On the train

Its been a while since my last post. I am still an Ironworkers and have just finished my week at home. It is 8 in the morning and I am on the train to Ottawa which is where I catch the plane to Albian and then the bus to Wapasu Camp.

I like the train. I travel on Via Rail. They have comfortable seats and free Internet. I always get a window seat as there is a plug for my iPhone so that I can keep charged up. They also have a little food trolley from which they serve coffee and minor refreshments. So it is all winning for me and costs about the same as the gas it would cost for Julie to drive me.

The route is pleasant as the little train winds it's way to Ottawa. It runs down the edge of lake. From Cobourg where I board it heads east until Brockville and then orth through Smith Falls and on into Ottawa. The total trip is about 3:15 start to finish.

As I know the route quite well I often daydream while looking out the window. So I only sort of see the familiar places along the way. I think a lot about work while heading east and a out home when I take the train the other direction. It seems pretty natural.

Today I am not thinking as much about work as usual. Instead I am thinking about my garden. Over my week off I planted close to 200 seeds in little peat pots in anticipation of this summer's garden. A great number of those plants are tomatoes of about 25 varieties. Some I got from the grocery stare as part of the produce. This includes my Roma paste tomatoes which came to my house packaged in the tomato itself. Some I harvested the seeds from plants that I grew last year (tiny Tim's, pink ladies, etc). Some I harvested from fruit that was given to me by people in the community garden last year (Dr. Wyches, Oxhearts, Scotias, etc). Some came from seed packs that I saw in stores (Red Brandywines, Sweeties, etc). Finally some I ordered online through different sites. These include Fred Limbaugh Potato-tops, Striped Cavern paste tomatoes, Tiger's Eye paste, Black Cherrys, Sweet Virginias, etc. So far more tomatoes than I will ever eat personally.

The fact is that I don't eat many tomatoes at all! Seriously, the odd one in a salad and some on a BLT when they are ripe. You might wonder why I am clearly obsessed with growing the fruit that looks like a vegetable. So let me explain it to you.

There are probably three main reasons why I grow tomatoes. The first has to do with my Granny on the Knight side. When I was a boy of ten I wanted to grow a garden. My parents didn't garden in those days and we had very little money. So I went to my Granny who lived with us and asked her to give me the money for a hoe. She agreed on condition that I grow her some tomatoes. So I planted a couple Long with several other vegetables. I should point out that in those days I wouldn't eat a tomato if you paid me. So where I picked away at all the other things which I tried growing and stunted them severely in the process my tomatoes were unharassed and turned out beautifully.

A second reason with my growing so many tomatoes is my obsessive and curious nature. I read about various tomato varieties and get curious. Then I simply have to try them. An example is my Fred Limbaugh Potato-tops. I read an article online about this guy who was a fourth generation grower of a variety that was developed in the first of those generations. Each generation grew more than they needed and so gave seeds or little plants to anyone who was interested. The last guy, Fred Limbaugh, had been following in the footsteps of his forbearers despite the fact that he personally never ate tomatoes! The fruit he produced was a large beefsteak variety with lots of resistance to wilt and what was described as a smoky flavour that would make a great BLT even with no bacon! So the story sold me and I had to have some. Curiosity and obsession drive a lot of what I do.

Finally, I simply like to be generous. I like to give away things and summer-fresh tomatoes are usually well received. I am growing all sizes and shapes and colours. So I can give lots away and it doesn't cost much to do it. I will be making and jarring a lot of salsa. I love making pasta sauce so I will make lots of that too but being generous with my produce appeals to me.

Another aspect of my obsession which satisfies my need to be generous is in giving away the plants themselves. I love putting a few plants into my mother's yard so that she and my Dad can have fresh tomatoes daily. Over half of my stock are 'determinate' meaning that they only grow from one to three feet tall and then start pounding out the fruit. These varieties are ideal for growing in a flower pot and they tend to require no pruning. So you just water them and away you go. That makes them good gifts for people who only have time to water their produce.

Well that's my tomatoe obsession in a nutshell. And that's what I have been thinking a out while on the train. I can't wait for the end of this work turnaround to see how many have come up! I have them in a window at the moment but will have to get lights on them when they break through the soil. But that will be next turn around. :)