Barbara Damrosch
And right now, it's my tomatoes that have chosen to weave a spell of magic in my little green patch...
These tomato plants came up from the compost and I transplanted them to the narrow long bed in the front of the house, that Bhuvan, Gautam and I had made during the Dasara vacation. The soil there had only an addition of home-made (aerobic) compost at the time of planting. Luckily for me, all of the plants settled well and began to shown good signs of growth. Within a couple of weeks I had to fix stakes (My coconut frond stake) to support the fast-growing plants. I planted them somewhere in the end of November and they began flowering by the first week of January. That's when I added about a handful of compost per plant. By January end I mulched the bed around the plants and when the green tomatoes appeared to be growing in size, I once again added handfuls of vermicompost (I buy vermicompost from an old student of mine who has recently started a vermicompost business on a farm. And the vermicompost is the best I have seen around here !) around the base.
Apart from leaf miners creating bizarre patterns on the leaves, I have not faced any pest issues yet. Touch wood ! I have been snipping off the leaves affected by leaf miner an the older wilting leaves regularly. This promotes good flower and fruit development. At one point when the plants were outgrowing the stakes, I pinched off the tips. That encourages lateral growth/branching. Which means more flowers and more fruit. The coconut frond stakes are doing a good job of supporting the plant. Just that, when the fruit started getting big, a few of the stake began to gradually bend and I had to add additional support with stones at the base. I have seen a couple of aphids here and there. But that doesn't bother me much. I know, if the number increases, a couple of ladybird beetles will arrive on the scene to devour them. Even otherwise, by the time they multiply, my plants would have already provided me enough tomatoes. And then, we need to understand why plants attracts pests. If a plant is well fed, well watered (with good drainage) and healthy, the chances that it will attract pests are very slim. It is an unhealthy plant that attracts pests. In that case, my mantra is to discard the unhealthy plant rather than deluge it with a number of sprays and douches. It is prudent to do away with it and begin a completely new healthy plant.
I usually grow companions for my tomatoes, whether I grow them in containers/pots or in the ground. This time I grew my regulars, marigold and basil and since it was a ground bed, I took advantage of the space and also grew palak, hunchikk soppu/sorell/chukka koora, spring onions, garlic chives and a couple of nasturtiums. I am sure all of those contributed too, in keeping the pests at bay.
Right now, the cherry tomatoes have begun turning red and the other larger (a mix of naati and hybrid varieties) ones are still green and getting bigger. A couple of days back, a truss of tomatoes grew quite large and heavy and ended up snapping the thick stem. Well, it was an unexpected harvest, but this morning, the lovely green tomatoes got converted into a green chutney to have with neer dosas.
Last year, my volunteer patch of tomatoes (Growing on the kitchen side of the house) very magnanimously gifted me an abundant harvest. At one point, I was collecting almost half a kilo of tomatoes everyday ! This time around, I am ready to accept whatever my small bed of tomatoes gifts me. Tomatoes apart, I am already revelling in the utterly aesthetic visual- feast it is putting up for me. I don't know what problem I may encounter tomorrow with my tomatoes... But, rather than worry about that, I am trying to make the most of the moment and thanking my stars that there is still so much magic to be excited about...
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