[jaydig]

Crimson Crush have been cropping for a week or two now, with two to three ripe fruit almost every day. In the greenhouse, Apero have been the first to crop, just a few each day, and now the Santorini and Orange Beauty are ripening one or two at a time.  The question I have is this, at the risk of looking stupid:  I am growing a small, green tomato, which may, or may not be ripening. How do I know when a green tomato is ripe enough to eat?  I didn't think about this when I decided to grow several different colours to make salads look more interesting.

[mumofstig]

Doing quite well.  The set seems good, just hope the weather holds to ripen them.

Ooh! They look lovely 

[wolveryeti]

Not great - had to pull a whole bed last week when I found it riddled with early blight.  Now v. paranoid about the other bed I have, hacking off any withered bits. Garden toms still looking OK thankfully - all toms green tho - nothing ripe yet!

[Subversive_plot]

Not great - had to pull a whole bed last week when I found it riddled with early blight.  Now v. paranoid about the other bed I have, hacking off any withered bits. Garden toms still looking OK thankfully - all toms green tho - nothing ripe yet!

Wolveryeti, best of  luck getting the blight under control!  Removing those withered bits is a good idea.

[Subversive_plot]

I only grow them outdoors and all the cordons are at least a foot shorter than previous years.  I've had a few ripe Blush Tigers with plenty to come, a couple of Orange Banana but they're suffering with BER as is the Green Zebra which is slow and I've pinched out the tips.  No ripe sunbabies but lots of fruit.  Two Romas that are doing their thing and a San Marzano which will no doubt bear lots of green tomatoes, I won't bother next year with it.  The Black Cherry got blight and was binned, I had one tomato of it 

Hasbeans, see if you can get calcium nitrate fertilizer for your BER problem. BER is often related to calcium deficiency while the vegetation and tomatoes are growing. I stopped growing tomatoes for a few years due to BER until I realized that this was the problem (crazy commute/work schedule was also part of the reason for not gardening, but I digress).  If you are raising up your plants in gallon plus pots, try adding a tablespoon per gallon of lawn lime (pelleted dolomitic limestone) to your compost and aging that a day or two before potting.

[Subversive_plot]

"I want to try finding seeds of that Piccolo F1 cherry plum if they are available here"

I buy them here, they will probably send them out to you.
seedsofitaly.com

I do appreciate the information on the seed source.  Unfortunately, their shipping policy on the website currently states shipments only to the UK and to some EU countries, under review.  I will bookmark that website. Who knows? Their shipping policy could change.

[Gardener and Rabbit]

Balconi Red are just starting to turn, but the plants haven't grown as well as previous years and the crop will be smaller.  The Tiny Tims look healthy enough but are certainly tiny, both in height and crop at the moment!

G&R

[Gardener and Rabbit]

Tiny Tim...

[Growster...]

Doing quite well.  The set seems good, just hope the weather holds to ripen them.

Auntie, are you using flower buckets here? That's a good idea!

There was some discussion about them here some time back, and I'm interested to know if they're still available from Twongos and the like!

You have a great crop though, I like that way to get toms going, and always do this but with pots in trays, which can take up a lot of room! This year, outside, I'm trying two plants per 10" pot, so we have two lots of 16 plants going, (8 per tray, four trays). The big question/quandary/quality etc, at the moment is yield per sq.ft., when there's not a lot of space, but that's the 'nerd' talking...

[jambop]

Well last year as I said earlier it was wet and some of my beef toms were ridiculously large over a kg in some cases but nearly all over 500g ... but the flavour was poor. This year bone dry and they are much smaller first two off are 650g and 350g so will be interesting to see how they taste tonight in a salad. I am hoping for more taste as they are smaller.


Edit
Taste is better than last year! Weather has changed today 36C yesterday today 26C and very overcast with some drizzly rain...plants will have to be sprayed!

[AlaninCarlisle]

Fantastic crop of Alicante and Moneymaker. Can't venture into greenhouse without eating one straight off the vine. Can you overdose on tomatoes?

[Aunt Sally]

Auntie, are you using flower buckets here? That's a good idea!

No,  MrG, they are flower pots.  I plant the young plants low in the pot and earth the stem up in ring culture rings as the grow.  The toms then produce more root from the stems. 
 

[hasbeans]

Hasbeans, see if you can get calcium nitrate fertilizer for your BER problem. BER is often related to calcium deficiency while the vegetation and tomatoes are growing. I stopped growing tomatoes for a few years due to BER until I realized that this was the problem (crazy commute/work schedule was also part of the reason for not gardening, but I digress).  If you are raising up your plants in gallon plus pots, try adding a tablespoon per gallon of lawn lime (pelleted dolomitic limestone) to your compost and aging that a day or two before potting.

I've two plants to 50l or one plant to 35l.  I've mainly stuck to Roma in the past and never had a problem with BER.  Next year I'm trying several different sauce tomatoes and will definitely be adding some calcium to the pots.  Ta

[Growster...]

Auntie, are you using flower buckets here? That's a good idea!

No,  MrG, they are flower pots.  I plant the young plants low in the pot and earth the stem up in ring culture rings as the grow.  The toms then produce more root from the stems.

Thanks Auntie! I like that!

Not surprising that you're getting a bumper crop! Feeding is a doddle too!

[OakR]

Th earliest ones we've had so far were sown in late Feb, and are The Amateur in the GH, an unknown pink variety in the GH and another unknown yellow variety (similar to yellow pear) which is very prolific on small plants. Pink and yellow toms mentioned above in photo below with a Green Zebra.

Have also got a few black russians, and more coming through. Have 2 spanish varieties called Picon (an Oxheart type in photo below) which is delicious (only 2 toms so far!) and a pinkish beefsteak one called rosa which is also brilliant (only 1 tom so far).

Quite a few sungold coming through as well.

My kids love the unknown pink and yellow ones, and my wife the larger type ones so it's all good in our house apart from I am eating less of them than everyone else!