GIN TRASH- "THE ANGEL IN ANGEL HAIR PASTA"

2011 Gin Trash

Several years ago my sister-in-law, who is a "surenuff' hot-shot lawyer in Houston, Texas, questioned me about the use of gin trash in my tomato garden. Marley is partial to Mississippi Delta tomatoes and I have, in the past, shipped vine ripe fruit to her for her parties. She is very particular about what she serves and likes to demonstrate to the Texas folks the superiority of homegrown Mississippi Delta Tomatoes.

The following exchange of emails adequately explains my feelings about Gin Trash:

Me to Marley:

I have just inspected my crop and I think I can supply you enough ripe tomatoes for your party. I will have about eight by tomorrow. They are 1/4 to 1/2 lb each, and would make good slicers. I need shipping instructions. I can FedEx Thursday for delivery to your office on Friday. Let me know and I will make the arrangements.

You will be receiving good varieties: Goliath, Big Beef, Belgum Giant, Dona and Kastalia, I can ship with a cool pak and I think they will be alright. These tomatoes have been enhanced over the years with gin trash as a soil additive. Therefore these babies represent some of the finest cotton plantations in the Mississippi Delta-- Egypt, RackRent, Archerletta, Holly Grove, 4/5's, Equen, etc, etc.- Webb

Marley's reply: 

People are asking me what gin trash is.  I told them it is a euphemistic term for disgusting cotton hull sludge dredged up from the bottom of the Yazoo river!  Marley

My explanatory reply to Marley:

No, No , No!  Gin trash is the angel in angel hair pasta. It is the creme de la creme of soil additives. Certainly your friends have seen a cotton gin! They all have a long tall pipe that extends out of the gin to the backside of the gin lot. This pipe sucks up all of the trash in the gin after the cotton has been processed. It sucks up all that is left on the gin floor- cottonseed hulls, wasted fiber, and mainly the dirt from the plantations which produced the cotton. This trash is blown out of the long pipe and makes a huge mound, or pile, of gin trash on the back of every gin site. Evidently there is no other commercial use for this stuff except for eccentric tomato growers. The big pile of this stuff, which accumulates from year to year, makes huge mounds which are left out side in the open to rot, or compost. I am very particular in the "gin trash" I use as a soil additive to my crop. It must be at least three years old and relatively weed free. It must be well composted and crumbly to the touch, and it must be cost free to me. I have been very fortunate over the years to have befriended most of the managers of gins in and around Greenwood and they have allowed me to selectively choose the trash I take. My trusty friend, Boone, and I travel in my old pickup truck (inherited from my cousin. Earnest, Jr. from Inverness) with a shovel and a pitchfork to harvest this most essential additive to my garden. We have been doing this for many years. Therefore I consider my tomatoes to have a part of the whole Mississippi Delta in them. Gin trash is a specifically definable commodity, which does not come from the bottom of the Yazoo River. –Webb

BUILDING A RAISED TOMATO BED

My hat's off to John Doty Porter, his son, Doty and three of his excellent farm workers. They have furnished me with all the materials for my new tomato bed. The new bed is 20' x 8' and is constructed with old railroad ties from the Illinois Central Railroad. A huge flatbed truck arrived in my back yard fully loaded with the railroad ties and pulling a dump trailer fully loaded with totally composted Gin Trash pilfered from the old Morgan City Gin.

With the expertise of the Porters' and their crew the bed was completed in less than an hour. The following photos are self explanatory and demonstrate how competent this crew was in this endeavor:

Now, all I have to do is add the oak wood ashes from our fire place and till the new bed to incorporate the Gin Trash into the soil. When finished this new raised bed will be the envy of every tomato gardener on planet earth! I think I made a pretty good deal with John Doty by supplying him a few tomato plants in exchange for the work done on this new bed. Don't you?

More on Gin Trash later.

SEEDS HAVE SPROUTED!!!

Week 1 after planting.

Exactly one week after planting the tomato seed have begun to sprout. It looks as if we will have a very good germination rate. Most of the seed are poking through the potting mix now and I'm  hoping that we have 100%. germination this year. If so I'll have to pot up over 200 plants.

Cherry Tomatoes- How 16 Became 20

If you are keeping up with my progress you will note that I have actually seeded 20 different varieties. In a previous post I described in detail the 16 indeterminate varieties. I have also seeded four different cherry tomatoes. I am sort of new to Cherries. I personally like them and keep a hidden salt shaker in the garden to eat them right off the vine. My old friend, Bobby Olmsted, likes them a lot and I try and get him a bunch or two each year.

This year I will try Black Cherry, Sun Gold, Supersweet 100 and Riesentraube. Black Cherry is a large dark fruit and is really tasty. Sun Gold, like its name is golden when ripe and very sweet. These two are repeats for me and boy, are they prolific. I am trying to find a real good red cherry to go with these two must grow varieties and have been unsuccessful in the past. This year the reds will be Supersweet 100 and Riesentraube. What I am shooting for is a colorful medely of black, gold and red.

