I don't know about woven material, but in my experience the black plastic definitely heats up the ground. I read somewhere that it actually works better if the soil is damp because the warmth creates steam. I've heard clear plastic works better to warm the soil in the Spring, but that black will still help with warming the soil. I know that if I step on black plastic in the garden in the summer, it can burn my feet, so I'm sure that kind of heat has some effect. I've come to the conclusion that here in Utah just having a shorter season tomato doesn't cut it, we have to also grow varieties that handle our extremely hot/dry summers. I think that varieties that do well for Texas growers would do better here than varieties grown by those in the Pacific Northwest or the New England states. Some things I did this year that greatly increased my success were---consistent watering(we installed a drip system), I also used Fish emulsion to fertilize when the plants started blossoming, and about a month or so later when fruit finally started setting. This was in addition to the compost, peat moss, bone meal, and fertilizer I added at the time of planting. The plants seemed to really love the fish emulsion, I swear many of them grew overnight after applying it. (I especially noticed this on the peppers and squash.) I'm going to try and plant out earlier next year by warming the soil with plastic, and planting up against our ceder fence on the west side of my yard. Plants are effected least by frost there. I am going to buy some row cover, and tack some clear plastic to the fence and create a mini-greenhouse. I have a tomato friend from another forum that gardens in Montanta---I have gotten a lot of good advice from her as far as variety recommendations. She really raved about a variety called Aurora this year. I will be trying it out next year. I think days to maturity is so variable. I just stick to varieties that are in the early to mid-season range and still try one or two varieties that people rave about each year regardless of the maturation date. Tyffanie

angmnelson, I'm wondering why you had to pick San Marzano and Costoluto Genovese green and bring them inside. How long is the growing season? (If you're not sure, ask your county's Cooperative Extension office: WA Extension offices.) Did you set the plants out too late for fruit to mature on the vine? Did it take too long for the plant to set fruit? Was the weather unusually uncooperative?

Our favorite tomato expert Carolyn137 wrote an excellent response to a question about Blossom End Rot (BER) and I am quoting it here: With BER there is NO problem with absorption of Ca++ though the roots. The problem is maldistribution within the plant that can be induced by a number of stresses which include uneven delivery of water, too much N, growing in too rich soil, too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry you name it. As the plants mature they can better handle the streses that can induce BER so usually it goes away. The two exceptions are first, if the soil has NO Ca++ as confirmed with a soil test, and that's a rare condition, and second, if the soil is too acidic in which Case Ca++ is bound in the soil. Again, adding lime, egg shells and on and on can not and will not prevent BER b'c absorption of Ca++ thru the roots is OK. Paste tomatoes are especially susceptible to BER and I think someone in a post above mentioned that. If you go to the top of this first page and click on the FAQ link and scroll down you'll also find an article about BER in case some of you have never looked at the FAQ's And there's some darn good articles there as well, but I wouldn't pay any attention to the variety list b'c it's way out of date. The old information about BER being caused solely by lack of soil Ca++ has been shown to be wrong with research that's been done in the last 20 years or so, but it's going to take another generation before the real story gets into books, websites, magazines, etc. Most of the better websites already have the correct information. BER affects not only tomatoes, but peppers, squash, cabbage, cauliflower, etc., and it's a huge multimillion dollar problem for the industry, which is WHY all that research was done. For instance, when tissues were taken from a plant that has BER fruits and was assayed for Ca++, the normal level of Ca++ was found, it just wasn't getting to the blossom end of fruits. And there's also a condition called internal BER where the fruits look fine, no evidence of BER externally, but when you cut open the fruit the inside is black Hope that helps I know some of you have seen this before, but with the number of questions posted about BER (Blossom End Rot), I think Carolyn's incomparable explanation bears repeating. Why try to reinvent the wheel when she explains it so well? Betsy

Thanks again for all of the recommendations. I will be trying many of them in the years to come, but at this point I have narrowed my list to the following: Guajito: - Mexico - Md season - Medium fruit size and medium/heavy load , pear tomato, to 7cm long, sometimes nippled, red, meaty.intermediate. Italian Paste, Large: is SSE tomato #1547, pole habit, 92 DTM, and came from Mary Ann Billera's grandmother according to the SSE 2006 Yearbook. Opalka: 90 days. Meaty pepper-shaped fruits deliver a rich, sweet flavor that makes exceptional sauces. They are also tasty fresh. Indeterminate vines. Orange Banana: -85 days. Lycopersicon esculentum. Plant produces good yields of 4" long by 2" wide orange banana shaped tomatoes. Tomatoes are sweet and very flavorful. Used in salads and gourmet dishes. Also used for making a nice orange sauce. Excellent drying variety. Indeterminate. Perito: - 70-80 dtm, indet, reg leaf, with droopy foliage typical of many open-pollinated heart/plum/paste types. Produces 6-10 oz red plum tomatoes. Brought to the states by Matt Perito, originally from Italy in the early 1900's. very prolific sauce/paste type Rio Grande: - 80 days, Very large, blocky pear-shaped tomatoes are borne in profusion, making for large harvests to turn into tomato sauce, paste, or juice. Deep red fruit is about 4 inches long. Vigorous plants are well adapted to extremes in temperature. Determinate. I plan on 2 or 3 plants of each as myu family loves salsa(Fresh and Canned). Dean