There are not yet huge quantities of ripe ones, but enough for a few every day now. They grow on low straggly vines that do not require any staking or side-shooting - easy!
We often eat them as a nibble with a drink before dinner, just halved and sprinkled with salt. Here are some "Maskotka" and "Tumbling Junior Yellow" toms, along with a few of the "Amsterdam 3 - Sprint" finger carrots (also for eating raw).
One of the "Maskotka" toms looked as if it should perhaps have been called "Pinocchio's Nose", like one of my varieties of chilli.
As usual, I can't resist cropping one of the photos to make something a bit more arty...
By the way, if you do end up with a glut of tomatoes, maybe you should consider semi-drying them like I described in August last year.
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P.S. Another crumb of good news...
Marksvegplot has moved into the Top 20 of the Gardening category of Wikio Top Blogs this month - at No.17.
Don't ask me how this has happened - I'm not consciously doing anything different, but hopefully I'm consistently producing what lots of people want to read and see: genuine articles about my own personal gardening exploits, supported by some half-decent pictures. What's your opinion?
Here's the full list:
3 tales from the village4 The Sea of Immeasurable Gravy
5 Veg Plotting
6 Plantpassion
7 otter farm blog
8 We Grow Our Own
9 ESTHER'S BORING GARDEN BLOG
10 Victoria's backyard
11 coopette.com - blog
12 Ryan's garden
13 SILVERTREEDAZE
14 Tim Matcham Garden Design
15 Real Men Sow
16 Hurtling Towards 60 and Beyond
17 Mark's Veg Plot
18 Dobbies.com Gardening Blog
19 An Artist's Garden
20 The Smallest Smallholding
Brilliant blog Mark! Well deserved of the top 20 spot... if not higher ;)
ReplyDeleteThose tomatoes look lovely!! I have been picking cherry ones myself, but none of my yellow ones are ready yet.
So what's your secret to growing perfect basil - do you leave it outside?
ReplyDeleteWell done on the Wikio rating - I'm languishing at 44th! I'm not sure how the rating works but think it's something to do with the number of vistors over a given time.
Sue; re Basil - I usually grow it in pots on my Dining-Room windowsill, because the weather conditions are seldom warm enough for it it flourish outside. The little pots of it in my post today are actually "spares" awaiting re-homing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for that Mark - maybe one for my indoor light garden.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful Tomatoes!! TOamtoes and basil are together in my garden...Congrats for being inthe top 20 garden blogs :)
ReplyDeletewww.howisitincali.blogspot.com
Gorgeous tomatoes and as usual, good photos!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on making it to the top 20, Mark!
ReplyDeleteThose cherry tomatoes look wonderful. How does the Tumbling Junior Yellow taste? I haven't been able to find a yellow variety (cherry or not) that I like.
Nice cherries, nothing wrong with a good crop and congrats on the rating!
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful tomatoes! Your Pinocchio Nose tomato is very interesting. Congratulations on your latest blog ranking. It's well deserved.
ReplyDeleteBTW... I just learnt from another blogger that the 4th Sunday of every August is celebrated as World Kitchen Garden Day. Are you celebrating... and how?
http://kitchengardeners.org/world-kitchen-garden-day
Lovely tomatoes, makes me want to pick and eat one off the screen!! Well done on the Wikio ranking, maybe it's because you always have something interesting to say and you photos certainly brighten up the day!
ReplyDeleteLovely looking toms Mark, and congrats on your Wikio ranking - I'm afraid I'd never even heard of it, but you are in good company, well done!
ReplyDeleteOoo yes, I most certainly look forward to seeing and hearing what you have been up to in the garden, and your photos are always fabulously superb! Can we vote for you on Wikio?
ReplyDeleteThat tomato belongs with artist Uli Westphal mutatoes collection.
ReplyDeletehttp://uliwestphal.de/mutatoes.html, just blogged about them and your tomato http://landcare.blogspot.com/2011/08/mutato-project-celebrating-imperfect.html (hope that's OK). Amazing how we home growers are the only ones who get to see such whimsical joys in the vegie patch.
Hi Mark, I don't know how the rates are gathered but of all those blogs listed, I only read yours :) Congrats on the toms, feels good to see some color. My Sweet 100 cherries are started to sport color as well. I will be looking at your drying ideas because there is no way I can get them all eaten.
ReplyDeleteHi to all my readers! Thank you for your words of encouragement. You can actually rate posts on the Wikio site (though it seems quite complex), but I presume that by just visiting my site you are demonstrating its popularity, so thanks for your support.
ReplyDeleteLovely tomatoes Mark! And I agree the best way to eat them is fresh from the vine, with a drink before dinner! My husband and I often do the same thing. Congrats on your ranking in Wikio Top Blogs! You really do write a fabulous blog.
ReplyDeletetomatoes already, lucky you.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the wikio ranking
I've just read up on how the Wikio rankings are decided.
ReplyDeleteIt is based on the number of backlinks to your blog from other blogs with latest links given a higher weighting. Blog roll links don't count so I guess it is how many times your blog is linked to in articles on other blogs. I'm not sure whether the links from a signature of a commenter count.
Interestingly I had read in Blogger that if suddenly a blog appears to have a sudden huge increase in the number of backlinks (I guess from those people who post comments just to advertise their blog) then the blog is thought to be spamming and will be removed. What a tightrope we walk eh?