Tomato Update …

Another no pic tomato update but I need to write this down or I’ll forget.

2 days ago picked 9, today picked 5.  CG2 tomato has a lot of second growth with 10 new tomatoes on the way and possibly more.   As mentioned before, CG3 did not produce and is dead.  CG6 is producing some small ones but it is essentially dead.   CG7 came back to life somehow and has second growth and may produce more tomatoes.  I had written CG7 off for dead awhile ago.  I let morning glories grow on them and they may have helped bring the tomatoes back to life.  Not sure why this would be but I could easily trellis the tomato containers next season and formally grow MGs as companion plants to test this further.

Total tomatoes so far, 35 including small ones.  Projected crop upgraded to perhaps 50.   Assuming only 3 producing plants 50 is 2/3 of 75 which is my benchmark for what they produce.  Even though the crop is stunted I am getting tomatoes to give away.

I am considering adding another 9 cuft. box to main roof next year with either two more tomatoes or 2 cucumbers.  Will decide that next spring.

That is all for now.

Tomato update

No pics for this log book entry.  Picked 8 smaller tomatoes last night bringing total up to perhaps 21.  CG2 tomato has second growth and may produce through September now that CG3 tomato is dead producing nothing.  CG6 and CG7 have about 10 tomatoes between them.  Crop is way down this season but not a total failure.  Tomatoes are enough for me but can’t give any away.  No pics.  Lost island debris clump has an interesting plant growing in it.  Will post a pic soon.

Log Entry: Tomatoes

Update on tomatoes, no pics.  Caged position 2 is getting second growth and its partner in caged position 3 is completely dead.  This could be due to having different kinds of plants sharing the same container.  I had problems with habeneros sharing containers with eggplants in previous seasons.  It looks like position 2 tomato might produce what it should for an average season.

Caged position 6 and 7 have tomatoes and will produce a steady stream.  Position 7 is barely alive yet its tomatoes are growing.  I think I pulled 8 tomatoes so far.  I should get 100 tomatoes from 4 plants and I estimate the total crop to be maybe 30 possibly 40.  It’s easier to count crop totals when there are only 4 tomato plants instead of the 8 I grew in past seasons.

Only pulled one tomato with BER from caged position 6, the second healthiest tomato plant.  Each tomato position received 1/4 small bag of garden lime which might have helped mitigate BER.  I have always had BER with the first bunch of tomatoes.

Caged Positions 6 and 7

IMG_0540I need to get a better shot of this container.  Position 6 is in the foreground with 7 behind it.  Both are shriveling badly but 6 is producing more and 7 is almost gone although I did pull a perfect tomato from it today.  I chose to let the plants die on their own instead of pruning them because I don’t know what’s going on and don’t want to make things worse.

I suspect the best tomatoes, 2 and 6 are Celebrity and Big Boy which are generic tomato brands and have been grown on this roof before and known for their hardiness.  Positions 3 and 7 were some heirloom variety which may not be capable of surviving in a harsh environment.  This summer has been very cool and mild so they haven’t seen anything harsh like what previous crops have gone through.

Next season I’ll stick to two Celebrities and 2 another generic keeping the same kind in the same container and see what happens.  Need to get main roof overview.  It is quite reduced and more organized compared to last season.  I will keep the same configuration next season.

Caged Positions 2 and 3

IMG_0525Caged positions 2 and 3, two tomatoes.  I made an error during planting and forgot to keep the tags by their plants and document the order here; in this logbook.

I think caged position 2, to the left, is a big boy.  So fat it is the best looking tomato of the four and has new growth.  The bottoms of these plants are shriveling and dying and it’s not mites like in past years.  Position 3 is a goner and will produce nothing.  I should probably pull it.

These seedlings were individuals and about 4x more expensive than the 4-packs.  I suspect these seedlings are not very hardy and may have trouble in the harsh environment of a rooftop.