Grafting Heirloom Tomatoes

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Seamaiden

Seamaiden

Living dead girl
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Oh man, too cold? We're having a heat wave right now.

Yes, sprouting from seed is the usual way to achieve heirloom maters. Check out Territorial Seed Co's selection.
 
Coir

Coir

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growchick421 said:
Reading this makes me want my Gh so bad, but it's still too cold :(.

Ur veggies look amazing! I love the heirlooms as well. :rolleyes:
Grafting is not a necessary process in growing heirlooms, correct?? Sprouting seeds is still the common way still, right?? :sorry:
I should stop reading these when I'm tired...:wacky:
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No need to graft. I did it as an experiment to try and boost production of the varieties that I like so that I can grow them commercially and make a living from them. For the home garden where you don't have to worry about keeping a business running from the sale of them, you have a lot more freedom on what to plant without having to worry too much about them producing. That said, if there is a certain variety that you like but it doesn't grow well or has disease problems where you are at, then grafting might be a way to solve that problem.
If you want to see a huge selection of heirloom tomato seeds, try tomatofest.com
 
growchick421

growchick421

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Thanks. I love info on heirlooms and veggies. Herb is wonderful, but you can only get so much out of it.... hahaha that's funny that I'm saying that cause I I know all of its benefits. :facepalm:
What I meant is that fresh veggies are one of the best things for people to ingest :woot:.

It's finally warming up and hopefully it stays that way. Green house and seeds, here we come :D!! There is still a chance for a late freeze. Nothing is safe outside til MAYBE the beginning of June. :depressed: Had a friend loose most of her garden a few yrs ago from a late freeze around June 7th or so, and she lives lower in elevation than us.
 
Coir

Coir

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There just might be something to this grafting......
87Q4093
87Q4094
87Q4099
87Q4101


And did I mention lettuce, melons, and basil?
87Q4108
87Q4113
87Q4096
 
Coir

Coir

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Seamaiden said:
I feel *so* disorganized looking at your photos. Totally not your fault. I could spend days in a set-up like that, especially if there were fish in there somewhere.
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I do spend days in there! I have been working 12+ hours a day to keep things going as well as delivering to stores and one day at the farm market each week. Add starting a new business on top of that and I am pretty worn out at this point. Still a long way to go for this year though. It looks like I may get some help in there today and tomorrow though which will be really nice.
Unfortunately, no time for fish at this point!
 
growchick421

growchick421

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Seamaiden said:
I feel *so* disorganized looking at your photos. Totally not your fault. I could spend days in a set-up like that, especially if there were fish in there somewhere.
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I completely agree!!

You have the most beautiful Gh I have seen :oops:!!! I'm green house envy...
All of your tomatoes look so tasty :hungry:. They r one of my favorite summer eats! What kinds of tomatoes were you growing again??

How are the cucumbers doing?? And what kind of melons are those?? So many Qs...
If I lived closer I would come help in ur Green house. I'm glad that ur getting some help however:).
Good luck in all ur ventures... :D and try to get some rest.
 
Coir

Coir

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Thank you Growchick! The pink beef tomatoes are grafted Momotaro. The orange are Nebraska Wedding. Both heirloom varieties that I have been growing for many years. I also have Copia which is one of my favorites, Dona, Carmello, and an Italian beefsteak that really has no name other than that. I am also growing the cocktail variety "Temptation" as well as Sungold and Black cherry tomatoes. I also have a few late planted from here: His stuff is always so wild looking with great taste.
The cucumbers are killing me right now. Picking over 200 a week which is more than usual. They are about to get a big cut back so new shoots will start growing and I will get a break from picking and wrapping for a week or so while that happens.
Still picking today but over 1000lbs so far this week with probably 200-300lbs. more to go. I sure hope it's busy at the market for the long weekend!
No rest this time of year unfortunately. As soon as I bring all the tomatoes down to the packing area, it's time to work on the new website. I really want to at least have the store section open by this weekend. The main site and forum will be next.
 
BeenBurned

BeenBurned

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Hey man, how goes the battle? Beautiful operation!
Aahh I luv a muskmelon What r u growing there?? I am growing Minnesota Midgets this year...4-5" across when ripe thoght those might b it. Have you ever grown MM?
Is your entire setup hydroculture? Pretty damn good behind the lense too... those shots look like PR shots for Pacific Coast fruit!
 
Coir

Coir

584
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BeenBurned said:
Hey man, how goes the battle? Beautiful operation!
Aahh I luv a muskmelon What r u growing there?? I am growing Minnesota Midgets this year...4-5" across when ripe thoght those might b it. Have you ever grown MM?
Is your entire setup hydroculture? Pretty damn good behind the lense too... those shots look like PR shots for Pacific Coast fruit!
Click to expand...

The battle is never ending this time of year. About to head out and pick for tomorrows deliveries. Thank you for the kind words!
The melons are "Tasty Bites" http://www.johnnyseeds.com/p-8402-tasty-bites-f1.aspx Just the right sized for one person to eat the whole thing in one sitting. I have never been a fan of eating(love to grow them) any type of melon but these are changing my mind.
I have always grown hydroponically since I started the commercial operation back in 1989. NFT, Rockwool, and Coir are my preferred methods but I have used about every type of hydroponic/soilless growing system over the years.
The photography was another hobby(obsession?) that turned into a profession. Why I keep adding to the job list, I'll never know. My third business just went into full operation this weekend as well so now there seem to be even fewer hours in each day.....
 
canadaseed

canadaseed

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coir you the man!!!! lol this is so amazing i love this thread. how is the business side of things... viable?
 
