Tomato…Tomate…Paradeiser…

Most years, I grow a tomato plant on the balcony. During the season, local professionals sell very tasty normal tomatoes for reasonable rates at the Freising outdoor markets; the balcony tomato is more affectation than nutrition. Since all leisure activities and travel ideas for 2021 are closed, banned, and/or canceled…and the unvaccinated who live in Germany are to be interned indefinitely…and Germany will not yet allow me to be vaccinated (estimated wait time “rotflmao!”)…I thought, what the hell, I am going to go crazy and spend my summer growing TWO tomato plants. TWO! Ich bewege mich zwischen Genie und Wahnsinn…

Everything is probably not in its final place yet, I just finished potting them all today. There is one Johannisbeertomate (on the teak table), a Peruvian variety which yields fruits the size of currants, and one Indigo Rose (on the floor), that won’t give me any fruit until late August but I’ll have fun watering it for four months! (The linked German tomato blogger did not care for the taste of the Indigo Rose, but I don’t grow weird colors for the taste…)

And instead of one pepper plant, I can grow THREE! Not pictured is a red mild (1-1000 Scoville) peperoni that I sort of regret buying instead of a real chili, but I can always buy another pot if I find a Thai chili somewhere. In the cat-proofing net (that doesn’t actually keep the cat from munching on leaves and barfing them back up immediately any time he thinks no one is watching him) is a Spitzpaprika, like a red bell pepper but pointy. On the crate is a Jalapeño (3,500-8,000 Scoville) that exists only to give me something to fill with cream cheese, wrap with bacon, smother in cheddar, and count as one of my Five-A-Day.

At least one small thing I can look forward to. Mmmm…cream cheese…