Weekly Gardening Thread – 2009 Vol.9 – July 10

FreeRepublic | 7-10-2009 | Red_Devil 232

[Red_Devil 232]

Good morning to all of you gardeners. Toward the end of last weeks Gardening Thread there was a short discussion about saving Heirloom Tomato seeds. Many of you might have missed the information so I thought I would start this weeks thread on that topic.

[chris_bdba]

When I bought mine I knew I wanted a big one and spent the dollars to get one! Mine does 14 quarts at a time and now I wish I had the next size up. MIne is an All American. They are very pricey but there are no seals to wear out and every part on it can be replaced if I ever needed to replace it. MIne is now over a decade old and it still looks new except for the water marks inside.

[chris_bdba]

Thanks for the welcome. Yes our 88 tomato plats are growing like crazy. Small fruits so far but we normally don’t see anything before the end of July through mid August depending on variety.

I just figured out that when I ordered seeds I didn’t realize one of the breeds is a cherry tomato. :( I’m thinking I should still be able to dehydrate them? Peeling will probably be a challenge but hubby says he doesn’t care if there are peels in the cans so I’ll probably just use them like regular tomatoes too. I can’t believe I did this! I have about 40 cherry plants that are doing great. Oh well. :(

[JerseyJohn61]

WOW! 40 Cherries!

What type are they?

I’m wondering if a quick pare boiling and then the tedious
skinning process would even be worth while.

I wonder if anyone has a good recipe for blender salsa.
(wink)

Cherries can be very productive. Maybe a local farmstand
would be interested.

Yeah, late July is also when our late season types usually
start to roll in also. This year, because of the very cool,
cloudy mouth of June, everthing is running behind schedule.

JJ61

[chris_bdba]

The package says “Gardener’s Delight”. So far they have been tied up twice and are still growing so I am literally going to have tomaoes coming out of my ears. I’ve made salsa’s over the years and that is a good idea for them. I wish I had a better recipe though for something a little thicker than what I’ve made. I mkae more a fresh tomato salsa and can it I suspect that in order to get something thicker I need to cook it some?

[MtnClimber]

For canning, can you reuse the jars with new lids and rings?

[JerseyJohn61]

I have not grown Gardener’s Delight, but here is a description from Tomato Growers Supply Company’s ‘09 catalog:

This small fruited variety, also known as Sugar Lump,
rates high with gardeners for its big yields of
sugar sweet tomatoes. Crack resistant fruit is 3/4
to 1 1/2 inches across and arranged in clusters of 6
to 12. Indeterminate. 65 days.

I was thinking, unless you really love the taste of very sweet tomatoes, you may wish to blend some other tarter type variety(s) in with what ever sauce or salsa you may make.

This would give the sauce a fuller, richer Tom flavor, instead of a CANDY-LIKE paste that might result from all those very sweet cherries.

Just a thought.
JJ61

[thecodont]

This small fruited variety, also known as Sugar Lump, rates high with gardeners for its big yields of sugar sweet tomatoes. Crack resistant fruit is 3/4 to 1 1/2 inches across and arranged in clusters of 6 to 12. Indeterminate. 65 days.

I was thinking, unless you really love the taste of very sweet tomatoes, you may wish to blend some other tarter type variety(s) in with what ever sauce or salsa you may make.

This would give the sauce a fuller, richer Tom flavor, instead of a CANDY-LIKE paste that might result from all those very sweet cherries.

Can I chime in here?

I've grown lots of tomatoes, and you have just mentioned one of my favorites. It is sweet, yes, but has a full-bodied "old fashioned" tomato flavor.

I once brought some to a "tomato tasting" picnic. One older lady there was accompanied by her husband. He went from table to table, looking for that "old fashioned" tomato flavor, and when he tried Sugar Lump, he smiled and said "Yes, that's it."

[JerseyJohn61]

Good to know TCD, and thanks for your input with experience.

Keep us updated if you would Chris on you take on these cherries.

Thanks to both of you,
JJ61

[Red_Devil 232]

Yep! Yes you reuse the jars and the rings. New lids must be used every time, this is a must!

[tubebender]

Clean the used jars and rings in the dishwasher and dry the rings as good as you can to slow down the rust until you use them again. New lids are a must every year. I think Ball and Kerr have information on their web sites...

[Diana in Wisconsin]

I found some very good “How To” gardening videos at this site. Enjoy!

http://www.vegetablegardener.com/video

[Red_Devil 232]

I forgot to mention that once the jars have cooled and the lids have sealed I remove the rings, they are not needed on the jars anymore. I then store the rings in a large zip lock bag.

If you are going to "gift" the filled jars to someone I would leave the ring on.

[Red_Devil 232]

Wowza! That is a large canner. Looks and sounds like a top quality piece of equipment. I think I may just go with the 7 quart one. It is priced on the All American web site at $209.99. That is not to bad for something that will probably last me my life time!

Do you use it on your stove top?

[chris_bdba]

Yes I use it on top of my gas stove. IIRC they will work on any surface but be sure to check just incase you have a smooth top range. Also search online as there are other places where they are cheaper than the manufacturer’s site. LIke here:
http://www.pressurecooker-outlet.com/americancans.htm
IIRC,The 7 quart will only do pint jars so you need to move up to the 10 quart to do quart jars.

[chris_bdba]

That is exactly what I was thinking of doing just mixing them all together.tomatoes. I like to make and can stewed tomatoes so adding in onion, garlic, green peppers along with a little salt and maybe some basil will take some of the sweet away? With their size they should dehydrate fast too.

[Red_Devil 232]

I may have stated the capacity wrong. The one I am looking at says it has a capacity of 21 Quarts (liquid) or 19 pint jars or 7 quart jars. Same price on that link as on the Mfg's site.

19 pint jars is quite a lot. But I am thinking that what I would use the pressure canner for would be better canned in quart size jars.

[chris_bdba]

I went back and looked again and that is a good one. I do a lot of tomatoes so that is why I wanted the biggest I could afford at the time. They have went up a lot in price compared to what I paid for mine. I’m all about trying to make it as easy as possible and as fast as I can. I actually hate canning but love the results so if I can make the grumpy mood go away quicker it is a good thing. :)

[tubebender]

CHECK OUT THIS WEB SITE FOR HUNDREDS OF HEIRLOOM TOMATOES. http://rareseeds.com/ I just heard him on a garden show on the radio. You might want to ping those interested in good tasting Maters

We bought our All American at our local ACE hardware store if you would like to “kick the handles”.

[Red_Devil 232]

I understand your dislike for canning! Me Too! It is something that takes planning and a lot of time and the tomato and other plants out in the garden are not going to cooperate. Gees you would think that they would understand!

[Red_Devil 232]

We had an ACE hardware store just up the road a few years ago but they closed. There is not one left in my State!