Thanks Arlene! I'm so happy!!!

Applause!

Natalie, that's interesting about the size difference... but all the plants look great! How soon can you set them out?

Thanks Corey!

Sandy, I thought it was really interesting too, about the size difference. I never expected that to happen! They have all had identical care, and all three have been right next to each other the entire time. The only difference is the size of the pot that they were started in. When transplanting today, I'd say that the roots were pretty much identical as well. All three had roots growing to the edge and bottom of the pot, but they were far from root bound. They were just getting a bit too tall for the pots they were in, so I buried them deeper into taller pots. So, you're seeing only part of the plant right now, since the stems were buried at least a couple of inches or more when I transplanted them.

Not sure when I'll put them out. I'll have to keep an eye on the weather. We moved here two years ago, and I think I had my garden in my the first of May last year, or maybe the end of April, but I felt like I was pushing it when I planted. We didn't get any freezes though, so it was okay. I moved here from Utah, so having a garden in before the end of May was pretty awesome! I always had snow on my tomatoes every year there, and would be out at midnight, trying to get them all covered up. Happened every year! So, I'm always ready to cover plants when I plant things out, but it was a relief to not have to do that last year.

Moving to a new area would definitely be a challenge for getting the timing right. The beginning of May would be a whole month early compared to what I can do, which is probably about right for the zone difference! Such an amazing thing to grow a plant from a seed and then harvest the fruit of that plant...

We were in zone 5a in Utah, so this is a huge difference for me. Also, our elevation there was 4,600 feet, and here it is 1,750. Much better! We're also 600 miles north of where we were, so you would expect it to be as cold here, but it isn't. I rather enjoy this lack of over several months of 5 feet or more of snow on the ground! We came up here two years ago in January, on vacation, and loved it so much that we bought a house! It was raining here, and we only needed a light jacket. There was a blizzard at home in Utah at the same time. We were sold!

I usually grow all of my other veggies from seed, but tomatoes have always been a complete failure for me. It wasn't really that big of a deal though, since I could get pretty much any plant I wanted in Utah. Here though, we're in the middle of nowhere! There is a Home Depot in the city, which is an hour away, but they are about the only place to get tomato plants. I always buy the usual ones from them (Roma, Sun Sugar, Sweet 100...), but they don't sell much of a variety. Sugary has been my very favorite for years, after buying it at a small nursery in Utah, and I was determined to be able to have them again. I agree totally about growing something from seed. It always tastes better that way!

Natalie, I live in that "middle of nowhere" place too! Lots of places here that sell plants, but pretty much all the same varieties; and once I got started on growing my own stuff from seed I found that the plants I grow are nearly always nicer than the ones I could buy. Plus it gives me a chance to start growing a lot earlier in the year than when I can actually plant outdoors.

Sandy, now that I know I can grow tomatoes, this place is even more perfect! I'll take the middle of nowhere any day, where I can't get a huge variety of tomatoes, over living in town again!

I figure that even inbred OP varieties have a fair amount of genetic variety. They are closer than fraternal twins, but not as close as identical twins. (It's just my opinion, I can't prove that.)

I bet if we were starting 100 seeds, 5-10% would have started as fast as your biggest plant.

Selecting for size at this early an age might be a bad strategy, because you might pick all the plants that are good at shooting up fast for a few weeks, but lack genes needed for sustained growth, or high yield of fruit, or who-knows-what.

Again, just my theory.

I know nothing about tomato genetics!

No way that my kitchen window sill could hold 100 pots, so luckily I won't have to test that theory out myself. All three of these came through the soil on the same day, and the seeds went in the soil at the same time. I wish I knew for sure if the size of the pot was the one thing that made it grow faster, but for now, I'll just have to go with that. Next year, I'll start them all in the same sized pot. The other three that I have growing are all the exact same size after 2 weeks. Two pots hold one kind of tomato, and the other pot is another. Yet, they are exactly the same size. Again, It's all a mystery to me. No matter what, they'll all be going in the ground!

Natalie said: No matter what, they'll all be going in the ground!

And, later, into the stomach. Yumm!

I've got another question that I hope someone can help me with. My plants are starting to grow flowers on them, and they aren't outside yet. Should I remove the flowers? I can't believe that there are flowers growing on them! This is so exciting! But, I'm thinking that if I remove them, the plant will be stronger. Not sure if that is correct though. Any help would be appreciated!

Yes, probably a good idea to remove the flowers until they get planted outside.

Thanks Arlene!