Click on a thumbnail picture below to see the full size version. 91 Entries. Saturday, April 24 View Page Tricotyledon seedling from 2096 Meier   Saturday, April 24 View Page The seed had a crack in it and despite sanding the edges, the seed coat was stuck on it. I had to gently help it off with a scalpel   Friday, April 30 View Page This year’s secret weapon! Broadforking has given me a great workout too.   Saturday, May 1 View Page Right to left. 1916 Barron 1875 Mendi 2036 Glasier Extremely windy when I planted these out last evening. I took them out inside a tub with the lid on, then got inside the greenhouse & sealed it. There is an electric heater inside but the heat was just leaking out. I have a WiFi thermometer so I could see the temp dropping. I put comforters all over the greenhouse. We got to a low of 37 degrees, the coldest the temp got inside was 58. For me that is a victory.   Saturday, May 1 View Page Whoops plants are left to right.   Sunday, May 2 View Page Patch B North 2051 Marshall 2096 Meier 1937 Urena   Sunday, May 2 View Page Patch B South 1949 Barron 1911 Urena 2008 Neptune   Monday, May 10 View Page Been in the ground 11 days. 1916 Barron 1875 Mendi 2036 Glasier   Monday, May 10 View Page Been in the ground 10 days. 2051 Marshall 2096.6 Meier 1937 Urena   Monday, May 10 View Page Been in the ground for 10 days. 1949 Paton 1911 Urena 2008 Neptune   Monday, May 10 View Page Just received a box with the Second place prizes for last year’s Tomato Team competition, draft division. Kudos to Porkchop, you do it up right!   Sunday, May 16 View Page This is the display for my new WiFi thermometer. It has 3 sensors so 1goes into each of my 3 mini greenhouses. I can’t believe how helpful this is to know what the temps are remotely!   Sunday, May 16 View Page I should mention, the top line is the temp & humdity wherever the display is. The disparity in the temperatures among the 3 sites is related to the type of heating within them.   Thursday, May 20 View Page Patch from the left side, all 3 vines are now down on the ground. The center one is the 1875 Mendi which is my pick. The 1916 Barron (bottom) & 2036 Glasier (top) are both looking goos though. Pardon the flagging leaves, it was 88 degrees here which before today we hadn’t even come close to.   Thursday, May 20 View Page Patch B North frombehind & above. 2051 Marshall at the bottom, 1937 Urena at the top both nearly down. The center 2096 Meier is my pick but it is still reaching for the sky.   Thursday, May 20 View Page Patch B South from behind & above. All 3 vines are starting to come down. From L to R: 2008 Neptune, 1911 Urena (my pick) & 1949 Barron.   Thursday, May 20 View Page The 17 year cicadas have started to come out. These are some of their exoskeletons on the weeds in our neighbor’s yard.   Saturday, May 22 View Page In Patch A here is my 1875 Mendi growing right to left. Pleased that it measures 4.5 feet long.   Saturday, May 22 View Page My 1875 Mendi. Today I placed a WOW super starter pak under each leaf node, painted the leaf nodes with rooting gel and covered them with a soil mix to which I had added some Azos. Finally watered it in with ROOT added into water. And finally placed the strip of fabric mulch alongside the main vine.   Wednesday, May 26 View Page My 1911 Urena is down & running!   Wednesday, May 26 View Page My 2096 Meier growing steadily.   Wednesday, June 2 View Page 1875 Mendi 6.5 feet long.   Wednesday, June 2 View Page 2096 Meier 5.5 feet long.   Wednesday, June 2 View Page 1911 Urena 8 feet long.   Wednesday, June 2 View Page 1911 Urena 8 feet long.   Thursday, June 24 View Page This is a beautiful sight! I had had problems with power for one of my patches this Spring since those heaters draw a lot of current. I got 2 circuits routed out to my patch yesterday.   Thursday, July 8 View Page A noticeable gap in the postings to my diary. The truth is, I am embarrassed by how bad my plants look. The pic is of the monstrous roots forming at one of the leaf nodes I had treated with rooting hormone. I am a “more-on”. The other side effects to the treatment are the main vine splitting and ceasing to grow & no secondaries forming. My plants are hormonal freaks! This is on my 1875 Mendi. Interestingly, the plants show varying sensitivity. The 2096 Meier was the worst affected, then the 1875 Mendi followed by the 1911 Urena.   