Coir

Coir

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canadaseed said:
coir you the man!!!! lol this is so amazing i love this thread. how is the business side of things... viable?
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Thanks! Incredibly busy this time of year. Production has been really good. Picking 1200-1400lbs of tomatoes each week from just under 1000 plants. 200-300 English cukes still coming off the plants each week even with them being so old. I had thought about doing some interplanting on them but they have roared back to life with all the hot weather we are having. Amazingly, even with the really high temps, I am not having any loss of fruit or production. Battling some stink bugs and found a few really strange looking larvae that were eating some tomatoes this week. I have no idea what they were but they are dead and I have not seen any more of them. The damn stink bugs even though only a few of them here and there are really aggravating since they have not developed a predatory insect for them yet. Other than that this has been one of the best years I have had controlling other insects. I went with a new cucumeris product and placed a lot more of smaller bags at more frequent applications(and much lower cost!) and have not seen any thrip issues at all this year. Seeing lots of aphids outside but none have made it inside. Only about 8-9 weeks left before this crop will be pulled and the cleaning will commence.
I have been approached by an I-502 tier 2 license holder and asked to be the lead grower for their project so that might take precedence over the tomatoes for a while. They are just waiting for their financing to come through on a building they are buying. If they get the building, it's going to get rather crazy in the next few weeks as they want to start the build out immediately. I would love to take on the project though so it's pretty exciting.
 
canadaseed

canadaseed

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Wow that's amazing coir pulling some real high yeilds there! sounds like it's very viable. the fact you're only battling a minor bug problem is amazing and you eradicated them!! nice. I've been interested in plant based oil extracts for use as insecticides do you have any experience with this? I'm wondering what method you're using for those tomatoes. the way they hang down is really cool is that a rather easy method to adopt? I have a few bugs myself on my balcony garden, aphids, ear wigs... taking out almost all new growth on my basil. I thought hey i don't mind sharing a bit i'll leave it for now but after pruning my basil it's getting no chance to pump out new life so i gotta get rid of those guys... you know any toxic free methods? That's really awesome that you can make a business out of this props to you man! I'd like to do something like this I've been thinking about it a lot lately and i just wanna buy some land and grow. I haven't read through your whole thread yet probly gonna get around to that later today, i wanna learn as much as i can. Are you rather organic in your growing, i know going organic in hydro some say isn't possible... i'm sure theres a way?? Enjoy your harvest in 8-9 weeks man you did the work to deserve it. That's awesome about the contract for lead grower that's certainly an achievement also being given the opportunity to grow medicine for people that's great! It's awesome to see a grower having success at their practice thanks for sharing your pics and knowledge.
 
Seamaiden

Seamaiden

Living dead girl
23,596
638
Coir said:
Thanks! Incredibly busy this time of year. Production has been really good. Picking 1200-1400lbs of tomatoes each week from just under 1000 plants. 200-300 English cukes still coming off the plants each week even with them being so old. I had thought about doing some interplanting on them but they have roared back to life with all the hot weather we are having. Amazingly, even with the really high temps, I am not having any loss of fruit or production. Battling some stink bugs and found a few really strange looking larvae that were eating some tomatoes this week. I have no idea what they were but they are dead and I have not seen any more of them. The damn stink bugs even though only a few of them here and there are really aggravating since they have not developed a predatory insect for them yet. Other than that this has been one of the best years I have had controlling other insects. I went with a new cucumeris product and placed a lot more of smaller bags at more frequent applications(and much lower cost!) and have not seen any thrip issues at all this year. Seeing lots of aphids outside but none have made it inside. Only about 8-9 weeks left before this crop will be pulled and the cleaning will commence.
I have been approached by an I-502 tier 2 license holder and asked to be the lead grower for their project so that might take precedence over the tomatoes for a while. They are just waiting for their financing to come through on a building they are buying. If they get the building, it's going to get rather crazy in the next few weeks as they want to start the build out immediately. I would love to take on the project though so it's pretty exciting.
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WONDERFUL!!! And exciting. :D
 
SupaM

SupaM

83
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Absolutely amazing Coir! Really admire your greenhouse/grafting, two things I hope to get into some day. Have you tried Purple Cherokees? I've become partial to them over the last couple years. ATB!
 
Coir

Coir

584
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SupaM said:
Absolutely amazing Coir! Really admire your greenhouse/grafting, two things I hope to get into some day. Have you tried Purple Cherokees? I've become partial to them over the last couple years. ATB!
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Thanks SupaM. Purple Cherokee is a great one for sure. They also have a chocolate and a green version out now. All three are quite good but the purple is still my favorite. If you ever get a chance to try Copia, it is actually my all time favorite heirloom at this point. A bit more tanginess to it than the Cherokees have but all the sugar.
 
SupaM

SupaM

83
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Coir said:
Thanks SupaM. Purple Cherokee is a great one for sure. They also have a chocolate and a green version out now. All three are quite good but the purple is still my favorite. If you ever get a chance to try Copia, it is actually my all time favorite heirloom at this point. A bit more tanginess to it than the Cherokees have but all the sugar.
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Nice! This one's for you! ATB!
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VERMONTSKUNKS

VERMONTSKUNKS

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Excellent threadf thankyou op because this companion planting I do may verywell merge into grafting if I see a happy codominant relationship I can make successful myself! being next to the university of Vermont argi center helps tremendously! I wouldn't mind grafting my habeneros actually, and I intend on keeping them thriving...
 
Coir

Coir

584
143
Oh man...... over 1400lbs picked today and still going. Anyone in the greater Portland Or/Vancouver Wa area looking for great tomatoes for canning, hit me up. I'll make you a hell of a deal! I am running out of room and boxes!
 
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