We are excited to have made our first really big harvest of the tomatoes in our new high tunnel yesterday. As you might remember, we made a big investment in the high tunnel this spring, hoping that, after a couple of disappointing tomato years, we would could have tomatoes coming out of our ears and have lots to put in your boxes. Well, so far so good. The tomato plants have been so laden that they have brought down our trellising system twice! No worries, we think we have the solution and can keep those plants strung up. They seem to be still growing well and some have reached the top of their string. We may have to spend some time lowering, a first for us on the heirlooms.
In fact, it feels like we are being trellis challenged around here this year. Our pole beans look about ready to pull down their woven string trellis and the bean pods themselves are just starting to fill out. We’ll be reinforcing them this week. And weight of the outside tomatoes are making them push them envelop on the supports we have given them and they are beginning to flop over as well. More support needed!! A good sign of abundance to come, we hope.
The winter squash plant vines have grown by at least 2 ft in the past week and the little squash have gone from tiny little embryo looking things to full sized squash. The vines are in what I call the “sea of squash phase,” when the vines form a continuous cover over the field and it looks like waves in the ocean. In the past, this only last a week or so but it is a beautiful sight however brief.
Sea of Squash