This year, we are growing about 20 different varieties of tomatoes in the garden. All of them are considered “heirlooms” except for two hybrid varieties: Early Girl and Sun Gold. We built a temporary fence around the tomato patch to keep out the deer, which has greatly increased the bounty of our harvest.
With the students, we plan on saving seed from the tomato varieties which have the best flavor, productivity, and disease resistance. So far, our favorites include Cherokee Purple, Juliet, Stupice, Tiger, and Chocolate Cherry.
This morning alone we harvested at least 50 pounds of tomatoes for the 8th graders in the kitchen classroom. The students cut up the tomatoes, threw them in a pot on the flat-top griddle, and made sauce. The finished tomato sauce will be frozen until their spring wood-fired pizza making activity, an Edible Schoolyard tradition the 8th grade participates in before graduation. The students learn how to take advantage of what’s in season and how to preserve seasonal produce for other times of the year.
For more information on saving tomatoes for seed, we recommend Suzanne Ashworth’s book Seed to Seed.
Monday’s Tomato Harvest
This year, we are growing about 20 different varieties of tomatoes in the garden. All of them are considered “heirlooms” except for two hybrid varieties: Early Girl and Sun Gold. We built a temporary fence around the tomato patch to keep out the deer, which has greatly increased the bounty of our harvest.
With the students, we plan on saving seed from the tomato varieties which have the best flavor, productivity, and disease resistance. So far, our favorites include Cherokee Purple, Juliet, Stupice, Tiger, and Chocolate Cherry.
This morning alone we harvested at least 50 pounds of tomatoes for the 8th graders in the kitchen classroom. The students cut up the tomatoes, threw them in a pot on the flat-top griddle, and made sauce. The finished tomato sauce will be frozen until their spring wood-fired pizza making activity, an Edible Schoolyard tradition the 8th grade participates in before graduation. The students learn how to take advantage of what’s in season and how to preserve seasonal produce for other times of the year.
For more information on saving tomatoes for seed, we recommend Suzanne Ashworth’s book Seed to Seed.