About

I am a market gardener growing just off Route 22 in the town of Salem NY- which is just along side the Vermont border.   Over the years I have slowly fallen into the niche of growing, and selling heirloom tomatoes.

The funny this is- I grew up hating tomatoes.  Could not stand them!  Yes, I was the guy who was always pulling tomatoes off his sandwiches and picking them out of salad bowls.  Crazy- I know!

Well all this changed on the day I was forced to try an ugly looking tomato.  I say ugly because it was not a perfect looking red tomato.  Funny how folks judge the beautiful colors and shapes many of the heirloom tomatoes present, when they have only been conditioned to the perfectly shaped big red tomato.

At the time I was selling potted herbs at a farmers market, and the vendor next to me was the produce guy.  He kept pleading with me to try one of his tomatoes. Finally I gave in and tried one of the dark looking little tomatoes he had.

 Wow!  I loved it, and was shocked that it hadn’t tasted anything like any other tomatoes I've tasted before.  Your probably wondering which tomato- right?  Well that one was actually not an heirloom, it was Black Cherry; however Black Cherry led me on to try other dark varieties such as Carbon, Black from Tula, Cherokee Purple and Black Krim.  

I just could not get enough of the dark tomatoes.  I eventually started to grow Brandywine  a familiar name to those I was selling to at the market, and Stupice as an early variety.  It was not until I met Carolyn Male that my world of tomatoes expanded.  The very first thing she said to me is that, “you have to grow more than just these dark tomatoes”.  I am very grateful for Carolyn’s generous seed offerings and willingness to share her knowledge on heirloom tomatoes. 

Each year I continue to seek out new varieties to grow and save seed.  Many of the market growers and bigger farms around me have shied away from growing and selling these magnificent fruits.  I have heard some say that the heirlooms are more prone to disease- which I find to not be true at all.  I have also heard others say that it is much more profitable to grow hybrids.

Well whatever the excuse- I think it’s worth every effort and penny to keep these heirlooms growing.  I love to see the reaction on peoples face’s when I convince them to take a bite of one my tomatoes; it brings me back to my first bite.  I feel it is very important to keep the stories and many varieties alive for as long as we can.

My goal is to continue growing and focusing on heirloom tomatoes, and would love to someday write a book based on my experiences, that will help inspire and educate others.  I believe this blog will help prepare me for that goal, and hope that others who share the same passion for tomatoes join me.   I look forward to sharing with you my tomato growing experiences, as well as you sharing yours with me.