Garden Day and Plant Sale: Worth the Drive

Karen Primble

Like many other thrifty gardeners, I am always on the hunt for a great deal.  So, I go to a lot of flea markets and yard sales.  As I search for deals, I always try to ascertain if the bargains are worth the drive.  I can honestly confirm, this sale is worth the drive!

The 2019 Garden Day and Plant Sale is just two weeks away.  You’ll want to add this event to your schedule.  The variety of vegetables for sale is impressive.  You will be able to choose from thirty varieties of tomatoes.  Looking for heirlooms?  Twenty of the thirty tomato varieties are heirlooms.    Looking for a hybrid variety?  This sale has those, too.

Several varieties have interesting back stories.  The Rutgers 250 Schermerhorn, for example, is being touted as a “new heirloom.”  The Rutgers tomato, first made famous by Campbell’s Soup Co. years ago, has come to be known as the quintessential Jersey tomato.  This seed pays homage to the original; you be the judge.

Sun Gold remains our best-selling cherry tomato year after year because of its sweet, delicious flavor.  But this year, you might want to check out the Artisan Series cherry-type tomato.  Some are round and stripy; others are blush-colored and long and pointed.  All are super cool-looking and seriously do taste as great as they look.  Artisan performs well as a container plant, too.

You might want to add a plum/paste tomato to your garden this year.  Some think plum tomatoes are used exclusively for canning.  Actually, plum tomatoes tend to be meatier and have fewer seeds than beefsteak varieties.  For this reason, they are fantastic for salsa, as well as, sauce.  Jersey Devil is a plum tomato that performs well in our area, prolifically supplying sweet, sausage-shaped tomatoes all season long. 

Try adding a little color to your garden this summer.  We have a number of uniquely-colored beefsteak varieties for sale this year.  Ranging from the enormous, yellow Pineapple (fruit can weigh up to 2 pounds) to the hybrid Chef’s Choice Green, to the bi-colored stripes of the heirloom Mr. Stripey.

Of course, you will also find herbs, lettuces, eggplant, peppers, and kale.  The Green Elephant Table promises to provide some great gardening treasures.  You can be sure to find something wonderful at the Garden Day and Plant Sale in beautiful Fairmount Park on April 28^th.  Hope to see you there.  It’s so worth the drive!