I suspect this is some kind of foodie heresy...

[ratcreature]

So unlike last year, this year I've managed to get my homegrown tomato plants to actually produce some tomatoes. Not that many so far, probably because growing indoor in a flowerpot is less than ideal, but at least they do produce fruit. However the tomatoes don't actually taste significantly different or better to me than supermarket tomatoes. Well, they are somewhat smaller and their skin is a bit tougher, but they pretty much taste like a regular mass-produced tomato. OTOH at least I'm sure they have 100% less pesticides on them.

Comments

[maire]

Tomatoes vary. Some types are like wet cardboard; some are delicious.

You must have decent ones available to buy where you are.

I'm impressed you got them fertilised indoors, though. I always put mine outside while they're flowering, at least, so they'll make me fruit.

[maire]

The other option is brushing the flowers with a paintbrush.

[ratcreature]

Heh, I didn't make that much effort. That seems more like the individual spa treatment variety of fertilization (also I'd feel kind of silly). I just tap the stalks with the flowers on them lightly when I water them. Not every flower makes it into a tomato this way, but plenty do. My problem is more that they don't get that many flowers to begin with, but are fond of using their energy to produce masses of leaves instead. I suspect I should be more rigorous in pruning them or something. I cut some side shoots, but probably should do something more or different.

[sholio]

*nods* That's how I do mine -- I just jiggle them gently, and they seem to do fine. (Well, no worse than they do outside, anyway. I do not seem to be having good luck with tomatoes lately. But there are some bitty baby 'matoes on the vines just now, so hopefully they'll go ahead and develop into decent fruit this year.)

[maire]

Sounds to me as though you must have good tomatoes to buy where you are. But I don't know much about it -- I don't prune mine at all -- I hadn't even thought of doing so! I just plant them in pots and then pick the tomatoes at the end of the season.

[ratcreature]

I didn't mean to imply the tomatoes tasted bad, or completely bland like the poor excuse for tomatoes that sells completely out of season during winter. Just that they taste like an average tomato. Probably because the seeds I grew them from where plain tomatoes, not some special variety.

But if you gently shake the tomato plant when it flowers (or just the part with the flowers) that takes care of the fertilization. They can self-fertilize, or with wind, they don't need insects, so you just have to do something to cause equivalent movement.

[shadowvalkyrie]

Psssht, don't tell the hippies!

[lazar-grrl.livejournal.com]

It could be the type of tomato you planted. Heirloom varieties tend to be a little tastier than the more commercially available types. Our early-producing hybrid tomatoes are not the most flavorful, while the later heirloom types are quite savory.

[ratcreature]

I'm not even sure what heirloom tomatoes are. I mean I guess from the name that they are older varieties or earlier tomato cultivars, but I don't think I've ever seen anything like that sold here, not even in organic stores. I don't think these can be found here at all (at least not with a reasonable amount of effort).

[lazar-grrl.livejournal.com]

The UK term is "heritage tomato," so that may bring a bit more luck. They are tomato strains which haven't been hybridized and standardized to death, like most of the tomatoes you get in supermarkets. You can order seeds online, so that may help if you're interested.

[ratcreature]

I'm not sure I'm that invested in growing awesome tomatoes. Maybe if I actually had a garden rather than a windowsill. But maybe if they get more popular I'll eventually see some in an organic food store here so that I can try different kinds of tomato.