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Specialty Tomatoes: Lucid Gem & Fred's Tie Dye

8/26/2024

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 I yesterday years old when I tasted my first Lucid Gem tomato. How does it taste? A bit lower acid than traditional red tomatoes but much more flavorful than traditional yellow tomatoes. Sweet, slightly fruity, truly delightful. I made a BLT with it and some microgreens that was OMG next-level delicious.

This is our first year growing Lucid Gem, a specialty indeterminate variety that was originally bred by Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms. So far, I am extremely impressed with this variety. Though a bit slow to fully ripen, I do not blame the variety. The cool overnight temps/lack of consistent overnight temps staying over 60 degrees has affected *everything* in our garden. This plant is CRAZY productive and puts out incredible bloom sprays that rival those of cherry tomatoes. It is reported to last long both on the vine and post harvest. I will test that as we harvest more through the season. That said, I can already tell you we will definitely be growing Lucid Gem again next year. Want to grow Lucid Gem next year? You can find Lucid Gem tomato seeds at a variety of internet shops; we are planning to offer a limited number of packets for sale locally--hopefully by around December this year. We will also offer the plant starts for sale in the spring next year.

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Tomato of the Day - 8/26/2024: Fred's Tie Dye

This is the 2nd year we have grown Fred's Tie Dye. It is another Dwarf Tomato Variety that came out of the Dwarf Tomato Project. The Dwarf Tomato Project is kind of a big deal, IMO. Google it if you're into that sort of thing like I am, there's a TON of info on it.

Fred's Tie Dye is a stable, open-pollinated tomato that resulted from crossing Dwarf Wild Fred and Pink Berkeley Tie Dye made by Vince Lavallo, who also named it. Foliage is lush and rugose. The plant is averaging 4-5 feet high in our high tunnel. The ones I have outside are averaging 3-4 feet. The fruits range in size from 3-6+ ounces and make excellent slicers for a sandwich. The flavor is outstanding, in my opinion: Intense, rich, balanced and juicy authentic tomato flavor.  Today I made open-face tomato/bacon sammy lunch out of this tomato. I sliced a homemade bun in half, toasted it, spread it with homemade mayo, layered a slice of bacon, then a thick slice of tomato, then a slice of cheddar cheese (any kind of cheese works) and placed under the broiler for about 2.5 minutes until the cheese melted. This is my FAVORITE SUMMER SAMMY. I remember having open face tomato sandwiches ever since I was a small kid. Store bought tomatoes don't work well in this recipe. It absolutely *must* be a home grown REAL tomato.

Fred's Tie Dye tomato seeds are available online through a variety of sources. We plan to have a limited number of packets of seed available for purchase locally by around December this year. We will also offer a limited number of plant starts at the beginning of the growing season next year.
Weather and harvesting conditions permitting, we *should* have some of each of these varieties and others available at our pop up this coming Saturday, 8/31/2024. See flyer image below for details.
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Tomatoes, Flowers, Pop Ups & Fall Plans

8/19/2024

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Happy Monday! I hope you are enjoying this gorgeous day. 💜🍅💜 Finally some of the seemingly thousands of our gorgeous big green tomatoes are ripening. Pictured here are 3.5 - 4" diameter slices of Brandy Fred Tomato that I put on our burgers for Sunday dinner (SOOOOO GOOD!). Brandy Fred is a dwarf tomato variety that was developed through the Dwarf Tomato Project (which is quite a big deal if you're in to that kind of thing...I am). Brandy Fred is a stable cross between Brandywine and Dwarf Wild Fred. I am working on having a limited number of seed packets available for purchase as well as early tomato plant starts for next year's (2025) growing season.
[scroll down to read more - text continues under picture gallery]

Also pictured above is Echo Blue Lisianthus in the high tunnel and Lavender Lisianthus putting on a show in our outside front of house beds. This is my first year growing Lisianthus which is widely reported to be a bit fickle to start from seed (so I did not sell starts for it this year). However, I do plan to sell Lisianthus flower starts next year. Once established it is quite a hardy flower handling the harsh heat, wind and poor water conditions quite well.
   We have resumed pop-ups and plan to continue them every Saturday (weather permitting) through the fall and into the winter. We will have our freshly harvested microgreens, whatever excess produce we have from our gardens and a limited variety of plant starts. In a couple weeks we plan to have some seasonal fall/cool crop starts such as lettuce, bok choy, perpetual spinach chard, etc.. Currently, we have perennial rhubarb starts and perennial Egyptian Walking Onion starts which we will continue to bring until we sell out or the season for planting them ends. 
   Regarding our synthetic-chemical-free garden produce:
  1. Our farm's focus is not produce sales. Our farm's focus is seasonal (primarily veggie/flower/herb) plant sales, developing plants that are acclimatized to our East Mountains environment and seed saving to produce healthier plants locally. We grow food for us to eat and preserve. We sell produce only from any "abundance" that we may have.
  2. Tomatoes are just now coming in quantities that we will have a limited amount available for sale each week until the frost. 
  3. Other Summer produce we *may* or *may not* have depending upon the weekly harvest: cucumbers, zucchini, pattypan, peppers, perpetual spinach chard, tuscan kale.
  4. We expect to resume selling lettuce in the very late Fall to early Winter time frame depending on environmental conditions; and we will continue until early-mid Spring or when we sell out completely (whichever comes first).
  5. We do not grow corn as we have neither space nor expertise in corn -- we refer folks looking for corn to Schwebach Farm in Moriarty.
If you have questions, email us: [email protected] (that's me--the visionary farmer woman) or you may also email  [email protected] (he helps with heavy things & operations around the farm).
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Farm Fresh Pop Up on Saturday Mornings

8/16/2024

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  • Microgreens *will* be available each week.
  • Garden produce will depend on what bounty comes out of our garden each week.
  • We are a very small micro-farm growing our own food to eat & preserve ourselves. We sell only that which is excess.
  • The main focus of our farm is synthetic chemical free specialty plant (veggie & flower) nursery and seed saving to develop plants that grow better in our local conditions.
  • Pop Ups are always weather permitting. If you are unsure, please check here on our farm website/blog or our facebook page.

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