Garden Wisdom Blog — tomato

Blossom end rot is one of the most common complaints for tomato growers, particularly on plants grown in containers. It’s a complex problem that results from calcium not being available to the plants as the ovary at the base of the flower is fertilized and begins to develop into a tomato. It is very typical in plants that are in soil that is alternately dry and then wet. That fluctuation means that even if calcium is present, it is not consistently available to the plant. Another contributing factor is the use of high nitrogen fertilizers, which cause rapid growth, placing...

It is thought that there are over three thousand heirloom tomatoes in cultivation, from the very well known Black Krim to the rather more obscure Sibirskiy Skorospely (Early Siberian). With modern bred open pollinated and hybrid varieties, the number is more like fifteen thousand types. So, how to choose a tomato can seem daunting for the beginner gardener. It’s a subject that experienced tomato growers can grow highly passionate over. Everyone has their favourite types, and all for different reasons. Just about every tomato has its own unique charms, but where does one start? There are several ways to narrow...

CSAs represent one of the ways that small organic farmers are changing the way we think about food, the way we access food, and how we, as consumers, participate with food production. CSA stands for Community-Supported Agriculture, and we’ve talked about this before. The basic idea is that a farm sells shares in its produce early in the season. The shareholders are guaranteed boxes of fresh produce from the farm to be picked up at regular (usually weekly) intervals. Sometimes the farmer arranges to have the shares delivered to central pickup spots like farmers’ markets. Farm Box Pickup   The...