Thursday, July 8 View Page 7 DAP fruit on my 1911 Urena. I feel fortunate to have it finally. But it’s position is poor, on a secondary with not much plant behind it. I will be lucky to get 15# per day. I learn something new every year from my mistakes. I did 2 pollinations on the 1875 Mendi yesterday. My poor little 2096 Meier is finally showing some vine growth with a little baby now peeking out of the tip of one of the strongest secondaries.   Thursday, July 8 View Page Shortly before he passed, Marv Meisner messaged me, asking where were the tomato pics. And in truth, although I am growing Giant maters this year, they had been given short shrift. So I am posting this in remembrance of Marv. This is a 4X caterpillar on one of my 5.61 Konieczny MegaDom plants probably around 3 DAP.   Friday, July 16 View Page 9 DAP on my 1875 Mendi. Around 14’ out on the main vine. The stem is even longer than it looks at this angle. The backup is 2’ further on the main but only 4 DAP. It has a ridiculously long stem also.   Tuesday, July 20 View Page We set up the chosen fruit on my 1875 Mendi tonight. It is 13 DAP with cc 34”. We put down a sheet of plywood & 2 pieces of mill fabric separated by sand. We used a total of 150#.   Thursday, July 22 View Page 16 days cc 18.675”. I hope we are beyond risk of blossom end rot, but still giving CalMag Plus drench & Ca Nitrate foliar. Plant is very healthy   Thursday, July 22 View Page 16 days cc 18.675”. I hope we are beyond risk of blossom end rot, but still giving CalMag Plus drench & Ca Nitrate foliar. Plant is very healthy   Saturday, July 24 View Page My 1875 Mendi DAP 17 OTT 130   Sunday, July 25 View Page My 1875 Mendi. 18 DAP. OTT 141   Tuesday, July 27 View Page The fruit I had previously shown on my 1911 Urena stopped growing at 13 DAP & was removed. Now I have a decision to make on 2 fruits both at 8 DAP. This fruit is 27’ out on the main vine. Note it’s shape. It has a small split toward the blossom end which is not well seen.   Tuesday, July 27 View Page This is the fruit on a secondary. It doesn’t have the small split. And I favor this barrel shape. So this I choose to be my keeper & this secondary will become my new main vine. The main vine fruit will be my backup.   Wednesday, July 28 View Page My big MegaDom. Pic from Monday. 21 DAP cc 22 1/4   Wednesday, July 28 View Page My big MegaDom today. 23 days old, woohoo!   Saturday, July 31 View Page My 1911 Urena. Loving the length!   Thursday, August 5 View Page My big MegaDom is 31 DAP, circ is measured at 27 3/4”. It seems relatively deep. This is by far the biggest tomato fruit I have grown & I expect some continued growth. Just for fun (& some seeds!) I am going to hold a guess-the-weight contest on the Tomato Growing Forum of the Message Board.   Friday, August 6 View Page My 1875 Mendi fruit is 30 DAP today. OTT is 246.5”. My wife has named it Sangria.   Friday, August 6 View Page We went to the Van Gogh display at Newfields Museum in Indy on Wednesday.   Friday, August 6 View Page We went to the Harry Connick show last night in Indy.   Friday, August 6 View Page My 1911 Urena is 19 DAP with OTT 162.5”. The blossom end nub had some rot so I cored it out, sprayed it with dilute bleach & dusted with Sulfur powder.   Friday, August 6 View Page This is the cull from the 1911 Urena. It weighs 54 pounds. I forgot to say that we had decided to name the keeper Vincent Van Grogh   Friday, August 6 View Page I have been having a lot of trouble getting a female pollinated on the 2096 Meier. I did a tissue test & everything is in normal range except for P which is actually high. I think the pollination difficulty is most likely related to the hormonal imbalance the plant had. I finally have some small fruits that look like they might take, situated beneath the white washcloths.   Sunday, August 8 View Page On the flip side of gigantitude, here is a fruit from my 5.95 Konieczny Domingo plant. All the blossom trusses had 6 blooms & each had 6 sepals, typical red cherry. Some sort of seed mixup I guess. I am (intentionally) growing 2 cherry tomatoes , one orange & the other multicolor but this isn’t one of those. Umm, I forgot to weigh this one, ha!   Sunday, August 15 View Page A new State record was set yesterday at the Indiana State Fair weighoff. Pictured is Larry Michael with his 128 “ long gourd. Very impressive! Congratulations Larry!   