Hubby and I tasted some tomatoes side by side and Rose De Berne was the winner. A lucious pink about tennis ball sized. Pictured here next to a Costoluto Genovese.

Ella did you like it? I think you grew it this year right?

[IMG]http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160810/7e5e41863d27d6f6820e0b0196b2609a.jpg[/IMG]

Ginny

I am growing it. I do like the taste. They resemble Eva Purple Ball by the taste and size, but they are not the same variety. I grew EPB few years ago and its fruits were easy to fall off the stem, I learned not to touch them until ready to pick.
I picked 8.6 pounds of Rose De Berne so far. Good producer. In July I picked about 3.5 pounds and the rest since that. The only concern I have is its size. In my garden they are on average 3.8 ounces, Tatiana's website has it at 6-8, rareseeds.com at 4-8. So my are a bit smaller. They are next to Daniel's, that is averaging 9.988 ounces. So, you can not blame soil or sun.
How are they for you?

[QUOTE=efisakov;586062]I am growing it. I do like the taste. They resemble Eva Purple Ball by the taste and size, but they are not the same variety. I grew EPB few years ago and its fruits were easy to fall off the stem, I learned not to touch them until ready to pick.
I picked 8.6 pounds of Rose De Berne so far. Good producer. In July I picked about 3.5 pounds and the rest since that. The only concern I have is its size. In my garden they are on average 3.8 ounces, Tatiana's website has it at 6-8, rareseeds.com at 4-8. So my are a bit smaller. They are next to Daniel's, that is averaging 9.988 ounces. So, you can not blame soil or sun.
How are they for you?[/QUOTE]
Ella,

I just weighed them and the largest in the picture is 5 ounces and smallest is 2.2 ounces so not so big. I am growing just one plant of it this fall because to me it taste better than other early ones i have tried like Stupice and Jaune Flamme but just as productive. Since it is smaller and so productive its a good early one to share with neighbors while the others are still waiting to ripen... :-)

Was yours early also?

Ginny

It was not the first to ripen. Black varieties were earliest this year.

Grightmire's Pride was earliest pink, as far as I remember. Are you growing it? It is tasty and productive too.
Rose De Berne was more midseason for me.

Yes I cant wait to try GP. Marsha sent me seeds last year and twice (last fall and this past spring) i have started the seeds and then had something happen. Long story but looking forward to trying it this go round. Maybe i should just go with 3 or 4 GP and skip Rose De Berne. GP is heart and I love hearts, bigger size, productive earlier and gets rave reviews.

Now that I think about it i bought my plants from Wolffs for here and some were much bigger already than others when I planted them out. The bigger ones started setting fruit earlier so it just made them seem earlier because they were older and bigger when I planted them out.

Ginny

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Same here, I was planning to set out earlier just one tomato bed (12 plants). Started seeds Feb. 17, the rest were started 18 days later. I checked the weather and decided to go all inn. Planted them April 21. Mothers day planting time is the recommended for our area.
Ginny, the time you start seeds is important. The other thing that is as equally important is how early this varieties are?

Yes agreed Ella. Through trial and error I realized mine do better if I start them in late July and plant out in Sept. Like Kay said as long as they are hardened off they are fine because it has cooled off by the time they set blossoms. I started way too many of each kind.

[IMG]http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160811/258c7d537878f44013f103704dc7c8bb.jpg[/IMG]

These are my fall seedlings. I only need about 35 and I started about 10 of each type. I was paranoid after what happened to my seedlings last fall I guess. I started them and left them with my mom while I went on a two week business trip and when I got back they were fried.

Ginny

[IMG]http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160811/96c9a9d2c94ada6ebb5cb4bd182264a7.jpg[/IMG]

Some tomatos and a couple cukes I picked last night and this morning. Silly me, i thought that big Wes tomato would be well over a pound but its just a smidge over. If it was a beefsteak instead of a heart it would be heavier because of all of the extra fluids that a beefsteak has I think.

Not complaining. Just was surprised at the weight compared to how big it is.

Pic of the top sides... no cracking or anything.
[IMG]http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160811/75c9d932d51ffffd06079fbaacec274c.jpg[/IMG]

Hey all is it time for a new Florida thread since we are starting our Fall crops?

Ginny

Lets not, Ginny. This one has a sticky.

YELLOW STICKY TRAP < $12 for 15
 

Finally - they have been close to $17 for a long time now.


[URL]https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000I6K3JY/ref=sr_1_6_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1470918139&sr=8-6&keywords=yellow+sticky+traps&condition=new[/URL]

[QUOTE=kayrobbins;586006]Larry, I plant my tomatoes around mid August. I use to wait until September but we do get occasional freezes here so I like to get a head start to get as many tomatoes as possible. As long as I have them properly hardened off I don't worry about the heat because that is not an issue until they are blooming.[/QUOTE]
Kay,
Thanks for the info. I think I will go earlier for this fall. I may get a few in this week end and possibly more in later this month. We had a low of 73 this morning, it felt good.
Larry

Thanks Barb. I just ordered 2 packs. $22.45 including shipping.

