Farmer Ted

Farmer Ted - checking out his handiwork

When Ted told me he wanted to do a Topsy Turvy and plant tomatoes a couple of years ago - I thought he was nuts.  Last year, I found one on clearance and brought it home to him and told him that the next spring he could plant it.  This spring when he told me he wanted to attach a metal rod to my deck to plant his Topsy Turvy, I wasn't too thrilled.  I gave in when he told me he was going to attach it in a not permanent way.

Pretty red one -will be delicious on my sammich

He was a bit late getting it all set up and planted.  It was a bit after Mother's Day - because the temperatures were not the warmest and weren't too great to plant.  He has religiously and deliberately watered his beautiful tomato plants twice daily since he planted them.  I told him he was overwatering and I got into a little bit of trouble when he was out of town and I was supposed to take care of them - I only watered them once a day.

While he was out of town, I think I counted maybe twelve little tomatoes.  Ted counts them every day.  Today he had 64 - he was excited, because yesterday he had 65 and he plucked three of the little yellow cherry tomatoes off of it.

Little yellow cherry tomatoes

I was skeptical.  I was a little unsupportive.  But, I have to say - he's proven himself to be quite the little Topsy Turvy gardener.  He found three more Topsy Turvy's on clearance the other day - so he says he wants to do all three of them next year.  I suggested cherry tomatoes in one, bigger tomatoes for sandwiches for the second one and pumpkins in the third.  I don't think he finds me as funny as I find myself.