As grocery stores and restraints are pulling tomatoes, I find myself being thankful that I've actually got my own home grown tomatoes to enjoy this year. Many vegetables do well in College Station's spring and early summer climate - if the gardener knows what they are doing or just happens to be blessed with great soil.
I'll admit, this is the first time in my adult life that I've had a vegetable garden - if you can call six plants 
a garden. I have attempted before but it seems like they died. This year, I followed my dad's tip and planted the plants in a well-drained spot. I've also faithfully followed another friend's advice and watered my plants regularly. In all seriousness, I like gardening and have taken horticulture classes. I just normally don't take the time to do what I know is supposed to be done.
This year, I bought two tomato plants. One was from Wal-Mart and the other from the 26th Annual Spring Plant sale hosted by the Texas A&M Horticulture Club. The plant from A&M is by far the better plant of the two. It is bigger and is produces two or three times as many tomatoes. From now on, I'll try to buy all of my plants from one of their periodic sales at A&M. (Watch for upcoming posts.)
If you are into gardening, http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/tamuhort.html this link takes you to The Aggie Horticulture home page which has further links to lots of great gardening resources for Texas gardeners. .
Posted by Sondra Meyer CPA/Real Estate Broker
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they are my favorite fruit. I hope they are not gone long. I love to eat them all the time.
Sondra, this is my first year to have a successful garden also and it is good timing with the tomatoe scare. Not that I have not tried in past years but I think I didn't give the garden enough water. This time we have it hooked to the sprinkler system.
I just heard about the tomato thing yesterday, and our local news just reported on it tonight. We have not had any outbreaks here, but it's better to be safe than sorry!
Dave, I agree, I hope the tomatoes are not gone long. Just imagine Taco Bell tacos or McDonalds with out tomatoes.
Marchel, I'm glad that I'm not the only one!
Jim and Maria, I agree with you. Hopefully you won't have any outbreaks in SC
Hi Sondra... being a Jersey Boy it would not be summer without Tomatoes. This salmonella scare will definitely put a crimp in my summer eating if it is not resolved soon!
Good morning Steve. We don't want a crimp in your eating. lol. Even for the producer's sakes, I hope they can get the tomatoe thing resolved quickly.
Like Steve, I'm originally from NJ. Tomatoes and summer go hand-in-hand. Growing up, my parents always had tomatoes in their garden, and every summer I continue planting tomatoes in my garden as well. They're much better than any store bought tomato, and now I won't have to worry about the salmonella concerns for my family. Good luck with your garden.
Max, I love how much we can find out about other states via AR. I agree, home grown are so muh better than store bought versions.
I stopped off at a restaurant the other day and they had a sign on the door that said no tomatoes. I couldn't believe it! Oh well. Here's another thing where the price will probably skyrocket.
Sondra...You give me hope. Perhaps next year I will start a garden (1 pot) also.
Good luck and happy eating.
Kathleen
Carol, I checked the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) website to make sure that Texas grown tomatoes are alright. The FDA website was updated today. So, I hope you enjoy your tomatoes.
http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/tomatoes.html
Sondra, I love having a garden and finally got my tomato plants in. I'm just doing containers this year, too much on my plate. Thanks for the link!
I have been buying some perenniels from walmart this yr...they sure are cheaper than some of the local spots so we will see how they look as time goes on...
Boy ...we have had more than we can eat , so we have put of about 4 gallons of salsa. These homegrowns taste so much better than the cardboard flavored ones at the store, don't they! ?