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Bowregard
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Bowregard
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PostTue Aug 23, 2022 8:59 pm 
Anne Elk wrote:
So many tomato plants - do members of your family can part of the huge bounty?
We freeze some until we can use them for salads and sauces, can some for winter use, give some away to family and neighbors, eat a lot on salads, BLTs, burgers, etc. and Sungolds are daily snacks right off the vines. The Polish Linguisa are new to us and much bigger than expected so we will have to figure out how best to use those. One way or another they all get used. I wish they could tell me who the ones who complained are and I would deliver some to make the "eyesore" a bit less impactful. smile.gif We have realized a couple of conflicts over tomatoes: 1. My wife wants to "save" every last seedling while I want to cull only the strongest. 2. She also lets them ripen as long as possible while I try to support the weight (the "electric toothbrush" method worked so well some branches have double-digit fruits set on them).

Chief Joseph, Anne Elk
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kiliki
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kiliki
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PostTue Aug 23, 2022 9:28 pm 
That is absolutely nuts. I'm trying to imagine what kind of miserable person would complain about tomato plants, and I can't. I really mean that. Your array is gorgeous. I haven't seen anything like it. I have 4 plants in my little Phinneywood yard and I have to pick the fruit before it is quite ripe, because the rats are masters at knowing when it's perfectly ripe, and like to sample each one. So they come inside to finish ripening. I've lived in Seattle all my adult life aside from some summers on work assignments and so have no experience with HOAs. It all sounds very odd to me though. My new next door neighbors moved from one in the 'burbs where they had to choose from a very few colors (all beige or gray) to paint their house, and their next door neighbor stopped speaking to them because they chose that neighbor's color. Even though every fourth house had that shade of gray. They moved in next to me and promptly painted their house a gorgeous blue.

Aussie, Navy salad, Anne Elk, Chief Joseph
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Chief Joseph
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Chief Joseph
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PostTue Aug 23, 2022 9:33 pm 
The more experience I have with people, the more I believe that we weren't really meant to cohabitate or even to live in very close proximity. At my property in Verlot I and my 2 adult children all have separate dwellings, and we all like it that way. Here in Idaho, I can't see any of my neighbors and no of us care what others do with their yards. If you live in a neighborhood, there will always be at least one problem resident/s.

Go placidly amid the noise and waste, and remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereof.
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Anne Elk
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Anne Elk
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PostTue Aug 23, 2022 9:48 pm 
My sister moved to an HOA neighborhood last year. I don't think they'll even let her have a catio for her kitties. I don't understand what seems like the extremism of some HOA rules.

"There are yahoos out there. It’s why we can’t have nice things." - Tom Mahood
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Trailhead
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 1:58 am 
Maybe there were also concerns over the tomato plants attracting rodents. I know I've had some the fruits of my labor "sampled" in the past.

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Bowregard
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Bowregard
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 7:10 am 
Trailhead wrote:
Maybe there were also concerns over the tomato plants attracting rodents. I know I've had some the fruits of my labor "sampled" in the past.
Good point but I doubt that. There are rabbits all over the neighborhood which bring Lynx/bobcat (I can't tell the difference) and coyote. It would be hard to argue that the tomatoes are the cause of rodent introductions and we have been growing tomatoes for 3 years - why now?

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flatsqwerl
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 7:32 am 
They probably thought it was weed with unexplained red things hanging off of them..

Chief Joseph, Bowregard
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Sculpin
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 8:05 am 
I have heard some HOA stories that are pretty bad, but I have never heard anything like "this is your last year growing tomatoes." Let people plant something other than grass and pretty soon a bird might move into the neighborhood, and you know what birds do, they crap everywhere. I would bet that the person who complained and the person who enforced spend exactly zero time outdoors. shakehead.gif

Between every two pines is a doorway to the new world. - John Muir

Bowregard
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Randito
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 8:20 am 
Trailhead wrote:
Maybe there were also concerns over the tomato plants attracting rodents
This could be , I manage the swimming pool in my HOA (the grand kids love it!) But HOA board members have expressed concern that rats could be nesting in the inflatable pool toys. I don't think there is any reality to that concern, but it is a good example of the depth of thinking that goes in some HOA actions. Another example of "HOA ability to think things through" was the treasurer freaking out that the natural gas bill had a big increase over the last two summers and worried about a leak and explosion. When I pointed out that during COVID the pool was closed and last summer the pool heater was broken , an increase in natural gas usage would be expected they stopped freaking out. But there seems to a strong tendency toward imagining the worse case scenarios.

