Abundant Tomatoes: Loving the Heat – The Warwick Valley Dispatch

By Peter Lyons Hall

Recent reports from farmers throughout the region concluded that sudden downpours like the kind that have occurred recently, delivering 1 ½ inches of rain within a couple of hours, can do more harm than good, even though we needed the rain. When that amount of precipitation happens within a short amount of time there is too much runoff and not enough soaks into the soil while smaller, newer plants can sustain damage from the deluge.

Meanwhile other plants like tomatoes are thriving because they love the heat! “The plants are beautiful, tomatoes are sweet, and people keep saying that the cherry tomatoes taste like candy. They’re just so delicious. Peppers are almost ready, and cucumbers and zucchini are ready, too. The new planting is really coming in nicely; it’s getting to be peak,” revealed Jeff Bialis, of J&A Farm, Goshen, NY.

Tomatoes can be found in numerous varieties at the Lakeside Farmers Market in Greenwood Lake and most other farmers markets. Look for three main types:

Heirloom varieties: Generally considered to be a variety that has been passed down through several generations of a family because of its characteristics. They include larger, irregularly shaped varieties with names like “black cherry,” “brandywine,” “chocolate stripes,” “black krim,” etc. But don’t be fooled by their shapes. If you’ve never tasted an heirloom tomato, let this be the season that you become initiated. They are packed with exquisite flavor that can take you back to the gardens your grandparents used to grow in the back of their home, or the freshly made Italian tomato sauce your grandma created after simmering in a large pot for several hours, with just the right amount of herbs and other seasonings.
Cherry tomatoes: Smaller varieties usually ripen first, and this season eating these varieties, which range in color from ruby or deep reds to mellow orange, are the ones that people liken to “candy” because of their sweetness. They can be as small as grapes and as large as a golf ball. Tomato aficionados urge you to not be afraid to use cherry tomatoes in any dish in which you would use a larger fruited variety.
Traditional round or plum tomatoes: With names like “Big Beef,” “Big Boy,” “Marbonne,” beefsteak tomatoes are typically used for burgers, sandwiches, grilled, and roasting. The largest beefsteak tomato ever recorded was an enormous 11.5 pounds with a 32.5-inch circumference! Hundreds of plum tomato varieties are suited to our climate, soil, and taste buds. They all share unique qualities that make them ideal for canning: thick flesh, rich flavor, tender texture, mild acidity, and low water content. Plum tomatoes have been developed specifically for sauce. They peel easily, cook quickly, and have the lowest water content for the most flavorful and thick tomato sauces possible, according to epicgardening.com.

Blackberries and blueberries are also benefitting from the heat. “The fruit are plentiful and are ripening on schedule,” said Jasmine and David from Locust Grove Farm, Milton, NY.