Larry Goldstein of Plainview is enjoying one heck of a harvest this year. The retired high school shop teacher, who built most of the furniture in the house he shares with his wife, Sandy, also constructed quite an impressive vegetable garden.
He's growing Mortgage Lifters, Delicious, Bloody Butchers, various Beefsteak varieties, Cherries and Camparis -- a total of 48 plants -- in soil treated only with composted manure. Goldstein starts all his plants from seed and swears by the red plastic mulch he orders online, as it keeps the weeds out and roots warm.
When I visited with Goldstein last week, he picked the largest fruit in his tomato patch -- a Bloody Butcher weighing in at 1 lb., 12 oz.
"I don't prune, pinch off or do anything to my plants -- They do just fine without me interfering with them," he said when asked about his methods, adding, "It works for me."
After our visit, Goldstein sent me on my way with a care package containing my very own Bloody Butcher. It works for me, too.
