:funniest::funniest::funniest::funniest::funniest:

My dad has 30-40 plants. BLT's all week. :seasix:

I don't grow it myself. The antiquated rules in my senior mobile home park prohibit it. So many people grow it, many of my friends and family, let's just say I haven't had to pay for any of it in about ten years. If you know the right people the stuff has roughly the value of popcorn.

:yum:

A friend's house has a small garden so I have been benefiting from the fruits of their labor...not much in the way of tomatoes this time around yet but LOTS of cucumbers. Been making mega batches of homemade tzatziki with it. :seasix:

Former in-laws always had a garden. Visiting them in the summer was a treat, as I'd often raid the garden. Good, fresh, eats. :yum:

My late FIL ( farmer ) came back with a potted plant that he "found in the corn field" when checking on the crops. Probably 5' high.

We said, "Any idea what you just brought home"? He said it looked like a tomato plant without any tomatoes.

When we told him it was a pot plant his eyes got real big. :lol:

We planted 4 plants of different heirloom tomatoes this year. Last year we accidentally found the perfect spot for them to grow in our yard. Right at the base of the rear deck which is about 5-6 ft higher than the ground. Right now the plants are about 9 ft tall :hurray: and we're getting some pretty big tomatoes daily. When I step out of the house onto the rear deck they are now wrapped up around the railing spindles. Tomatoes without bending over.:yesnod: They taste great too compared to store bought.

I've never really liked tomatoes. One day, when I was 8 or 9, we visited a neighbor who had tomato plants. They picked a nice ripe tomato for me to try, and as I recall, it was tasty. Still don't really like tomatoes though. :shrug: Maybe if I grew my own...

I'm pretty much the same way. And yes, there is a huge difference in ones you grow vs what they have in the store. My main purpose for growing them is to eat tomatoes that didn't have a crop duster fly over them dumping who knows what king of chemicals on them. Same goes for any home grown vegetable.

I rarely eat just a plain tomato by itself, but I like things that are made out of tomatoes. The ketchup my wife made the other day is outstanding.

Mine were bangin till the hurricane dumped 7+ inches......

I was like you for years. But sometime in my early 40's I decided that I'd give the ones my father-in-law was bringing us a real chance. And now I'll eat any in-season tomatoes no problem at all because they are freaking delicious. Either on a sandwich, or just with some salt, pepper, and olive oil drizzled on them. Bonus if you do some sliced soft mozzarella, fresh basil leaves, and balsamic vinegar. And of course they are great for any sauce or recipe. But they really shine when ate freshly sliced up and at room temp.

When I was a kid in the 50s, we didn't have things like Basil or Balsamic Vinegar around the house. I used to slice the tomato and put mayonnaise on it. One of my favorite summer snacks.

Here's a link to my mom's ketchup recipe:

https://www.thevettebarn.com/forums/...ad.php?t=36135

And for those of you that are new here, check out the What's Cooking section. Lot's of good recipes there and they never get dated.

And you don't need home grown tomatoes for this. Any store bought tomato juice will do.:yesnod:

Gardening expert Jackie Albarella shares a few tips of how to protect your tomato plants from blossom-end rot.

2 minute video below

https://www.wgrz.com/video/life/home...8-b2beec7038c5

Tomato Wine

8-7-20 watching the PBS program, "Great American Railroad Journeys", the host was visiting a wine making operation in Winnipeg, Canada.

The winery made wine with just tomatoes and the host tasting the wines was surprised at the good taste of the wines without any taste or hint of tomato. :shots: