Is Yountville the Tomato Capital of the Napa Valley?
The time to save seeds is now.
Along with my mother, an “urban” tomato farmer for decades, I attended Tomatoganza!, the annual celebration of tomatoes presented by the Napa County Seed Library at Copia on Aug. 10.
Little did I know that some of the stars of Tomatoganza! were grown in Yountville. Having successfully grown tomatoes in my own Yountville garden for more than a decade, I should have known.
The event included tomato tastings, tomato bites from professional chefs, educational seed saving demonstrations, a tomato contest and the opportunity to talk to farmers about their tomatoes. Some of them even shared their seeds!
We are now in the height of tomato season. Due to what has been a cooler spring and summer overall, my experience has been that tomatoes have ripened a bit later than usual this year. Now that tomatoes are in abundance, the time to save tomato seeds is now.
I did save seeds last year and started several tomato and pepper plants. I am a beginner, however, when it comes to saving tomato seeds in particular, so I was anxious to learn more.
Lauren Buffaloe–Muscatine co-founded the Napa County Seed Library (NCSL), with her daughter, Lavender Muscatine, following the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. I was delighted to finally meet Buffaloe–Muscatine in person at Tomatoganza! as we had connected online a few years ago.
According to the NCSL website, the mission is to build community, inspire gardeners and share seeds.
All sorts of seeds are shared. If you are familiar with the concept of a “little free library” where you can exchange books, there are now also “seed libraries” around Napa County.
While it does not appear that there is currently a Yountville seed library, there is one in St. Helena and several in Napa. A complete list is available here. Please be aware that the seed libraries may be empty right now, as seeds are sensitive to heat and cannot withstand high outdoor temperatures.
There are two primary methods for saving tomato seeds. At Tomatoganza! Buffaloe–Muscatine demonstrated the towel method, as the “easy” or lazy method, essentially smearing the seeds on a paper towel, then allowing them to dry in a cool, dry place.
The other method, the fermentation method, involves squeezing seeds in their gel into a small, clean glass container, adding a bit of water, and then covering this with a piece of fabric that can breathe for several days before drying.
There are pros and cons to each method, and I highly suggest accessing and subscribing to the NCSL YouTube channel where a wealth of seed saving information is shared. Plus, Buffaloe–Muscatine is a positive and enthusiastic teacher. I learned so much from her and loved her demo at Tomatoganza! this year. To learn more, check out these NCSL tomato seed saving videos:
Easy Seed Saving for Tomato, Part 1
Easy Seed Saving for Tomato, Part 2
Back to the winning Yountville tomatoes. After mentioning Tomatoganza! in last week’s edition of the Sun, Yountville farmer Ellen Chan advised me that several of the winning tomatoes were grown right here in town, “Three of the six prizes went to Yountvillians,” she said.
Chan of Five Row Farm won in the cherry tomato competition with a variety called Prairie Fire, winning the Farmer’s Choice award, as well as second place for Local’s Favorite.
Peter Jacobsen of Jacobsen Orchards also in Yountville, won with his Belgian Giant Pink in the large tomato competition for Farmer’s Choice. Jacobsen, a retired dentist, has been farming for more than 40 years.
Chan said Jacobsen had been showing her how to farm for a few years before she decided to retire from her job as a physician, so it was a natural transition to continue learning.
Jacobsen Orchards is a little less than two acres, while Five Row Farm has five rows within Jacobsen Orchards. “I grow some larger tomatoes but concentrate on cherry tomatoes. We have dozens of varieties that we grow every year,” Chan said.
While neither had participated in Tomatoganza! before, their small farms are diverse. “We plant seasonal fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers. Currently, there are peppers, melons, pumpkins, squash, beans, edible flowers, eggplants, herbs, stone fruit and figs growing.” Both farms sell their products wholesale, and do not sell to the public.
Chan said that they start their plants from seed, except for the established fruit trees. “I get seeds from a variety of online vendors as well as saving my own seeds,” she said. “For tomatoes, I usually start the seedlings in the greenhouse in February. The starts get planted in April, hopefully after the chance of any frost has passed.”
She did warn that tomato seed savers need to find out if their tomato variety is a hybrid. “If so, even if you save the seed, it may not grow true to type.” Chan encourages gardeners to try growing different varieties and to check out Tomatoganza! next year. “It’s a fun time!”
