Late Bloomin' Heirlooms (Tomato CSA)

Contents

Late Bloomin’ Heirlooms
8103 Old Bingham Hwy
West Jordan, Utah 84088
Patricia Messer
Phone: (801) 664-9352
Heidi Williams
Phone: (801) 662-9625

Heirloom: 1. Something of value handed on from one generation to another. 2. Typically, a more than fifty year-old variety in fruits and vegetables (it also applies to humans in our case).

Late Bloomin' Heirlooms is a mini-farm known for over 50 varieties of heirloom tomatoes as well as peppers, eggplant, melons,squash and culinary herbs.

Heidi and I now sell plants in the spring and produce in the summer. Starting as a farmers' market garden, we progressed to selling to a few restaturants. This year [2009] will be our 1st year as a small CSA.

We donate seeds and plants to non-profits and schools to further buy and grow local, as well as "know where your food comes from" ideals. We have found offering heirloom seeds, plants, produce, and education to small groups is already having a positive effect in changing the way food is looked at and enjoyed by the people we serve.

Classes

We also teach classes in seed starting, sustainable growing practices, neighborhood farmstands for children, and seed saving to help families become more self-reliant as they gain better skills.

We conduct seed starting classes in January and February, tomato planting classes in March and April (heirloom plants take longer to fruit), a tour in our garden with seed-saving and tomato-tasting classes in September and October. We are also actively helping others to have backyard gardens as well as a local elementary school.

Seed Saving Classes are a good way to learn more about Heirloom Tomatoes and how to preserve their great taste and exciting colors year after year. Our Seed Saving classes are on most Saturdays at 3:00 pm weather permitting.

In each class you'll tour the Garden with the Late Bloomin' Heirloom's gals, pick and sample scrumptuous tomatoes, you'll experience a great pesto on artisan bread and, learn why and how to save heirloom tomato seeds.

We also provide handouts and seeds to take home for your next great tomato garden. Each class is $25 per person, and $20 for a second family member sharing materials.

Come join the fun as we learn about heirloom tomatoes! Please secure your reservation early. The classes are small and are quickly filled. Complete list of all upcoming Seed Saving Classes!

The Late Bloomin' Heirlooms Adventure

In February of 2007 I recieved an answer to my falling down and crawling from the garden dilemma and an April surgery ensued. I was so grateful to be able to walk, but in mourning from the thought I'd have no garden. The garden is my respite from a hectic tax season each year. It calms, rescues, gives light and life to me. My son Sadja had helped start the hundreds of seedlings in February.

Even though June is late to plant heirlooms, my daughter Alyssa and Deb Weston's family helped put in four 65-foot rows of my heirloom tomato plants and three more rows of various peppers. The other plants were given away to friends and family.

By August there were so many weeds, it took me a full day on each row to reclaim the plants. Each weed was a triumph! Then my daughter Tara invited me to go to the farmer's market at Pioneer Park. I was amazed to see the same tomatoes there that I was growing. I thought to myself,"I can do this too."

On the same Saturday, Heidi had come to see me and my son told her I was at the market. She was thinking, "hmm, what's that about?" "It's so early in morning something must be up, and she didn't take me."

I applied to sell my tomatoes, and then realized I couldn't lift things yet. But I went to Home Depot on Thursday to get lumber to build a rack. Then, feeling prompted, I went to see my great friend Heidi. (She's not ususally home that day, she had taken off for her birthday. later I found out that had been talking to her husband for nearly a year about making a change. She didn't want to be behind a computer any longer.)

Not even really saying hello, I blurted out, "I'm selling tomatoes at the farmer's market, do you want to do this with me?" Without hesitation there was an excited yes and a sweet tearful embrace. (You should also know Heidi and I have been clowns, done Dynamic Demos, raised six-foot Emus together, and had many other adventures since our unlikely friendship began in 1981.)

Heidi had been wondering what she would do for next fifty years. She instantly knew this was it!

We have both been gardeners for many years; over 50 for me and over 30 for Heidi. We especially love the ugly, bumpy, strange-colored heirlooms tomatoes.

From our adventure at the Farmer's Market, we formed the "Late Bloomin' Heirlooms" partnership.

The name came from the fact that we are both over fifty years old and so the heirloom vegtables.

People are referred to as late bloomers when they discover their profession passion late in life. Many heirloom tomatioes take much longer to fruit. Ta dah! Heidi and I are Late Bloomin' Heirlooms growing late blooming heirlooms. We found a way of using our love of gardening to help others enjoy the most wonderful flavor or summer: heirloom tomatoes!

Since we also decided to have a heirloom plant sale this spring, plants began taking over my house and tried the same thing at Heidi's. It took many hours and hands to put up racks, lights, germinate seeds, water, pot up, water, move lights, water, put up more racks, water, more lights, and... what else do you think? Water, of course!

As our work increased exponentially, the crew grew. Heidi's husband Kim, sons Jeremy and Adam, as well as my son Sadja all had a hand in helping us pot up the plants and picking up more pots and soil elements.

We learned a great deal about human nature from the plant sale. As we sent out babies home with stranger, we tried to give as much help to our planters as possible. We saw that people wanted heirlooms tomatoes, but a few were not willing to follow our advice to use "Walls 'O Water" to protect their plants because of the added expense. Some would not use the special fertilizer we had prepared at minimal cost. The wacky weather played a factor in later planting as did loosing plants to a late frost. We did replace more than a few plants.

Then we realized that so many of our buyers did not have much gardening experience. It gave us more insight into our role. We needed to have classes to teach them a better way of tomato gardening by preparing the soil, starting the seeds, planting their plants and saving the seeds.