Today was an exciting day for Lakehousechocolate.com! We harvested the first Brandywine Tomato!

We are a company that is on a mission to grow tomatoes and perishables for our local community and share them through the local food pantries.

Looking back, the Organic Heirloom Brandywine Tomato seeds were planted late, very late. It was June 1st to be exact. Yep, we were taking a risk to spend any time planting a 90 day harvest plant, in our cold climate. Albiet, there was little to lose. We had a solid crop of yellow pears in the bag, and we wanted a challenge. We also started them in organic soil.

In record time, we had babies!

By the 11th day, we nipped off their first set of leaves to encourage upward growth.

The Pink Brandywines were our prize tomatoes, so we planted them in a prime location, next to our house and placed them in Burpee cages. They were fueled by Miracle Grow every 2 to 3 weeks till flowers popped. The less than perfect leaves were clipped.

By mid-summer they looked enormous. We had 36 plants that sported healthy heirloom potato leaves.

We carefully monitored their water consumption, in thier irrigation system and tweaked along the way. Those potato leaf babies were hypersensitive. We nipped off any with imperfect leaves. It was amazing how few leaves they had considering they were indeterminates with massive fruit.

Unfortunately, frost came before their decision to ripen. There was a dilemma. They hit their 126th day Birthday and remained dark green. It was time to be creative and proactive and save the crop meant for our local community. Our mission was to donate to our local communities.

We had a few Options:

1) Harvest them in the green state?

2) Set a fall grow tent on them and heat them to ideal ripening conditions?

3) Yank and replant into an Indoor grow tent?

We chose a hybrid, all 3! And here are the results from #3.

It was a touchy process to pull out a quadruple Pink Brandywine plant. Carefully, I tied the stems together. Then, I removed the cage. One of the tomatoes didn’t make it, and dropped. Ugh… I was left holding a cageless Pink Brandywine set of 3. My goal was to transplant it into our basement grow tent.

I took a deep breath and yanked with all my might. All 3 survived the pull and I carefully set the roots into a bare pot. I held it steady, and filled the pot with fresh miracle grow potting soil. Then, I walked the tall plant into the house and down to the basement grow tent. All was well till I tied it to the tent wall. A 2nd Pink Brandywine cried and fell. Ugg! Stay tuned on the ripening of the 2 casualties from the transplant. Onto the grow tent ripening process.

Tent Day 1

Results! Yellowing was evident.

Tent Day 5

Whoa it looked delicious!

By the 5th day, we lost patience! It was time to slice it. A neighbor warned of mush fall frost damaged tomatoes and suggested that we sample one before we donate.

We decided to take the plunge and ensure the potential joy for our community.

Blessed!

The Pink Brandywine was perfect!

The 2 visitors and I were taking a poll.

The consensus was that it was meaty, juicy and mid acidic. Three in our house devoured it with our Breakfast and all gave it a 4 of 4 stars!

Transplanting was a success for this massive tomato. We will continue to work on her 2 sisters that had a great fall.

Overall, the big picture is to maximize the total volume donations to our community. Stay tuned for the ongoing experiments to ripen the most for our community.

Sneak Peek- 4 of 6 in the Green tomatoe box have tipped from yellow to pink…

These Pink Brandywine tomatoes always have my thoughts. Oddly they remind me of this set of Bible Verses.

Matthew 6:25-27 King James Version

²⁵ Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

²⁶ Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?