Seed starting
 

Hi everyone!

We were away for the summer and am just now planning to start tomato seeds. I was looking through old posts here and saw the recommendation for Park Seed Biodome. Is that what you all have found works best? This is my 2nd tomato season and had mixed luck last year alternating between jiffy pots, recycled 6-Pack black plastic pots from Home Depot prior veggie purchases, and cheaper dome products.

Wondering if starting seeds directly in 4" pots and just transplanting once into permanent container is recommended. (Since I won't of course need grow lights and things like our northern friends need...)

And thanks for the heads up on yellow sticky traps sale on Amazon. Just ordered!

-Audrey in Jupiter

[QUOTE=AudreyFL;586183]Hi everyone!

We were away for the summer and am just now planning to start tomato seeds. I was looking through old posts here and saw the recommendation for Park Seed Biodome. Is that what you all have found works best? This is my 2nd tomato season and had mixed luck last year alternating between jiffy pots, recycled 6-Pack black plastic pots from Home Depot prior veggie purchases, and cheaper dome products.

Wondering if starting seeds directly in 4" pots and just transplanting once into permanent container is recommended. (Since I won't of course need grow lights and things like our northern friends need...)

And thanks for the heads up on yellow sticky traps sale on Amazon. Just ordered!

-Audrey in Jupiter[/QUOTE]

I bought a Biodome from PS and hated the spongy things. I do use the bottom green tray and the top dome for car transporting but I sow in the bigger the 6 cell packs with pro-mix. IF you want a tray and dome, you can find one way cheaper than PS.

Barb I appreciate the quick reply. Yes, it's pricey and I have lots of the 6 cell trays already. Do you know if I can get ProMix in any major stores in South Florida or up towards you? I recall being unable to find it and was hesitant to order online.

Thanks again! ��

Audrey, I am not Barb, but this place carries Promix BX, last year it was $30 per 3.8 cu ft bale, which fluffs to about 7 cu ft. Oddly, they don't mention Promix on their website, but
I have been buying it there for years, never has been on their website.
[url]http://universalsupplycorp.com[/url]

Audrey, here's the manufacturers page for who distributes their product.
[url]http://www.pthorticulture.com/en/distributors/?type=pro[/url]

Marsha - What a great price! It is 41 by me and I'm glad I can find it.

Audrey - You can start your seeds with a variety of mixes; I just use Pro-Mix so I only have to buy one mix. I hate the spongy things because they don't come off ever. Even after pulling the plant it is a struggle.

If the store mentioned by Marsha is close enough, I don't think you could beat that price. If it is too far, check your local hydroponic stores for it. I get it at HTGSupply.

[QUOTE=AudreyFL;586183]Hi everyone!
We were away for the summer and am just now planning to start tomato seeds. I was looking through old posts here and saw the recommendation for Park Seed Biodome. Is that what you all have found works best? This is my 2nd tomato season and had mixed luck last year alternating between jiffy pots, recycled 6-Pack black plastic pots from Home Depot prior veggie purchases, and cheaper dome products.
Wondering if starting seeds directly in 4" pots and just transplanting once into permanent container is recommended. (Since I won't of course need grow lights and things like our northern friends need...)
And thanks for the heads up on yellow sticky traps sale on Amazon. Just ordered!
-Audrey in Jupiter[/QUOTE]

I often do essentially what you are suggesting, that being planting seeds in a cup large enough to take the seedling all the way to transplant, without the necessity of replanting from small cups to larger cups. I actually use 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" cups. I place the cups into inserts that will hold 18 cups, which in turn I place into a 1020 flat tray with drain holes. One issue with this method is if one fills each of these cups with sterile seed starter it starts to get expensive. What I do to cut the cost is to fill the cups with compost then make a largish hole in the center of each with my thumb and fill it with seed starter. This seems to work well for me, however, I'm not sure the results would be any different if I used 100% compost to start seeds in.

In the winter when I'm starting most seeds indoors I am forced to change my approach. I am forced to use smaller cups in order to get all my seedlings under the some 1/2 dozen 4' grow lights that I use. Then I am forced to up size to larger cups when I get the seedlings outside.

Also, when I am starting seeds outdoors on my front porch I do no use plastic domes, however under the grow lights I always use a dome, sometimes short and sometimes tall.

Hope this helps in some way.

PS: My germination for Tomatoes and Broccoli using the above method for preparation for this fall season was very close to 100% and the plants look very good. Oh, and also I almost always use 1 seed per cup.
Larry

[QUOTE=Fiishergurl;586139]Hey all is it time for a new Florida thread since we are starting our Fall crops?

Ginny[/QUOTE]

I really would like to see a new thread because it has been really interesting to see how many responses we get in a year and also to keep searching for old posts easier. I wish we could have a regional forum like there is for the regional tomato taste testing and we could have each year posted in that forum.

Really I think a new Regional Tomato Growing topic would be good because we are not the only ones with unique challenges. I would take our heat, humidity and insects over those that have to cope with incredibly short growing seasons any time.

