Tomatastic!

Tomatastic!

March 11, 2009 Duration: 0:00
The tomato hype has begun! I've never seen so many tomatomania events going on. CSUF's mother of all manias, the Monster Tomato and Pepper Sale, is being held on March 19-22 with over 200 tomato plants on sale. If you would rather hob knob with bourgie tomatoes there's a tomatomania event in Beverly Hills. And if you want to avoid the mania altogether, Armstrong Garden Centers is offering 3 inch tomatoes at $0.97 and buy 3, get the 4th free 1 gallon tomatoes. Ah what?

I have a bin full of madness in the refrigerator. I don't have 200 varieties of tomatoes but rather 20ish different types; enough for a small farm. I grow 99% of my seedlings from seed. The other 1% is seedling impulse buys.

It's blitzkrieg bop in the greenhouse with two flats full of tomato and pepper seedlings and more to be sown this weekend. The tomatoes pictured are from last season's crop. I had tomatoes well into December. If you want your own freakish tomatoes I'll be posting my favorite watering method soon!



And if you don't already know, Fern at Life On The Balcony is having a contest. You have until March 20th to share your smartiest container gardening tip for a six pack of seeds from Botanical Interests (one of my faves). Your choice and shipped directly to you. Go enter!

There's a certain kind of satisfaction that comes from getting your hands dirty, from the quiet rebellion of nurturing something yourself. Victory Home & Garden is rooted in that feeling. This isn't about pristine lawns or perfect decor; it's about the practical, often messy, reality of creating a life that's more self-sufficient and connected to the ground beneath your feet. Each episode digs into what it truly means to cultivate your own space, whether that's turning a patch of earth into a vegetable plot, finding creative ways to repair and reuse what you have, or simply learning to see your home as a place of tangible creation. The guiding idea here is about reclaiming a bit of independence, or as the show puts it, keeping it punk by growing our own. You'll hear straightforward conversations, personal stories from the trenches of DIY projects, and honest advice that skips the glossy magazine perfection. Tune into this podcast for a dose of grounded inspiration that celebrates the small, hard-won victories of building a home and tending a garden on your own terms.
Episodes: 25

Podcast Episodes
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Hi guys! It's true; I've traded this old dig for a swankier pad. Victory Home & Garden has paved the way for Anarchy in the Garden™-an amalgamation of micro urban farming, boot kicking punk rock, with a hard dose of DIY.…
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Lately it’s the simple things that stoke me out and my New West KnifeWorks Chef 8 knife is really doing it for me. Until now, I’ve never owned any fancy cutlery. Instead I own a whole block of knives. The obligatory set…
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Rocky discovered his snack jar:
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Ugh. Good luck guys listening to my shrill voice. I’ve been sitting on this podcast for a while; wanted to spare you. The conspiracy theories are flying. Why do I mention fish injected strawberries? Oh because mom mentio…
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Listen up fellow farmers/music lovahs! HomeGrown.org is gifting two tickets to Bonnaroo! Did I mention I'm a judge? Well I am. Neko Case and Booker T will be performing at Bonnaroo and I'm working on attending the event.…
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Ok, it’s more of a “what’s-the-happs” run down on events around town. Ok ok, it’s what I plan to cram and/or wish I could cram into my weekend.Saturday, May 2nd:Get your tree hug on while the finest Long Beach child labo…
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Recently H and I witnessed very peculiar behavior while standing next to a strawberry jar. A very brash Rocky was sniffing out three lowly ripe strawberries I was babying. He picked off one strawberry at a time and retir…
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I live in one of the many hoods throughout Long Beach. I have my ups and downs with Wrigley but so far the good outweighs the bad. I have cool neighbors that’ll walk my 55 lb grizzly bear while we’re away. We have the Wr…
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Last night’s dinner was courtesy of the garden. The smell of basil is intoxicating; permeable when watered. I don’t think you can ever sow enough basil seeds. I’m considering growing it in my sunny foyer.I harvested a ho…
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While watering the vegs this morning I thinned out a few beets. It is important to thin beets because beets are a dried fruit with 1-5 seeds in each fruit. Thinning is très important. If several seedlings emerge from one…