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Eastern Pennsylvania

1.952 pounds... I think this was the heaviest tomato grown this winter but not sure. I'm fairly certain that I cannot catch you though, as I am currently only 11 to 12 inches with just 10 days left to grow. I have learned a lot from you this winter and really enjoy watching all of your projects.

3/10/2020 9:22:27 AM

Wixom MI.

Congratulations bnot and orangeneck yours is looking great but you need to start earlier next year !!!

3/10/2020 9:58:13 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Thanks Jim, It was not a good year for me this year but I will take it, since this was a new grow room for me...I have a lot more years winter growing experience than rest of the growers that tried it this year. Probably more years experience than the rest combined.

So far this winter grow...i have the growers that have weighed something:

Vincent Wolf .64 pounds (10.2 oz)
Zeke .26 pounds (4.2 oz)
Carlo less than 2 oz

Let me know if I have missed someone

With about 9 days to go, it could be close between Orangeneck and Carlo.

Orangeneck is between 11 and 12 inches and Carlo is at 9 inches. My first year was 1/2 pound, so I see a chance of some good competition in the future.

3/10/2020 6:35:31 PM

Newcastle, CA

Keep it up! nice goin!

3/10/2020 7:28:04 PM

Torino, ITALY

9 inches is my new tomato (mysterious italian variety) which I plan to keep growing for seeds; my competition tomato, to be weighted on March 19 (Eptein PL) actually runs between 11 and 12 inches

3/10/2020 7:38:09 PM

Gone With The Win

awesome bnot that is impressive for an indoor grow. WOW

3/10/2020 9:57:30 PM

Norfolk, UK

Nice work - hard work on indoor lights alone

3/11/2020 2:33:08 AM

Oak Grove, Mn

Wow, even closer 11+ inches to 11+ inches. I think that Orangeneck might wait until after spring deadline to weigh it though.

3/11/2020 5:33:17 AM

Central NY

Nice bob!...

3/11/2020 10:43:09 AM

Western Washington

Thank you for sharing your setup, Bob! I found your posts to be interesting and informative. I'm sure you will get things dialed in better next year, yay!

I also like your tomatoes, Carlo! Sporty Italian Tomatoes! Keep up the good work and I'm sure you will also have a personal best next season!

3/11/2020 1:46:14 PM

Grittyville, WA

Impressive! Congrats all. My grow lights are failing as fast as christmas lights... but other than that I would like to try again...

3/11/2020 2:07:32 PM

Eastern Pennsylvania

Being new to the winter competition I want to mention something that I was completely caught off guard by and still don’t get and that is why the plants can be started anytime before the beginning of winter, in the fall, but have to weigh the tomatoes before the end of winter. Silly me I waited until winter began which led to my troubles. It’s all for fun and science so I don’t care but are there some rules somewhere?

3/11/2020 3:44:25 PM

Grittyville, WA

Yeah... I will second that... It should be the fall/ winter grow... Start seed Sept. 21/22 or thereafter...? I started early because I knew from the previous year... Those who cant bring their temps up into the mid eighties should adjust their start time backwards. Bnot is Mr. Speedy!!

3/11/2020 4:21:43 PM

Wixom MI.

Their are no rules set in stone but starting any time after November 1 was a good time to start. Bnot being that he had such strong lights and near 90° heat in his grow room a few years back he could grow his plants twice as fast as most of us. So bob could start his plants January 1 and get it to flower by February 1 and be ripe by march 21 were as most of us can't do that unless your grow area is over 80° so it is best to start earlier to give yourself time to grow and adapt to problems that might happen like flowers not taking or blosom end rot.

3/11/2020 4:24:48 PM

Central NY

Still hard to beat a BLT at the end of winter...yum

3/11/2020 4:36:31 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

I actually started soaking the seed that grew 1.952 on Dec 22, 2019. That was one day past the start of winter. It was pollinated about a month later. It was picked on March 8,2020...eleven days before the end of the competion. I could have started this plant on Jan 1st this year and still had enough time. For some reason the plants move much faster for me than other winter growers. For the first few years, growers were thinking if they hadn't started by Nov 1st, that it was too late.

The first month, I kept the the grow room under 80 degrees. I do give the hydro plants a P-K overload at just under 3 weeks to push the formation of 1st truss megas. After the tomato set, I dropped the day temp to 75-77 degrees hoping to extend the days of growth. It still flashed too early.

The deadline of the first day of spring to declare the winner has always been the same. Growers have started at any time after the pumpkin weighoffs. This goes back to the first winter grow...which was started by Caton Domke. My first attempt at giant tomatoes was that winter. Because this is a for fun contest, rules are very limited. It has to be indoors under lights. We allow any scale, hopefully you try to pick one that is reasonable accurate.

Wixom, I hope next winter you will get back into it...now you have that fancy white light led

3/11/2020 5:36:20 PM

Grittyville, WA

You were on a first truss bnot? Each truss past first takes about two additional weeks for me... Anyhow well done! And... yours really was a winter grow!!

3/11/2020 5:51:02 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

Getting the blossoms to set and avoiding BER is very achievable. It is just a matter of your pollination technique and for me, utilization of calcium chloride. Most common problems the new winter growers have faced have been: plants do not flower (usually a sign of not enough heat or not enough red light spectrum), blossoms not setting (indoor growers have to be the bee...vibration and catching pollen and putting it back works), and BER. Many approaches have been tried...i have only had success with lightly spraying the early set tomato with calcium chloride until it reaches about 14 inches.
5 years of winter growing...my results:
2015/2016 .50 pounds
2016/2017 2.51 pounds
2017/2018 2.53 pounds
2018/2019 2.14 pounds
2019/2020 1.95 pounds

I am going backwards the last few years...

3/11/2020 5:51:37 PM

Torino, ITALY

My Epstein finished @ 11.5 inches and 0.59 pounds.
I have another tomato growing quite well, not in time for winter competition, but I will keep it for PB and for seeds.

3/15/2020 4:15:10 AM

Central NY

Nice Carlo!!

3/15/2020 1:25:34 PM

Oak Grove, Mn

congratulation Carlo, you beat my first year. I hope you are doing well during the lockdown in Italy.

3/15/2020 6:24:04 PM

Torino, ITALY

Thanks Steve and Robert, I'm fine, lockdown is quite boring, but at least I have to attend the tomatoes :)

3/16/2020 9:27:51 AM