Spring planted tomatoes are more productive than fall planted tomatoes, but in most years, and with a good amount of care, a nice amount of cherry tomatoes can be harvested in the fall. Planting time: Mid July to end of August. WAIT until temperatures have cooled. It will be very difficult to start and keep […]
Archive | Nightshades
Tomato Tasting Winners
What fun we had tasting all 45 types of tomatoes that the Westbury Community Garden’s 7th Annual Tomato Tasting on June 3. The winners by show of hand votes in the four categories of tomatoes were as follows: Favorite Cherry Tomato Golden Gem HybridIndeterminateSize: 0.5-0.75”Shape: RoundColor: GoldMaturity: 65 days / early Stunning golden color and […]
The Annual Tomato Tasting Is Back (June 3)!
After a three year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic, the Westbury Community Garden Annual Tomato Tasting is back! We will resume scheduling this annual event on the Saturday after Memorial Day weekend, as in the past. To participate, purchase a Tasting Scorecard at the event for $15. There will be over 30 varieties of […]
Spring and Summer Vegetable Gardening
This seasonal class offers many tips and techniques to insure successful spring and summer vegetable production specifically for our Houston climate. Timing is everything! You don’t want to miss this important class! For those who need to look back at the information presented, the instructors have offered the presentation material here. The March 4th class […]
Tomatoes! How To Be Successful
When and where to buy plants When to purchase plants – mid-February if weather is mild When to plant. When nighttime temperatures are expected to be above 45-55 degrees. March 1 is a good date to plan for. Where to buy plants – Buchanan’s, Another Place in Time, Southwest Fertilizer, Wabash. Varieties (cherries vs large) […]
Harvesting Tomatoes, Peppers and Other Spring Vegetables
To avoid pests and diseases, we harvest tomatoes and peppers (both sweet and hot) at the first sign of blush (red, yellow, gold, purple, black). They are then put on our kitchen counter or other surface (not necessary to be in sunlight) to ripen. In this way, we prevent damage that would have happened between […]
5th Annual Tomato Tasting – A Celebration of Summer
What says, “Summertime” more than vine ripened tomatoes? Westbury Community Garden celebrated the tomato at its 5th Annual Tomato Tasting on June 2. The event was our most heavily attended to date with approximately 80 gardeners, friends and neighbors participating. We had some old time favorites and some new varieties this year, as we do […]
Garden Goodies
My tomato garden has been very productive this year. The picture shows tomatoes canned today (24 pints) plus those waiting to be canned.I had previously canned 56 pints in the last couple of weeks. That makes 80 pints so far of tomatoes and tomato sauce. I will get at least 15 more pints from those […]
Urban Harvest HUB Garden
As one of the well-established community gardens in Houston, Westbury Community Garden has been appointed to be an Urban Harvest HUB garden site. There are several Urban Harvest HUB gardens around the city. A HUB garden serves as a regional center for newer community gardens to meet for Urban Harvest education and other events. There […]
2016 Tomato Tasting Results Are In
On June 4th we had to reschedule the 3rd Annual Tomato Tasting because of the week long deluge of thunderstorms, but June 11 proved to be a bright sunny day and the grounds were dry! Shifting the date also meant our volunteers had to commit to two Saturdays and out tomato growers were not able to supply […]