Hot Humid Tomato Paradise

I can still remember the tomatoes growing around the front porch when we lived in Lewisville, NC. My mother was a great gardener.  Most plants would grow well rather than deal with her wrath.   I didn't appreciate the magnificent tomatoes then, but a few years in Canada trying to coax a tomato out of the Nova Scotia fog out on the shore near Bridgetown greatly increased my love for tasty tomatoes.  We had nice tomatoes in Nova Scotia and even better ones in New Brunswick where it got hotter.  Still they were never as good as what seemed to just spring out the North Carolina soil.

Mother eventually moved back to Mount Airy and got serious about her tomatoes and lots of other plants.  They were legendary and only my wife's father, Glenn, could outshine them.    There must be a special mix of soil,sun, heat, humidity, and moisture that creates a perfect tomato.  We must be in one of those tomato paradises this year.  I have never seen plants so prolific. Our plants are close to five feet tall now and loaded with tomatoes and blooms.   We might not have a ripe tomato by July 4, but we will have lots of tomatoes though the summer.

When mother went to the assisted living home, one of her favorite things to do was take one our "sock" tomatoes and cut it up for dinner so her friends could enjoy it.  I even kept a knife sharpener in the room so she could easily peel her tomatoes.  During the summer she also always kept in her room fridge, mayonnaise and some bread just in case she wanted a tomato sandwich which she considered almost as perfect a meal as a banana sandwich.

Perhaps we'll have enough heat this week to give our tomatoes a shot at July 4th bragging rights, but if not I'll be hauling some back from North Carolina to enjoy.  Somehow I think Mom must be keeping an eye on the tomatoes this year.  They're growing like she has given them no other choice but to produce heavily and quickly.

The picture above show the size of tomatoes now on the vines. They're much bigger than a hen's egg already. Below you can see the picture from this morning of the whole tomato patch.  This link will get you to the April 25 pictures of when I planted the tomatoes.  So far the tomatoes have been in the ground for sixty-three days, so their progress is remarkable as far as I am concerned.

Comments

[Randy Mobley]

David, I got to your blog thru info in the McCallie News.

I hope all goes well; 38 years go by quickly!

I noticed that you are in VT country. My son swam for VT back in the mid-90's. He loved it there.
Beautiful campus; lots of smart people.

I have talked to Bill Shults a few times over the years and I see Frank LaVarre at the McCallie phonathon here in Nashville about every year. Same old Frank, just grayer!

I left the corporate world a few years ago and built a second career in the car business. I love it.

My kids are grown and gone. My son is a golf pro in Wilmington NC and my daughter works with mentally ill adults in Knoxville TN. My wife is a retired microbiologist and currently is a computer teacher in the Franklin TN school system just south of Nashville.

Do you ever talk to any of the McCallie crowd? If you saw the campus now, you would not believe it. McCallie has come a long way since North, Middle and South Hall.

I hope to hear from you

Randy Mobley '67