I am partial to a recipe using ripe red cherry tomatoes which we served at my daughter's wedding:

Lansdale's Wedding Tomatoes

Fresh red cherry tomatoes
Kosher salt
Vodka
Toothpicks

Harvest fresh red cherry tomatoes. Stick several holes in each tomato with a tooth pick and soak overnight in a copious amount of good vodka. Chill in ice box. Drain vodka and save for Bloody Mary's. Serve soaked tomatoes with toothpicks and Kosher salt. These appetizers will have your guests in interesting and exciting conversation in no time. For more great recipes...see my daughter's food blog: Sweet Salty and Southern.

SEEDING TIME

I may be rushing it a bit but I have seeded the 2011 tomatoes today. The groundhog said we are to have an early spring and I want to be ready as early as possible. This planting day was cold and snow is still on the ground from the four inch blizzard the Delta experienced two days ago.

Getting ready to plant the seed is somewhat of a chore but necessary. I was up early this morning and to Wal-Mart. Purchased Miracle-Gro potting mix and twenty aluminum small loaf baking tins. My trusty ice pick was called into service to poke holes in the baking tins to allow for proper drainage. I then appropriated two large heavy duty cookie sheets from the bottom of the stove. From past experience I know that each cookie sheet will hold ten baking tins. That will allow me to plant 20 different varieties and I will only have to move two trays. The trays will have to be moved several times during the process to insure proper germination and seedling development to control the temperature and exposure to sunlight.

After preparing the seed containers, I fill each with the potting mix leaving about 1/4 inch at the top to cover the planted seed. Because all the seedlings will look exactly the same when they sprout, it is extremely important to carefully mark each container to identify the variety planted in that container. As shown in the photo, I make the markers using a permanent Sharpie and place the seed packet and the marker in the containers before the first seed is planted, It is also important for the potting mix to be watered before seeding. It is easier to do this before planting the seed so when the containers are filled the mix is already good and wet. (Watering seed planted in dry mix sometimes displaces the seed which have been carefully placed in the containers.) I simply open the bag containing the mix and pour a bunch of water directly into the bag. The dry mix will absorb the water in no time at all.

2011 Seeds/February 12th.

Each of these containers will easily germinate as many seed as you want to plant. I normally plant from ten to twenty seed in each container. I try to spread them out as much as possible as it is easier to transplant  the seedlings into the growing pots later without disturbing the tender roots. Tomato seed are tiny and if one has old eyes as I do a good pair of reading glasses is essential to this part of the planting process. Shake out of the seed packet the number of seed you want to plant on a hard flat surface. Then carefully place the seed, one by one, in the bread tin. Cover the seed with 1/4 inch of the potting mix, place the marker and you are done. Because I save old seed from the seed packets in the freezer, it is prudent to plant two or three more seed than you actually want to pot up. The germination rate is normally 100% if you purchase the seed from a reliable source, but the older the seed, the less the germination rate. I always record the number of seed planted and the number of seed sprouted to be sure my old seed are still good.

After planting I place the two filled trays in the warmest place in the house which in my case is our breakfast room by the heater. I am careful to keep the trays watered and in a week to ten days the seed should sprout.

So many choices!! THE SWEET SIXTEEN for 2011

My annual dilemma is selecting the tomato varieties I will plant in my garden. This year I will have enough room for sixteen plants. After much study and thought, I have selected nine Heirloom varieties and seven hybrids. All of the hybrids (with the exception of Porterhouse) have been grown before and have proven to be reliable producers in our Delta climate. The heirlooms are grown for variety and taste. The 2011 crop will consist of the following:

HYBRIDS

1. Dona This is a French hybrid grown for French fresh markets. I have some rare F1 seed purchased ten years ago. I bought 1/4 oz. (alot) of seed and have been using them many years. The seeds were discontinued for export, but I have a good supply which should last several more years. My wife and I agree that Dona is our favorite of all the tomatoes I have ever grown.

2. Goliath I love this variety as it has proven over the years to be the most productive of all my plants. The fruit is a little larger than Dona and will produce a minimum of 50 tomatoes through the season.

3. Better Boy This is the Mississippi Delta favorite. Everyone grew up here planting Better Boy, and it has proven to be one of the most reliable varieties for our hot and humid climate.

4.Big Beef A good big hybrid. I am planting this one this year at the request of Dr. Charles Purifoy who bought the seed and delivered it to my office last week.

5. Park's Whopper The Whopper is comparable to Big Beef. It has very large fruit but for me has not been quite as productive as Goliath. I usually alternate between the two, but this year I am planting both.

6. Brandy Boy This is a great new hybrid from Burpee. One of its parents is the famous Brandywine heirloom. I grew it last year for the first time and had a wonderful early crop until the blight destroyed it and all others in my garden. It is supposed to have the same excellent taste as Brandywine and the durability and disease resistance of Better Boy.

7. Porterhouse Another relatively new hybrid from Burpee which is supposed to produce 1 1/2 lb fruit. I am trying this one for the first time and in honor of John Doty Porter who will furnish me all the accoutrements for my new garden plot.

HEIRLOOMS

8. Mariana's Peace Who could blame me for not wanting to try this variety after reading its description from the seed supplier.

