years and have talked to my neighbours about gardening. I am now moving them to a new location in the house, maybe good, maybe bad. They will be in my  face more so I won't forget them. The down side is that they will make my shame public.

There are certain bizarre goals I have like a big red tomato. Years ago I felt like it was important to "conquer the yeast". You know, to do it "my way" without the machines, expensive classes or meticulous behaviour. I am no longer afraid of yeast, yeast is my friend.

So now I am looking at my dying plants. I guess I am kinda stubborn (so thats where my kids get it). Even though I am in my 40s I dont want to give up just because I have never succeeded before in this area. I never want to stop learning and trying and growing til the day I die.

Comments

[Scott Ringo]

Harry Vetch is the secret. No not the person, but the substance. http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/tom/
You also have to pluck (not the RSS reader) the first flowers. http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s1-5-16-193,00.html

[Mark]

Even with a greenhouse that sad kind of thing happens to me occasionally...

[Karin]

I'm new to growing tomatoes myself and hubby hasn't been too successful preivoiusly in spite of living in the sunny (and much warmer) South of England. This year I've put 2 in a growbag with a pepper for company, but I have enclosed the growbag in a plastic tent, which consists of a thick wire frame and a zipped plastic cover. In spite of being on our sheltered patio it has needed good ballast when it got windy, mind. Anyway they look healthy so far, with a number of flowers. Hubby has pinched out the side shoots regularly. The greenpepper is not so happy as slugs and snails seem to find it rather tasty.

The photo seems to suggest your tomatoes are in smallish pots covered in plastic bags. If so I imagine their roots have become a bit cramped and they are not getting the best ventillation, but as I said, I'm no expert and I am managing to grow broad beans in less soil than I'd have imagined possible. I'm pretty sure tomatoes are uhappy in damp conditions with poor ventillation, though.

[Debbie]

Actually not in plastic (behind a window) but small pots. Will look for new pots today. I pinched off my much anticipated new yellow flowers (heartwrenching). What's this about side shoots? What defines a side shoot? I need to disect my poor tomato plants more?

[Karin]

Good advice on growing tomatoes can be found here http://www.hdra.org.uk/todo_now/veg_gard_now.htm
icluding a link to Tomato Troubles.

[Karin]

OK the link is http://www.hdra.org.uk/
todo_now/veg_gard_now.htm

obviously without any spacing.

[aola]

that big red tomato is going to taste so good

[Debbie]

you know it. Thank you for all your advice! Tomato update: I have yet to transplant to bigger pots. I need to figure out how to do this without them falling off the windowsill, as I have limited window space, but plan to do that today. The new location seems to have worked as the only ones that are now struggling are the ones I have left in the same room. My efforts at removing the flowers seem to have helped as I already have new buds coming up

[Kim]

Reading Big Red Tomato reminded me of why I love you. You hold on to dreams until they can be realized or God kindly requests they be let go. You never stop learning, and trying, and growing. You are a special kind of som'in'. I miss you.

[Kristine]

I'm smiling while reading this. For years I tried to make a gingerbread house from scratch at Christmas time. I was a kid and I'd bug my mom to let me try it. We tried to make a gingerbread house maybe 5 or 6 years in a row. Never once did I get it right. It would always fall apart. I could never get the frosting thick enough to hold it together. My goal was an edible yet beautiful gingerbread house. On my quest I drove my mom up the wall! A few years ago my mom bought me a gingerbread making kit for Christmas as an inside joke.
I do know what you mean though about having certain things you want to master. I have an on-going list of creative adventures that I want to try. The list alone will keep me going until I'm well over 100 years old!

[Debbie]

Kristine,I love that. I did a gingerbread house a few years ago with my kids. It did stick together but it was far from straight. My initial instinct was to make it tidy with perfect little rows of candy but the child in me won and it ended up a lot more "Gaudi" style with explosions of candy everywhere. We brought it to a party and the child in everyone, even the most proper, seemed to leap and it was devoured almost instantly. Thanks for reminding me.

I want to keep trying to master new things til the day I die because when I stop learning seems like the time I will stop living.

[Karin]

So what happened to your tomatoes? Is there a happy ending?

[Debbie]

Well, They seem to be thriving though not beautifully.I have small green tomatoes. I will be able to jump for joy if they will indeed turn red. I have had green tomatoes before but never before red.

[Marzela]

Hallo HuwiMuss efinach sagen geile Technik, geile Bilder. Bin völlig fasziniert von diesen Fotos. Grüsse Silvanp.s. Wir sehen uns am Mai-Tanz in Wittenbach.

[Katharina]

So Saccharomyces Boulardii is made use of particularly as piece of an
anti-fungal approach because of this inclination to assistance manage candida.
But this is no not long ago launched supplement, but a yeast with a lengthy and appealing record.

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