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1) Editor's Comments:Now that Tom is back from vacation, we can again resume sending Green Thumb Times to all our valued subscribers. Glad to be back with you. Since it is tomato transplanting time, thought it would be a good idea to have our main article focusing on tomatoes. As always, if you do have questions, suggestions or ideas, do not hesitate to drop us a note. Rex Gregor Tom Krueger 2) What's Ripe in Tomato News?Did you know that United States is the largest producer of TOMATOES in the world?
** New Varieties: Today's increased understanding of genetics has allowed plant breeders to develop exotic new varieties. Literally hundreds of varieties are being developed. Tomatoes now come in all colors. "White" is a fruit with a pure white flesh. "Pink Grapefruit" is a yellow tomato with a pink flesh. "Liberty Bell" is a bright red tomato great for stuffing because the fruit is hollow. Unfortunately some of the newer varieties are proving to be the same tomato with different names. ** Fertilizing Tips: Latest research has shown that the "pop-up" fertilizers (start-up fertilizers) are very helpful. Tomatoes DO NOT need, nor require much nitrogen. It is rarely necessary to side-dress tomatoes. If you have poor soil, a single side-dressing using a 10-52-17 will help the plant along. It should be noted that tomatoes DO NOT DO WELL when a high nitrogen content is used. You will end up with beautiful foliage but no fruit! ** Starting Off Right: I prefer to start my tomato seeds in compost. It is not unusual that tomato seeds will germinate in five to seven days. I let them grow until the plant reaches about fourteen to sixteen inches. No doubt they will be quite leggy by this time. When the garden soil temperature reaches about 55 degrees I transplant them outdoors. I prefer to trench the plant in the ground. I trench a hole about fourteen to sixteen inches long and about two to three inches deep. I fertilize with a pint of 10-52-17 "start up fertilizer." I then cover the root and stem with dirt. I am careful not to break the stem when I cover the plant. Leave about four inches of the plant sticking out of the ground. The plant will develop a root system all along the stem you have laid in the trench. This encourages a very strong root system. The fruit of a tomato contains nearly 90% water thus it needs to have a good root system to take up enough water. The use of black plastic ground mulch is recommended. It will not only enhance early growth and yield, but it helps to control weeds, conserve moisture, and increase ground temperature - tomatoes are a warm weather plant. I'd suggest not using straw or grass clippings because it may encourage mice and grasshoppers to inhabit your tomato patch. ** Solving Problems: One of the most irritating problems with tomatoes is Blossom End Rot. Blossom End Rot is a leathery lesion that forms on the blossom end on the fruit. It causes the fruit to shrink and develop misshapen forms. Most often the fruit will rot on the stem. Blossom End Rot is caused by a calcium deficiency in the soil aggravated by widely fluctuating moisture conditions, as well as excess nitrogen. My Grandmother used to crush her egg shells and place them in the hole when planting her tomatoes. She claimed to never have a problem with Blossom End Rot. For more information about growing tomatoes please refer to our Tomato Cultural Information Page: http://rexseedco.com/Information.html ** Choosing What to Grow: Because tomatoes are a very popular garden crop many seed companies copyright the names of the tomato seeds they sell. They then obtain a license from the patent holder to sell those seeds under the copyright name. I suppose there is nothing wrong in doing that because they want to set their seeds apart from a competitor.
GOLIATH: This is an excellent all around tomato. It has a luscious fruit that is wrinkle free and disease resistant. (VS570) ENGLISH SUNGOLD: In my opinion this bite size fruit is the best tasting yellow tomato out there. Excellent in salads. (VS570) HEINZ: This tomato was developed by the famous catsup people. It is excellent for canning, making purees, and sauces. (VS710) ITALIAN TREE TOMATO: This tomato plant needs to be trellised. It will grow more than six feet tall and produce up to two or three bushels of fruit on a single plant. It is excellent for a small garden. It needs lots of sun. (VS750) AMISH PASTE TOMATO: This old time paste tomato has been grown by the Amish people for nearly a hundred years. It can't be beat! (VS770) GRAPE TOMATOES: This tomato is a miniature fruit that grows in clusters like grapes. It is very tasty and will actually produce hundreds of tiny delicious tomatoes. Excellent for salads. (GO82) To create a colorful tasty salad plate I suggest that you might want to plant a few tomatoes for their novelty and color interest.
