December 31 Tomato Taste Update

Every year I wish I had made more notes on my tomatoes, and this year I thought I had, but going over my quickly jotted notes while tasting tomatoes still doesn't give my much information - apart from KARMA Miracle scoring a 9* in one tasting

Anyhoo, thought I'd include my notes for what it is worth ..... my favourite this year??  Brad's Atomic Grape - which of course I have no notes for, but lovely flavour, nice texture, good keeper and beautiful to look at 

TOMATO TASTING NOTE

No taste notes for Brad’s Atomic Grape, PPP x PP "C" and Tasmanian Chocolate

Bundaberg Rumball (back square) (container)

Sept 4 Tasty!

Aug 11 soft mellow vaguely sweet  6

Muddy Mamba  7  

Aug 13 mild soft in mouth not a lot of flavour – but beautiful – perhaps a bit overripe 

Aug 17 maybe not quite ripe – bland watery

Lillian’s Yellow Heirloom x Dwarf Speckled Heart  (Lilly Family) 7+

Sept 10 not knock your socks off – but a very nice sweet/acid finish on lips – meaty with no core nice texture

KARMA Miracle  9* (back square) (container)

WOW! Juicy sweet tart perfect balance

Aug 18 lip smacking zing!

Aug 11 lovely zingy sweet balance 8+

on tart/acid side but not best specimen skins a bit noticeabe 6+

Aug 2  tough skins good flavour but a little too acidic for my taste does have a richness though 7.5-8

Kits Find*

Aug 27 exellent balanced flavour juicy with lovely texture

Snow Mocha 7

Aug 28 juicy crunchy underlying “unami”? Flavour

Alsu 7

Aug 29 pink – clear skin

first tomato was mushy overripe tasteless, second tomato was a nice blanace and juicy very meaty, yellow shoulders (sunburn?) noticeable core, few seeds  Fruit falls from vine

Loxton Lad

Aug 17 not much flavour watery bland

Loxton Lad (pink cross clear skin) 7.5

Aug 2 pleasant mildly sweet soft and juicy

Aug 7 very delicious, nice, sweet with a finish of tart/ juicy 8.5

Russian Black Pear  5

Aug 11 very mild not much flavour

Fred’s Tie Dye  8.5

Aug 2 really delicious sweet rich slight acid balance

Aug 11 smooth soft a nice lick of acid on the lips – mellow maybe a bit overripe nothing wow about it 7.5-8?

Apero F1  7

juicy tart/sweet not quite ripe

Yellow Russian  7

soft sweet overripe

December 31 And That's a Wrap

What a strange year for our Northwest Temperate Climate .... floods, heat domes, cold and of course Omnicron ......... and to finish off the year

More Snow!!

at least my out back containers have a nice warm blanket now ....

not too often we see icicles 

December 27 Record Cold

 Had to post this event .......

December 25 Christmas Day at "R" Garden

Thought I'd take a wander through the snow to check out "R" Garden

 

December 25 Merry Christmas!!

 Gingerbread

and Santas

Amaryllis "Papillio"

Christmas morning - a rare White Christmas!!

December 3 Van Dusen Botanical Garden

Decided to take out a membership once again to this magical garden .....

reflections ....

November 27 "R" Garden

A very rainy day at the garden .....

Radicchio  Variegato di Lusia  "Bel Fiore" starting to head up

overview

from back to front:  Santee, Brokali, Brussels Sprouts and Chard

and another Santee Sprouting Broccoli - love the dark green wavy leaves

November 23 Barge Chilling Beach in the Making

View from Vanier Park of newly beached barge - arrived during major storm on November 15

On December 15 the Vancouver Park Board renamed this section of beach as "Barge Chilling Beach" .....

this Mallard seems quite happy about the whole story

November 12 Beds 10-11 and 64

 Bed 10 with Mizuna and Watermelon Radish

Bed 64 Kale

Bed 64 Breen lettuce ready to harvest

Bed 11 with nasturtiums still flowering

Three Days at "R" Garden

Yes, took me three days - to dig the dahlias, weed, and put down leaf mulch for the winter ...... 

Done - November 2 - just in time for yet another Rainfall Warning

a few light frosts, so time to dig the dahlias

first of my fall/winter harvest

Day 1 Progress

tubers are healthy and plentiful, now just to overwinter them

never noticed this before - roots springing from cosmos stems that had fallen to the ground!!

October 31 Happy Halloween

 

End of October Walks and Bulb Planting

a few lovely fall days in between the rains ...... what better time for walks and more bulb planting

not my dahlias, but just love the colours 

October 22 Beds 10/11 and 64

The time has come to remove the last of the tomatoes, radishes and a few quite large scallions ..... love the look of the beds with the colourful leaves

Beedy's Camden Kale and Breen lettuce still going strong ...... a lot of baby greens seedlings under the mulch

Queen Lime Orange zinnia - one flower was ready for seed saving, now drying indoors ..... have no idea if this is opened pollinated - will see what grows next season

watermelon radish and mizuna loving this fall weather; baby scallions hiding in the mulch

the last of the harvest for this year from Beds 10/11 and 64; most of the tomatoes are Russian Black Pear, two Kits Find and one Lillian's Yellow Heirloom x Dwarf Speckled Heart cross - hopefully will ripen indoors; the scallions (Kincho) look more like leeks ..... but they have grown all summer