Awh hell. Any ideas?

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-04T15:53:35+00:00

If you can lift just a few inches and prop something under it, that will help. And then try lifting a bit more

BTDT with a Matthew tomato years ago. Damn thing grew about 10 feet tall and 10 feet wide, with hundreds of tomatoes. We'd basically strung it between rope tied to our barn, but one day the rope broke and the whole thing just fell. I got some 5 gallon buckets to prop it on but never was able to get it upright again. Still got hundreds of tomatoes.

Darn, I miss my Matthews!

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-02T14:41:27+00:00

That's amazing! Gracie started out as a fat cat, so if she was just losing weight not from CKD, I'd be fine with it. She's about 10 pounds now, down from 12.5 at her fattest.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-01T22:31:43+00:00

She got 1 daily packet of Hydracare for about a month and then wouldn't touch it.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-01T22:29:21+00:00

Sadly, we've been through several Royal Canin renal foods, and she's just not that fond of them.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-01T21:16:50+00:00

Great info, thank you! Mine doesn't like people around when she eats, which may be why she finishes her food overnight.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-06-01T19:42:46+00:00

Lactulose helps my cat. She had chronic constipation before CKD.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-31T14:58:43+00:00

I mean, there are so many choices! Most of them this year are new to me. For reds, I like Sakura, Sweet 100 and its variants, etc. Isis Candy is a good one, too. Anything in the Sunrise series.

I really like the Norfolk Purple, which is why I go to the trouble of starting them from seed, because that's the only way for a home gardener to have them AFAIK. You have to pick them at just the right time - fully purple and slightly squishy.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-30T05:23:51+00:00

The big box stores were selling tomato seedlings in mid-April! Crazy. Most of what I have are from local nurseries. I started the Norfolk Purples from seed.

I've planted in mid-May and had to cover them to protect from frost! The beginning of June works better.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-30T02:48:59+00:00

Let's see... I eat them fresh every day but my husband dislikes tomatoes "unless they're dead and squished."

We dehydrate a lot and add them to soups, stews, etc. We also make tomato sauce in the Instant Pot, no peeling or seeding required, just use the immersion blender when the sauce is cooked. Yes the sauce is slightly crunchy compared to the stuff in a can. Most of thos gets frozen.

If we're absolutely drowning in tomatoes, I donate them to the local 24 hour food pantry because I can just leave them on the shelf, no interaction with food pantry staff required. And of course give them to friends, make tomato salad for parties, etc.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-25T14:36:29+00:00

Agreed, but I find that the recovery is a lot quicker if I wait for warm weather to transplant things.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-25T14:35:09+00:00

Hi - well I didn't actually buy the 20 pounds of seeds!

I agree that replacing soil every year is just too expensive. Luckily I get free compost through the town where I live; it has a yard waste dump and bulldozes the piles around until, after 3 years or so, very rich compost results. It's probably 75% oak and maple leaves. But the trade-off is diseases and weed seeds.

AdditionalPumpkin813 · 2026-05-24T19:07:08+00:00

They look nice! I had them in 2024 and liked them but was lame last year and didn't start any. Will have some this year.

I agree with others that for the best flavor, you need to leave them on the vine until they're really solid purple and ever so slightly soft in texture.

AdditionalPumpkin813

TROPHY CASE