[Guest Post] Memories of Summer and Tips on growing the best tomatoes.

When I think about summer, I think about the heat, the bright yellow sun, the beautiful flowers growing on my deck and the deep red tomatoes growing in my garden. For as long as I can remember, summer meant eating garden fresh tomatoes, first grown by my father and then later in my own garden.

As a child I would walk up to the tomato plants, pluck a cherry tomato right off the vine and pop it into my mouth! The warm, juicy tomato-ey goodness was something I craved.

As I grew older I craved the BLTs, the bologna sandwiches, the salads and the sliced tomato with a little salt with each meal. I would eat so many tomatoes that my stomach, sick from the acidic contents would ache for days.

Now that I have children, I am passing on this little tradition with them. We have planted the seeds, watched them grow into mature plants taller than themselves and in just a couple more weeks, we will be enjoying our very own tomatoes at each meal. I personally can’t wait!

For me, growing the perfect tomato has not always been easy. My father passed away before I could learn his tips and tricks. It was my grandfather, my father’s father who told me one day while walking through his greenhouse what type of tomatoes we grow in our family. After years of practice and patience, I have come up with a practice that works well for me and my favorite summer treat.

Below are some tips for you should you try to develop your own tomato-growing green thumb.

Debt Princess Tomato Tips:
-grow only Better Boys, in my opinion and that of my father and grandfather, they taste the best!
-plant in a raised bed filled with Ferti lome potting mix.
-add worm casting around the tomato plants every two weeks.
-Marigolds planted around the tomato plants to deter pests.

Don’t know what I mean by worm castings? Stay tuned, I’ll be blogging on this topic in the coming weeks. And I’ll be sure to share with you when my “Better Boys” have arrived.

The Debt Princess is Jessica, a divorced, mother of 2 special needs children who has made some really stupid mistakes. She blogs about her debt and how it is sometimes an overwhelming process trying to become debt free. Visit her blog to see how she’s doing, and to learn some great tips.