"The sugary nectar of this huge 5 inch tomato’s creamy, dense, red flesh is intensely rich, with perfect sweet-acid balance and sublime, complex flavors reminiscent of the finest of the 'old-fashioned' tomato flavors. This big, beautiful irresistible 1-2 lb. deep red fruit is the talk of the tomato world and has found its way into Top 10 favorite tomato lists of gourmands worldwide. It is perfection."

This will be my first year for Mariana's Peace. The only knock on this one from grower reports is that it takes 85 days from plant out to maturity.

9. Delicious This plant produces huge tomatoes. It holds the world record for largest tomato ever grown at 7 1/2 lbs. Most of the "so called" giant tomatoes are related to this original Delicious. I have harvested a 2 1/4 lbs. fruit years ago. That year I borrowed my next door neighbor's child, photographed her with the Delicious and the photo appeared in the Greenwood Commonwealth. That one was the largest I have ever grown, but it only meritied a third place finish in the big tomato contest. Three years before his death, my dear friend Jim Evans delivered me a Delicious from a plant I had given him that weighed almost three pounds. It was the ugliest tomato I have ever seen, but enormous.

10. Hillbilly This old heirloom supposedly came from West Virginia. It is a small beef steak type of average size. The fruit is orangish-yellow on the outside and red streaked inside. It is reputed to have a very sweet taste, akin to a peach. This is my first year to try Hillbilly and hopefully I will harvest some to serve to my grandchildren who do not like tomatoes that taste like tomatoes.

11. Red Brandywine Everyone has heard about this heirloom. It is supposed to be the best tasting tomato ever grown. I have tried this one before without much luck harvesting only three ripe ones from a huge plant. The taste was wonderful, but I just couldn't get the prolific blooms to set fruit. Jimmy Lynn and Brenda Long grew one of my Brandywines last year and have requested more this year. They had a real good crop and raved about the taste.

12. Kellogg's Breakfast This plant produces very large Yellow/Orange tomatoes. It has been one of my most reliable "exotics". I like the taste, but my wife says it is disgusting because tomatoes are supposed to be red. Friend and fellow grower, Bubba Fraiser grew one of my Kellog's last year and it was the prettiest plant I have ever seen and produced all season long. I stole a number of these jewels from Bubba's plant long after all of mine had succumbed to the blight last year.

13. Cherokee Purple This variety was supposedly grown by the Cherokee Indians in Tennessee long before they were displaced to Oklahoma. I have grown before with minimal success. It is normally classified as a "black" tomato, but my experience is that it is deep red on the outside with a very deep red inside. Taste is really good but my production was not great. I like Cherokee's cousin Indian Stripe (see below) much better for production, but the taste experts all prefer Cherokee.

14. Indian Stripe Some of the fruit of this plant really are striped. They have a very dark green top with the stripes running down to the blossom end. When they ripen the dark green tops turn almost black and the inside has a very dark and attractive appearence. I will always grow this variety. It produces delicious tomatoes and is prolific. The fruit are a little smaller than Cherokee Purple but the production is about double. I have also found that Indian Stripe is hardy and resists the blight better than most heirlooms. My taste buds are probably not the best, but I really can't tell the difference between Cherokee Purple and Indian Stripe.

15. Black Krim I have been trying hard to find a really black tomato that will fare well in the Mississippi Delta. This one is supposed to be very dark and is supposed to be darker grown in hot climates. I will try Black Krim this year for the first time. If it flops then Carbon next year.

16. Pruden's Purple This is another first grow for me. I have selected it because it has been touted to rival Brandywine as best tasting tomato ever. It is really a dark, dark pink tomato with potato leaves. This was my last choice and it beat out Mortgage Lifter to be my number 16. We'll see.

Getting ready for a new garden plot

For about thirty years I have been planting my tomatoes in the exact same 12' x 15' plot. I have been relegated to this spot by my wife and she has refused to let me move it to a more suitable place in our yard.

In that I have been fighting what I believe to be a soil borne disease for the last couple of years and have not had my normal good production, my wife has finally relented and allowed me to move the tomatoes to the back portion of our back yard. I am really excited about this new space. This also leaves me my old spot for new and better things.

This year, as always, after the tomatoes were pulled, I planted turnip greens, mustard and radish in the old spot. Production was good this year and next week I will turn the green remnants into the soil as I have been doing for many years. I will plant the whole plot in Silver Queen Corn. It will be my first experience with corn. All I really know about it is that I love to eat fresh sweet corn and can't wait to take the fresh ears directly from the stalk to the boiling pot.

Now for the preparations for the new tomato garden. 
In exchange for tomato plants, my farmer friend, John Dody Porter, has agreed to give me 12 railroad crossties and with them I will construct two 4' x 16' raised beds in the new spot. He also has an interest in the old LeCo gin near Sidon and has agreed to furnish me a good load of well composted gin trash for the filler in the new beds. I will till the gin trash into the new soil and hopefully this will provide an excellent growing medium for the tomatoes. I plan on planting eight plants in each bed. Each plant will be of a different variety and if they all produce we will have our friends over for a tasting contest.