I Will Grow Eggplants: Mid-Summer Update Part II

Continuing the Mid-Summer Update with pictures of the tomato plants' progress, some more flowers, and Little Lou. (Click on pictures if you wish to enlarge them.)

Bellestar - I grew this variety once, a number of years ago, and the results were less than stellar. The plants were spindly and production low. I decided to give it another try because, in addition to being a Canadian heirloom, it is described as being a good paste and canner that also tastes good fresh (many pastes do not). What a different experience this time! The plants are compact, sturdy, and loaded with tomatoes.

Dwarf Speckled Heart - These were grown for the first time last year and the plants were sturdy and productive. They are doing well again this year, though the plants are a bit smaller, likely because they are growing in pots rather than in a raised bed.

Dwarf Arctic Rose - this is my first time growing this variety. There are two in a raised bed and several in buckets and pots. The plants are very compact and have the ruffled ("rugose") foliage typical of many dwarf varieties. The plants all have put out a few small tomatoes. It's an early variety, but they seem to just be getting started.

Dwarf Audrey's Love - Last year, I was able to obtain 5 seeds to grow. I started 3 and of those, only 1 survived to make it into the garden. My main goal was to save seeds to grow out this year, so I wasn't all that concerned about tomato production or how glorious the plants did - or did not - look. Mission accomplished, and this year, I have several Dwarf Audrey's Love growing. They are compact, sturdy, have rugose leaves, and look like they will be fairly productive. Two are growing in a raised bed and the rest are in pots. A few little tomatoes have appeared; it is just getting going.

Early Annie - Holy smokes! Early Annie has always been a dependable, early, productive variety, but this year, it is really outdoing itself. The plants are loaded with tomatoes and there are plenty more to come. I actually had to tie some of the side branches to the tomato cages so they won't snap in a few weeks' time from the weight of the tomatoes. If they continue to develop well, I will be able to finally make some green tomato chow chow, something I have wanted to do for years.

Fisher's Earliest Paste - These are planted in the East garden this year. The plants are determinate, but sprawling, making them hard to stake/support. (It also makes getting a clear picture of the plants challenging.) These tomatoes were wonderful for making sauce and dehydrate well. Looking forward to a bumper crop.

Principe Borghese - a variety I grow almost every year. It is so productive, hardy, and dependable. Great for dehydrating or for adding to salads. There are loads of tomatoes on the plants already. This is the first time I have grown them in pots (rather than in deep raised beds), but they seem to be doing just fine.

Moskvich - This is one of the first tomato varieties I ever grew. I had little experience gardening, so planted them in an area that didn't have adequate sun. Production was low, so I concluded that maybe the variety wasn't as outstanding or prolific as the online descriptions said it was. I wanted another early red variety, so decided to give Moskvich another try. Suffice to say that, given the right amount of sunshine, it performs well! The plants (though semi-determinate?) are taller than some of my indeterminate varieties. The plants are loaded with flowers and have already developed some tomatoes. Moskvich is described online as being very tasty for an early variety. I can't wait to see if this is the case!

Indigo Pear Drops - second time growing these. The plants are full of flowers and several tomatoes have begin to develop. It's neat to see the tomatoes are dull purple rather than the usual pale green. The plants are somewhat sprawling this year, so I had to tie some of the side branches to the tomato cages.

Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye - these plants are healthy and producing tomatoes, some of them are already a good size. PBTD isn't a high producer, but the tomatoes are pretty, early, and flavourful.

Marina's Praise - This is their first year in our garden. The plants are sprawling and the foliage is on the wispy side. The foliage is variegated, but it is more obviously so when the plants are younger. Some of the variegated colour can still be spotted on the leaves, though. It looks like this will be a moderately productive variety. The flavour is supposed to be delicious, though, so that is a fair trade-off.

Katja - This is Katja's first year in the garden. So far, it is living up to the positive descriptions I have read online. It is semi-determinate (only about 2.5 -3 feet tall, but a bit bushy) and produces large pink beefsteaks. It is an early producer and the tomatoes are apparently quite flavourful despite being early. Katja was the first in the garden to produce tomatoes this summer, and it has the largest tomatoes right now of any variety.

Orange-1 - This is the first year growing this variety. According to descriptions, it is semi-determinate, productive, and sweet with a globe to slightly oblate shape. The plant is similar in size and habit to Katja.

Little Lou followed me around the garden while I pruned tomatoes, watered the garlic, and weeded. She needed a rest after all that supervising, and thought the warm top of a water barrel would be a nice place to do so.