When is a Greenhouse Tomato Not a Greenhouse Tomato?

When it comes from Henry’s Hoophouse!

Henry says he’s had quite a few people asking about 1) when tomato season is, and 2) about whether the tomatoes at Henry’s stand are from the field or not.

Although you have been seeing tomatoes at some other market stands since the first markets in May, we are still very early in the “real tomato” season, as they are just starting to come in from the field. So the answer to “When is tomato season?” is “It’s starting right now!” And it will ramp up week by week for the next month or two.

The question about field tomatoes is a little more nuanced and the answer can vary year to year. Henry knows you’re asking about field-grown tomatoes because you’ve probably been eating greenhouse-grown tomatoes. Those don’t taste very good because the seeds are planted very early in the spring (or even in the winter), and then the plants are grown under artificial light with artificial heat. And since they did most of their growing in the wrong season, they don’t taste very good.

Unlike conventional tomato greenhouses, Henry’s hoophouses are completely open on both ends, and have no artificial heat or light. And the tomatoes go into healthy soil, not the sterilized substrates used in many greenhouses.

*This greenhouse is NOTHING like Henry’s hoophouse, and the tomatoes grown in places like this taste nothing like Henry’s hoophouse tomatoes.*

Henry’s hoophouse tomatoes were started from seed at exactly the same time as his field tomatoes. But he was able to plant them a couple weeks earlier than is possible in the field since there’s no danger of frost in the hoophouse. Once those tomatoes grow quickly because the ground and air are warmer, so Henry is able to get hoophouse tomatoes in July rather than waiting for August field tomatoes.

The hoophouse tomatoes (right side) have their first trellis twine and are growing strong before the field tomatoes are in the ground. (Henry plants early beets in between the tomato rows in the hoophouse and harvests them out for you in May and early June, before the tomato plants overshadow them.)

It’s the natural hoophouse warmth, plus control of how much water the plants get, that makes Henry’s hoophouse tomatoes taste great — even better than the field tomatoes in most years. That’s because the field tomatoes can easily get too much water, and more water means less flavor.

And the water and humidity in the field can lead to plant diseases which may weaken the plant and negatively affect the productivity and taste of the tomatoes. Because Henry can control the water and the humidity in the hoophouses, those plants are healthier, and their fruits tastier.

Nearly all of the tomatoes you’ve seen at Henry’s stand for the past few weeks have been from the hoophouses, and that will continue to be the case for at least another week or two as the field tomatoes ramp up. But contrary to conventional wisdom, those are the better tasting tomatoes because Henry controls the amount of water they get. Especially now with the 5+ inches of rain we’ve had, the field tomatoes won’t have the concentrated flavors of the hoophouse tomatoes because they have been quite literally watered down.

The moral of the story is that Henry’s hoophouses are NOT conventional greenhouses. And you should look for Henry’s hoophouse tomatoes for the very best taste.

Henry is bringing up lots of beautiful Italian Basil from a new planting. He will keep the varieties separate so that you can get the Noga variety if you want. Henry said it is the best-smelling, best-tasting kind he’s ever grown, BUT it will wilt if you try keeping it in a glass of water on the counter as you can do with other varieties. Henry says his other varieties are perfectly fine, and will keep well on the counter in a glass of water like a bouquet. But the Noga is amazing, and you will probably consume it before it has a chance to wilt anyway!

Lots of delicious beans! The plants were suffering in the hot, dry weather, but with our recent rains and the cooler weather today, they are looking great.

Other News:

Henry is in between plantings of sweet corn, so there will be very little this week.
He’s now harvesting the very last bed of spring-planted beets and carrots. So this week you’ll see the last regular red beets until fall, and it’s the last week or two for carrots. Then you’ll have to wait for the fall plantings — which haven’t been seeded yet because first it was too hot and dry, and now it’s too wet!
We’re nearing the end of the onions, so you won’t see any bunched ones, just the dry, loose ones.
Henry is “pretty sure” he’ll be able to harvest a few watermelon and muskmelon for you this week. Come early if you want one!