Anne Elk
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Bowregard
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Bowregard
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 8:43 am 
flatsqwerl wrote:
They probably thought it was weed with unexplained red things hanging off of them.
To grow the seedlings we set up a bunch of grow lights and my wife was always worried that it looked like we were secretly growing weed. To be fair in our last house we found out after the fact that there was a huge growing operation taking place just two houses away from us. There was a whole SWAT team bust that took place while we were on vacation. I guess I was just naive - I always wondered why there were trucks backed in at night and "strange" people sometimes wandering around the street but never put 2 and 2 together.

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Anne Elk
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PostWed Aug 24, 2022 9:40 am 
Bowregard wrote:
...we have been growing tomatoes for 3 years
Sounds like that could be grounds for "past practice" precedent - or are HOA rules only enforced on a complaint basis? There might be some legal wiggle room here. Or as Randito said earlier, "I think a lot of the nonsense rules that HOA try to enforce are in fact unenforceable, but you'll need to hire an attorney to get them to back down." Or maybe you can get away with tomatoes just in your back yard.

"There are yahoos out there. It’s why we can’t have nice things." - Tom Mahood

Bowregard
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Joey
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Joey
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PostThu Aug 25, 2022 9:46 am 
Bribe the HOA board members with all the fresh tomatoes they want. We often have a plate with some tomato slices as part of dinner. When our garden tomatoes were ready for eating this year we remembered yet again how *much* better fresh home grown ones taste compared to store bought. Tomorrow I start freezing beans. The sweet corn and melons are enjoying the hot weather and will be ready soon. No HOA here to pester us.

Bowregard
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Jumble Jowls
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PostFri Aug 26, 2022 9:39 am 
Both HOAs and condo associations overstep their authority. They treat the owners like they are renters. Even though they are the servants and employees of the owners they seek to control. First rule is, never move to a place governed by a HOA or condo association. Second rule is, if you make a mistake and accept the yoke of an HOA or condo association, attend the regular meetings and raise the issue if they overstep. Remind them that they work for you. Network with fellow owners. Third rule is, if you get nowhere after attending meetings and using "soft power," hire an attorney and bring the issue before a judge.

Cyclopath
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Bowregard
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PostThu Sep 08, 2022 11:57 pm 
Update: So far this year we have harvested over 260lb of tomatoes (and we don't even count the Sungolds we harvest) The last 4 days have averaged over 30lb per day. The largest have been: 2.1lb (Big Daddy - dozen or so over 1lb) 1.4lb (Mortgage Lifter 6 over 1lb) 1.7lb (Dark Star - Unusually large for that variety) 10.6oz (Polish Linguisa - bigger ones are ripening on the vine) The Polish Linguisas are just starting to ripen and each of the 4 plants have about 30 tomatoes on them. Lost of Salsa ready to harvest soon. We expect the Big Daddy, Early Girl, and Mortgage Lifter varieties to start slowing down soon. One plant died (too much weight for the supports which kinked the stem). I replaced it with a sucker taken from a Sungold which is doing well and already has small fruit on it after a couple weeks. HOA: We delivered about 50 bags to over 90% of our division of the neighborhood including the board members and president. I got a nice note from the president saying how much he enjoyed the tomatoes, that delivering to the neighborhood was a classy gesture, and that he hates being a board member. Lots of support from neighbors regarding the HOA decision including some offering to start petitions and others hoping we ignore the HOA. We haven't decided what to do/not do yet. I definitely want to cut the number down if we grow again - just too time consuming especially managing the seedlings. Here are a few harvest shots.

RichardJ, mosey, RichP, Waterman
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RichP
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PostSun Sep 11, 2022 12:39 pm 
That's an impressive tomato harvest. I wouldn't stop growing, just grow less as you have stated. You obviously have the touch for gardening. The world need more neighbors like you and less whiny HOA types.

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