Sunday, August 15 View Page Here is my tomato entry at the Indiana State fair yesterday. We are just ecstatic as we smashed my previous tomato pb (5.42# in 2017) for the state record.   Sunday, August 15 View Page Phil Groenewold with his winning pumpkin, 1,360# at the Indiana State Fair yesterday. Congratulations Phil!   Sunday, August 15 View Page Phil Groenewold with his winning pumpkin, 1,360# at the Indiana State Fair yesterday. Congratulations Phil!   Sunday, August 15 View Page Phil Groenewold with his winning pumpkin, 1,360# at the Indiana State Fair yesterday. Congratulations Phil!   Thursday, August 19 View Page Oh yeah, hafta have another pic of this brute! I have a friend with a 3D printer. I have already acquired the 3D data & exported it to her. We’ll see what she can do with it.   Thursday, August 19 View Page Picked this one off my 5 gallon bucket plant. Translates to 3.39#. From MegaZac seed, second generation from Chris’ 6.23.   Thursday, August 19 View Page The other side of that fruit   Saturday, August 21 View Page My 1875 Mendi is 45 DAP today, OTT 325.5”. Growing 26.8 # per day over the last 5 days   Saturday, August 21 View Page My 1911 Urena is 34 DAP, OTT is 275”. Growing at 35# per day over the last 4 days. Sorry if the pic orientation is screwed.   Saturday, August 21 View Page My 1911 Urena is 34 DAP, OTT is 275”. Growing at 35# per day over the last 4 days. Sorry if the pic orientation is screwed.   Tuesday, August 24 View Page The State Fair ended Sunday so Monday morning I drove to the fairgrounds to retrieve my tomato. To my amazement, everything was gone from the area. There was the regular agricultural exhibit off to the side & when I looked there, one of the AGs was there. I recognized 2 women who were State Fair volunteers & had been at the weighoff and asked where my fruit was. “Oh they were looking pretty bad & Jim threw them out. I tracked down Jim & had him show me where he had taken it. So then I went dumpsterdiving & got my fruit. There was a damaged spot at the bottom of one of the lobes which had been facing up-looked like where a thumb had been!   Tuesday, August 24 View Page I sliced my tomato up today & am fermenting the seeds. I am pleased to say that there are numerous seeds.   Tuesday, August 24 View Page I have no idea what I am doing wrong with posting pics. I expected them all to be in the correct orientation, certainly not upside down!   Tuesday, August 24 View Page I have no idea what I am doing wrong with posting pics. I expected them all to be in the correct orientation, certainly not upside down!   Thursday, August 26 View Page My wife on Sangria at 50 DAP. Tapes 339.5”, around 895#. Averaging 20# per day.   Thursday, August 26 View Page With great trepidation, Kathy & I gently moved Vincent Van Grogh. I attached a come-along to the hitch of my truck and pulled him away from the vine by around 6”. Whew, glad that’s over!   Sunday, August 29 View Page I have had the biggest tomatillos this year, this one went 140 grams. It is a giant variety. Does anyone compete with these?   Sunday, August 29 View Page From 6.23 Konieczny Domingo seed. Will take to a certified scale in the AM.   Tuesday, August 31 View Page Sangria, my 1875 Mendi is 55 DAP, taping around 970 #. The plants are still keeping me busy with pruning unwanted vegetative growth, be it tertiary vines or so-called “suckers”? When are they going to stop or slow this growth & send it to the fruit? I’m not seeing it.   Tuesday, August 31 View Page Sangria, my 1875 Mendi is 55 DAP, taping around 970 #. The plants are still keeping me busy with pruning unwanted vegetative growth, be it tertiary vines or so-called “suckers”? When are they going to stop or slow this growth & send it to the fruit? I’m not seeing it.   Wednesday, September 1 View Page I didn’t have stellar vine positioning on Sangria & now we are paying for it. The main vine enters from the top of the pic & continues south. I had intentionally kept the secondary with the pool noodle on it heading north. I placed a tow rope as low on the fruit as I could & not endanger the stem. Hooked my come-along to the hitch of my truck.   Wednesday, September 1 View Page I had placed small bamboo canes abutting the front of the fruit on each side of the stem. Kathy watched the stem & vines while I worked the come-along. As I drew the fruit back, because of the positioning of the tow strap, it actually rotated. The bamboo cane at the upper end of the pic is now 4” from the fruit while the other is only 1.25” away. I had wanted it to rotate slightly but not quite this much. Regardless, we decided that this was good enough & no harm done.   