The next best thing to homegrown tomatoes

There's nothing quite like the taste of homegrown tomatoes and nothing quite as disappointing as shop bought tomatoes that look great - but fail to deliver even a skerrick of authentic tomato flavour. Knowing that these flavourless impostors have most likely been picked green and gassed with ethylene to ripen them slowly as well as trucked hundreds (if not thousands) of kilometers across Australia before reaching my supermarket shelf - makes me determined not to buy them at all (before I even start calculating the food miles and carbon footprint that goes along with the dismal taste). If I have to wait for summer and the luxury of my homegrown crop - so be it, it's well worth the wait.



So I was blown away when I first tasted the produce on offer from 'The Tomato Man' as I called him at the Ballarat Lakeside Farmer's Markets. I'd soon get to know him as John Elford, the brains and brawn behind Yendon Gourmet Tomatoes - an inspiring small local business producing tomatoes equal to, if not tastier, than your backyard summer crop. And that's saying something because I've grown some great tomatoes in my time.

I love knowing where my food comes from. Getting to know the farmers and growers who produce my favourite seasonal treats and being invited to visit their farms is quite truthfully an honor. . .especially when it is so easy for many of us to feel so far removed from our food source.

So I'd like to share some images from my weekend visit to Yendon Gourmet Tomatoes.





















The vines start as small robust looking plants and with careful attention soon grow sinewy stems several meters long, that are trained and trimmed until they tower high above the floor - laden with perfect clusters of fruit.


I have fantasies of weaving baskets with the long stems at the end of the season. . .but I haven't pitched that idea to John yet.

With the plants replaced every year the instance of pest infestation and disease is dramatically reduced, so while small amounts of sprays are sometimes required, it is easy to see just how healthy the hydroponically grown plants are.
























Thanks to the challenges of the recent drought, John invested in drought proofing the system, installing a biological filter which allows water to be recycled without the use of chemicals. So compared with conventional outdoor paddock methods, the water used in this production process is vastly reduced.

John's now investigating ways of using the small amount of water that is discharged from the system. . .I've managed to convince him that a paddock of globe artichokes will thrive on the waste water, so I'm excited to hear he's sourcing seed for that project as artichokes are right up there with my favourite season foods of all time.




In addition to the tomatoes, John has been diversifying with eggplants and cucumbers (which reportedly grow almost as fast as he can pick them) as well as lettuces and herbs, which you'll find from time to time for sale at the local farmer's market as well as on the menu at local restaurants and food outlets who know the value of sourcing their produce locally.




And to prove he's not afraid of losing a customer,
John sent me home with a box full of amazing tomato and eggplant seedlings which will soon be taking pride of place in my new plot at the Ballarat East Community Garden (after a short stint as part of the BREAZE Local Food Display at the Ballarat Show on the 11-13th of Novemeber, 2011).

For updates on when and where you can source this delicious local produce check out Yendon Gourmet Tomatoes on facebook.

Stay posted for plenty of tomato recipes this summer.