Growing Heirloom Tomatoes

This spring we cleaned out our massive seed collection and planted all the heirloom varieties that we have saved or got gifted over the years, around 15 - 20 different coloured tomatoes. With no expectation on germination rates, we are pleasantly surprised by how many came up. We enjoy trying new produce each year and we plan to collect seeds of the varieties we love. Our little seedlings have their first true leaves poking through. Our goal is to plant a couple rows in the greenhouse, many in pots and the rest in the field.

Tomatoes are one of the many versatile crops we grow here at Thistle Hill Farms. During peak season we always do a large harvest and fill one of our freezers full. We use these tomatoes throughout the winter - spring to create sauce. We finally gotten around to making a large batch and we enough to do another. Homemade tomato sauce is used on pizza, pasta and as an ingredient in shepherds pie, stews and curries. Two years ago we separated each heirloom to create different coloured sauces, which turned out pretty rad. Any of the smaller cherry or cocktail style tomatoes we can as whole and crushed for soups and stews. We even dehydrated them and grind into powder for seasonings or to make a quick tomato paste by mixing with water. Not to mention they are wonderful fresh too.

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