An Ace Hardware Tomato Takes the Lead

Pam brought in an entry to our tomato contest last Saturday, August 20 at the RAT Barbecue for weigh-in. The official weight was 20.6 ounces with a girth of 13.5 inches. Pam said the tomato was a Beefsteak type which she bought at Ace Hardware! This entry beats the previous leader, Carmel's Super Steak by about 2 ounces.

The First Entry of the Year

Last Saturday, August 6, Carmel brought in a beautiful tomato for weigh-in. It was a Super Beefsteak. The Mimakis took the honor of doing the measurements. The official weight was 18.8 ounces with a girth of 13-15/16 inches.

The winning tomato last year was Pam’s Brandywine at 21.1 ounces.

Linda's Early Girls

By Linda Gephart

Zack gave me one of his Early Girl tomato plants that he had grown from seed early this spring. He explained how to "harden" the plant by putting it out during the day and bringing it in at night. I was pretty good about following his directions... for about a week. Then, one night, I forgot to bring her in.

Of course, it happened to be a very windy night. The next morning we noticed that our little baby tomato plant that was so gently nestled in a small cardboard box and wrapped in newspaper had disappeared. I spotted the box (empty) sitting against the fence. The newspaper had blown under a thorny rose bush. The plastic plant pot was nowhere to be seen. However, back in the corner of the garden was our tiny, fragile Early Girl tomato plant. She was gasping for air and water laying there in the sun, braced against the fence.
















I gently rescued her, placed her in a coffee cup and gave her a drink of water. After a couple of weeks, she was just as happy as the day (before) she blew away. Bill and I planted her in a protected spot in the garden so she could grow and be happy.

After weeks of watering her, fertilizing a little, and talking to her, we now have 5 lovely tomatoes just about ready for a salad.

Thank you, Zack for giving me this Early Girl.