Tomato Porn

Each year I get emails and comments from readers lamenting of failed crops and asking what they have done wrong. I wanted to do a post about crops. Many years my trees are loaded with beautiful blooms come spring. The bees are buzzing and all is well with the world. I dream of bushels baskets overflowing with ripe fruit and mason jars of jellies, jams, preserves and pie fillings lining my pantry shelves. But with several decades of experience under my belt  and my fathers words of "don't count your chickens before they hatch" ringing in my ears. (today would have been his 85th birthday may he rest in peace). I instead  put my faith in God and wait  and hope for the best. I fret and worry when those spring late frosts knock those blooms off before they set fruit. I pray for rain when that spring turns off dry and drought spreads over the prairie. I cross my fingers when those tornadoes and spring storms blow off that young fruit. 

Have I done anything wrong? Not a thing! 

Welcome to a homestead, farmstead, farm, orchard or just gardening in the backyard. 

People... getting that produce that you have dreamed of for years is a crap shoot at best for even the most skilled of gardener.  

I've seen years when my trees just plain had a mind of their own. Look at this apple tree with apples on it ripening in the fall and blooming at the same time. This was two years ago. 

Then there is always those April and even May snowstorms to contend with.

Not to mention those winters when you have to be dug out of your driveway because the snowdrifts are so deep and you lose half of your trees to winter cold damage. 

A perfect example of this is my tomatoes this year. Most years I have tomatoes just hanging and ripe by the end of July. 

And I normally have beautiful large and ripe tomatoes to can, freeze and enjoy all of the late summer and fall.  This year we had an extremely rainy and cool spring. 

Tomatoes love heat. Tomatoes crack when it rains too much and mildew and rot. Did I do anything wrong. Not really.  And there are a whole lot of people in the same boat as I am. 

What can I do. I can pick those tomatoes while they are still green and place them on my sunny porch railing to ripen. Off the bush they absorb no rain. ( As I type this it is Wednesday and it is raining ) 

They will slowly ripen off the bush and I will salvage what I can. Do I get upset? No not really because 

a. Next year is another year.
b. I still have about 80 jars of tomato products canned in my my pantry left over from the last two years bumper crops. So for all of those who email me asking why I put up so much and can those bumper crops this is exactly why. 

 I think this is a way for God to force me to get rid of my older food in jars and he is just helping me keep my pantry current : ) I'm gonna keep telling myself that! 

And let me assure you all we will not starve or want for Food. With two full freezers and almost 1000 jars of food in my pantry not to mention what is dehydrated, still on the vine and in the garden I assure you we will not shed a single pound. 

So we will eat less spaghetti this winter and thank God for other bumper crops that he did provide us with. We will enjoy lots of fried green tomatoes as the tomatoes that are on the vine struggle to ripen in what remains of the warm weather. This is that example of "when God gives you lemons make lemonade" lecture : ) This is about the time my kids would start rolling their eyes at me so feel free because I am used to it. 

SO I will instead include some tomato porn from previous years for all of you to enjoy. 

I want all you new gardeners to read this post often because I want you to know that even the most experienced gardeners have crops fail. You cannot control everything. And everything that can go wrong more than likely will go wrong.  And above all keep trying, learn from your mistakes and keep visiting so I can share all my crop failures with you so you won't feel so bad : )

Blessings from The Holler

The Canned Quilter