Worried about the Tomato Scare? Grow Your Own!

I just want to add my quick 2 cents to the McD's tomato recall and worry that everyone is voicing about the source of the salmonella-tainted fruits. Our current cover story is all about tomato growing and NOW (mid-June) is actually the optimal time to buy those started tomato seedlings at your local garden center or farmer's market and plop them into the warm earth. YOU have complete control of the hygiene and handling of your crop. You can go all organic and not need to worry about store-display perfection. Best of all, what is more LOCAL than your own garden?

Looking for yummy varieties? In the print magazine, we list the favorites of many local growers and tomato-aficionados. They range from the ugly-but-tasty Cherokee Purple to the sweet-as-candy Sungold. One that is fairly new-ish to the marketplace is this Tomatoberry, which we featured in our spotlight column of our monthly Washington Gardener enewsletter last year. For those who missed it, here is a direct link.