[QUOTE=kayrobbins;586357]I really would like to see a new thread because it has been really interesting to see how many responses we get in a year and also to keep searching for old posts easier. I wish we could have a regional forum like there is for the regional tomato taste testing and we could have each year posted in that forum.

Really I think a new Regional Tomato Growing topic would be good because we are not the only ones with unique challenges. I would take our heat, humidity and insects over those that have to cope with incredibly short growing seasons any time.[/QUOTE]

This forum already seems regional to me, i.e. for the most part it represents gardening issues which are faced by gardeners in Florida. Yes we get interesting contributions from others outside of Florida but many of the posts here are at least to a degree involving the issues of Florida gardeners. It seems to me if the region gets bigger, you often don’t get any responses to your posts. Also if you cut the pie too small such as Central Florida you maybe have 3 or 4 gardeners involved. In my mind you need a few more than that to make it interesting. If one thinks another thread would be more successful then one should create it, but for me this thread works pretty well. We have enough contributors to make it interesting and while we don’t all garden the same way, at least for me, I try learn from others.
I like this thread and will continue to use it for general gardening issues. Not until many others leave and I am posting to myself will I look for another general use thread.
Larry

Fertilizer price alert - walmart
 

[URL]http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=42519[/URL]

I just got back from Walmart and they are still well stocked. I commented in the other thread.

[QUOTE=Barb_FL;586366][URL]http://http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=42519[/URL]

I just got back from Walmart and they are still well stocked. I commented in the other thread.[/QUOTE]
Barb
Your link doesn't work for me. Maybe you can edit it.

Larry - I think the issue is to start a YEAR 3 thread vs continuing on with this one.

Another benefit to starting a Year 3 thread, is to get all the important stuff like Marsha's Fungal recipe, type of sticky traps to buy, etc in the first post.

The only benefit I see for keeping posting to Year 2 is that it is stickied so we never have to find it.

[QUOTE=Zone9b;586368]Barb
Your link doesn't work for me. Maybe you can edit it.[/QUOTE]

TRY NOW ..... It is the Tomato Tone Thread... in General Discussion.

[QUOTE=Barb_FL;586369]Larry - I think the issue is to start a YEAR 3 thread vs continuing on with this one.
Another benefit to starting a Year 3 thread, is to get all the important stuff like Marsha's Fungal recipe, type of sticky traps to buy, etc in the first post.
The only benefit I see for keeping posting to Year 2 is that it is stickied so we never have to find it.[/QUOTE]
I thought that somehow a Year 2 thread would make it easier to search the thread and it may have for a very short time but soon the thread got long and it was hard to find anything, even my own posts, in it. I have come to the conclusion that if one is looking for a particular post in a garden forum, that it will be difficult. Well chosen key words in Google is what seems to work best for me. Search engines are said to be getting more sophisticated and less dependent on key words. I hope that is true but for me it appears selected appropriate key words in one's search is most important.
Another concern is a switch to a new thread would cause us to lose readers and posters.
However, all said, if a new Year 3 Florida thread is created I will be among the first to switch.
Hey Fellow Floridians :D
Larry

As it is now we are not a forum but a post under another forum. If we could have a forum we could have separate posts under it that would things easy to find. For instance when you post about your broccoli it could be a post. We could have post where insects and diseases are discussed. I can't tell you how long it took me to find Marsha's post about her spraying schedule when I wanted to refer back to . It would still just be a Florida discussion but other states could create their if they thought it would help. It may never happen but to me it would be great. I have learned so much from here and this is my favorite part of Tomatoville.

[QUOTE=ginger2778;583045]I've been canning for 3-4 years now. It opens up so many doors once you get that skill. OK, Ginny, time to graduate to homemade ketchup, sweetened mostly with blond raisins? This recipe also has ginger. It's so much better than the store bought high fructose corn syrup stuff, once you try it, you'll never go back. Excellent on those rosemary oven fries when they are crisped up in the toaster oven the next day.
Posting now so I don't lose this, I'll be right back with the recipe.

OK, here it is: [url]http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/tomato-ketchup-recipe-tomato-sauce/[/url]

I use a food mill on the large holed disc much faster than straining, I don't add any sodium benzoate.
Great recipe, I have made it 4 times.[/QUOTE]
Marsha,

I'm going to make the home made ketchup some time between now and Monday.... :-)

Do any of you have a good oven drying tomato recipe? Dehydrator is at home. Kay i dont have the smoker yet, going to get one when we get home but wanted to try drying some. I have lots of Costoluto Genovese and I think that one is supposed to be good for drying. Will have to double check.

My tomatoes are ripening and I have a new food mill and the canning bug... Yay!

Ginny

I have been putting titles on the important how to and antifungal preventive stuff, to make it easier to find.
I guess it's fine with me if y'all want to start a new Florida thread. I'll go with the flow.

[QUOTE=maxjohnson;583175]Too excited not to post this. Sungold growing in Dr. Earth potting soil and part shade.[/QUOTE]
MaxJohnson,

How are your Sungolds doing?

Ginny

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