Wednesday, September 1 View Page Here we are post-move. Alexis was absolutely no help, ha! I am holding my Big Red cablepuller (come-along). I don’t recommend it. Not easy to use. The owners manual has very poor instructions with missing diagrams which is the same as their website. Note to self: fruit & vine positioning is paramount. Also, inspect stem & vine position & tension at around 500 pounds…moving it would be much easier!   Wednesday, September 1 View Page My apologies for the sideways & upside down pics. I guarantee Kathy did not take the last pic that way!   Thursday, September 2 View Page This is the official certified weight of my 6.23 Konieczny Domingo fruit.   Friday, September 3 View Page Ever have to do things 2 or 3 times to get them right? Standard fare here. On Sangria I found that the pumpkin shoulder was still quite tight against the distal main vine & I decided that it would be best to address this. So we hooked up the come-along again & moved her, pulling from a slightly different angle. Success! Measuring from the canes I had inserted into the soil abutting the punkin shoulders, we have now moved 4” on the distal main vine side & it is no longer tight. On the proximal main vine side we are out 4.75”. We did get a minor strap burn where the blanket must have slipped out but it is nothing that a little Sulfur powder can’t take care of.   Sunday, September 5 View Page Sangria is 60 DAP, is taping around 1,096#. I found a mouse in a trap this morning, no nibbles on the punkin thank goodness.   Monday, September 6 View Page Vincent Van Grogh (my 1911 Itena) is 50 DAP. Currently taping around 804#. Growing at 20#/day.   Monday, September 13 View Page Last Thursday my wife’s Tri Kappa sorority toured my pumpkin patch with snacks & drinks before & after. There were 20 women & 3 small kids. Lots of questions. I gave away 15 AG seeds, uncertain regarding the possibility of any of these seeing dirt.   Monday, September 13 View Page This is the one I had been waiting on. It is another MegaDom. Circ 35”. I had been impressed by the big lobe on the bottom & had been hoping for 5.5#+. Sigh. I have some more coming but they will surprise me if they top this one   Tuesday, September 14 View Page Unnh! Not big enough!   Thursday, September 16 View Page The circumference on that previous tomato was a typo, but you knew that. It was 25”.   Thursday, September 16 View Page Yesterday Sangria was 70 DAP, taping around 1,240#, growing about 13#/day over the last 5.   Thursday, September 16 View Page Today Vincent Van Grogh is 60 DAP. Only taping 840#, only up 10 from 5 days ago. A couple of reasons for this. We have been fighting phytophthora, which is held down kinda simmering. The bigger problem has been numerous vine splits which I have been watching like a hawk but evidently not well enough. Several of them have developed the telltale yellow color of infection. This I have treated first with a spray of 33% bleach, let it sit, then spray that off with an Agrimycin 17 solution. Finally some Sulfur powder & of course a fan. I just hope that he will hang on for the Wasson Nursery weighoff Sept 25.   Thursday, September 16 View Page I give up. I try holding my cell all sorts of different ways & my pics here still post upside down.   Tuesday, September 28 View Page We took Vincent Van Grohe to the Wasson Nursery Saturday, ended up at 820 pounds. Congrats to all the growers! Apologies for the pic orientation in advance, ha!   Tuesday, September 28 View Page These are the tomatoes I took to the Wasson Nursery weighoff Saturday. The largest for competition, weighed 4.82#. The other 2, just for exhibition, both over 2#.   Tuesday, September 28 View Page This is Sangria, now taping around 1,307#, growing at 4.5 pounds per day. Hoping to take her to weighoff Oct 9.   Tuesday, September 28 View Page Correction on Entry 86, all tomatoes were over 4 pounds.   Tuesday, September 28 View Page Correction on Entry 86, all tomatoes were over 4 pounds.   Sunday, October 10 View Page Warm sunny day at the Fair Oaks Farms yesterday. Sangria went 1340, good for second place.   Sunday, October 10 View Page Weighoff won by this man with a new PB, Wayne O’Brien.