Happy Gardening! 3) Humor for Today:A sweet little boy surprised his grandmother one morning and brought her a cup of coffee. He made it himself and he was so proud. Anxiously, he waited to hear the verdict. The grandmother in all her life had never had such a bad cup of coffee. As she forced down the last sip, his grandmother noticed three of those little green army guys were in the bottom of the cup. She asked, "Honey, why would three of your little army men be in the bottom of my cup?" Her grandson replied, "You know grandma, it's like on TV. 'The best part of waking up is soldiers in your cup'." 4) Fiber is Important for Men:
It is also important that we consume a variety of foods containing fiber. Fiber comes in both soluble and insoluble form. To help reduce our blood cholesterol level we need soluble fiber -- this helps to bind the cholesterol in the digestive tract. The fiber found in whole grains and vegetables is insoluble fiber. This is the fiber we typically think of which helps keep us, should I say, regular. 5) Lemon Basil:This may be something you might like to try.
We suggest you plant a lemon basil plant within a couple feet of your tomato plants (any variety of tomato). Hard to believe, but your tomato fruits will develop a very slight lemon taste. Your tomatoes will loose their acid taste with just a hint of a lemon taste. In addition, should you have a white fly problem, you'll see those pesky insects disappear - they do not like the smell of the basil. Tell your friends that you learned this from Rex's Seedco. 6) Protecting Children & the Internet:
Unfortunately, every family's definition of an undesirable site can be different. What you think appropriate, I might find objectionable, and vice versa. I think we can all agree though, there are certain sites which should be totally avoided. We've discovered a site you may want to check out to learn more about what you can do to protect children. It is called the Internet Content Rating Association. You can visit their site at: http://www.rsac.org/parents.html Hope you will find some useful information. 7) Peonies Not Blooming?As the growing season moves along and if you've divided and moved your peonies in the past couple years, you may notice they aren't blooming. Here are some things to consider on why this might be the case. The best light for peonies is full sun, but they will tolerate light shade as long as they get from four to six hours of sun a day. If there is too much shade, or there is too much competition from nearby tree roots, you may see fewer blooms. Peonies prefer well drained soil with a pH of 6.8 to 7.2. Heavy soil is disastrous to peony roots because of root rot. Same can be said for a location with sitting water. Now, if you are thinking about dividing or moving peonies this year, the best time to do so is in late August through October. To help in future blooming, your divisions should have three to five buds or growing points. Be certain not to bury the crown deeper than two inches below the soil surface because this could also impact future blooms. 8) Subscribe/UnsubscribeThis newsletter, the Green Thumb Times, is sent out only to those who have requested a FREE subscription by signing up at http://rexseedco.com or specifically asked to be added PRIVACY: Your email address is held in the strictest of privacy. It is never traded or sold to anyone else. To subscribe to The Green Thumb Times To unsubscribe Rex Gregor, Editor Tom Krueger, Publisher Please feel free to forward The Green Thumb Times to a friend. Rex’s Seedco has searched the world for quality
growers of garden seeds. Many of these farmers bring together ancient
wisdom and modern science so people everywhere may have good health
and enjoyment in life. We are dedicated to providing the best wherever
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Here are
some quick facts... It is estimated that each person eats 20 lbs. of
fresh tomatoes and 75 lbs. of processed tomatoes each year. About 40
million people plant and grow tomatoes every year.
I know
several friends who absolutely insist the tomato they grow be the best
in the world, better than their neighbor's. Meanwhile, their neighbor
grows exactly the same variety under a different name. They both claim
their tomato is the best variety!
How
many men are getting enough fiber? If I had to hazard a guess I'd say
not enough. Most Americans do not get enough fiber. The statistics we've
seen show that the American male only consumes about one-half their
daily recommended fiber (25 grams per day).
Lemon Basil
is an herb that has a lemony fragrance. It is an excellent garden plant
that will grow most any place. If you would like an opportunity to grow
something new and different, lemon basil may do the trick.
Everyone
continues to hear about concern with the Internet and our children and
grandchildren. To keep children safe as they surf, we need as much information
as possible about undesirable sites.