Totally Tomatoes

Dear Self in the Spring of 2013:

Do not repeat your actions of 2012 and put off getting your warm weather garden planted on time.  Remember how disappointed you were when you were getting your first round of ripe tomatoes in the last week of August.

With kindest regards,
California Gardener in Zone 23, 2012

There, that should take care of the chance I make that mistake again. 

Finally, I have a harvest of tomatoes perched on the edge of ripeness.  Two days ago, the tomatoes were the color of an orange red Crayola.  After a weekend spent on the vine, hopes are high for perfectly red ripe tomatoes. 

Rainy Day Tomatoes

The tomatoes are continuing to ripen despite the rainy weather we have had for the past week.  Interestingly, a few weeks earlier my tomatoes actually were burned by the hot weather.  I have never had this happen before but we had extremely hot, sunny weather.  The tops of any tomatoes not protected under foliage were discolored and eventually blackened.  Eventually, the slugs discovered this and started devouring the black, rotted area.

Frost Kills Tomato Plant

Here is the result of the cold weather we had last week in California. While temps are a bit warmer now, I am finding it cozier to stay inside. Really I should go out to the garden and clean up this mess.

Tomato Ripens In January

The tomato has one spot of green to ripen and then it's mine, all mine. I am hungering for a summer style BLT. I can use the romaine lettuce in the garden which makes the sandwich all the tastier. The vine is looking a little weather worn but as I was taking this photo, I saw three small green tomatoes hidden in the foliage so I won't be removing this plant...yet.