Gayla Trail
Gayla is a writer, photographer, and former graphic designer with a background in the Fine Arts, cultural criticism, and ecology. She is the author, photographer, and designer of best-selling books on gardening, cooking, and preserving.

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16 thoughts on “Sliced Tomatoes and Other Songs”

  1. That is one of the worst parts of winter. The decrepit hard-as-a-rock ethanol-gassed tomatoes at the grocery store. The realization that a summers worth of work was just not enough to keep you from having to resort to… this. Tasteless, grainy, crunchy tomatoes. And I cant find any organic produce in the area. Nada. Which is why I start my tomatoes so early and put them in a cold box.

  2. that was HILARIOUS! what i like best was the repeat footage of the 2 musicians (like … here I go again,…in front of the white house siding…hahaha). seriously…that was funny…and it made me want to get up and dance. and oh yes…i inventoried my seeds thus far, and i have over 10 varieties of tomatoes…am i nuts? i bought roma tomatoes last week at the local grocery store (to make pico de gallo)…and they were tasteless…oh how i long for those garden fresh tomatoes (and the leaf smell…oh the leaf smell!). .

  4. Very like surfing music.
    I like.

    makes for good working music – I can imagine you pounding away at your keyboard furiously to get out another ‘post’ … :-)

  5. Righteous tune.
    I won’t missing sliced tomatoes once I realize my master plan of building a green house adjacent to my house. Ha! then I will carryout my dream of growing vanilla beans. I know, vanilla beans in Kansas, crazy!

  6. Where can I find this song? I’ve never heard it.

    On another note, I got onion sets (yellow, white, and red) and garlic down this past weekend. (I’ll be looking forward to the beginning of summer.) Just in time for an impending frost. Guess I’ll be mulching, mulching, mulching.

    My son an I got seeds start this weekend too (inside of course), veggie, herb and flowers. Let’s see what did I get down….3 types of basil (purple, sweet and cinnamon), oregano, 2 types of parsley (curly and Italian), thyme (lemon (a.k.a. creeping), and english), mexican marigold mint, lemon balm, 2 types of chives (common and garlic), cilantro, spinach, chard, 2 type of calendula (deja vu and flash back), deer tongue lettuce, 2 types of cosmos, 2 types of sunflowers, 3 types of plumeria, 2 types of zinnias….hmm I know there is more we got done, but I can’t remember what. We’ve got lots more to put into flats this weekend. (I need to find something to use lots of rosemary. Mine’s been running rampant all winter and needs a good pruning. I to borrow some of its space.)

    That was Monday we got them done (kept us busy from a school holiday) and last night we say all of the basil and most of the cosmos poking through!!! Yipee. I can already taste the strawberry-basil ice cream and the cinnamon basil syrup (such a lovely deep color) drizzled over whole wheat pancakes!

    Jennifer

  7. Jennifer: I don’t know. I got it from my brother.

    David: You have the right idea. I dream about a greenhouse.

    Linda: You are not nuts. I know someone who grows 60 varieties… ahem… Julianna. And I wouldn’t call that nuts. I’d call that good thinking.

    Victoria: Word. Thankfully I can up lots of tomatoes and sauce in the fall but it’s still not the same as fresh slices on a sandwich.

  8. That song sounds like life here in Sunny San Diego, California.

    You miss sliced tomatoes? I miss fried green tomatoes. Moving from Texas to California has been difficult simply because I can’t get green tomatoes anywhere.

  10. Similar to a groovy instrumental from the 60s I have on my iPod – Green Onions (Booker T and the MGs) I also bop around to Gardening at Night (R.E.M.) Any other gardening tunes to recommend?

  11. Homegrown Tomatoes by Guy Clark.

    “Just two things that money can’t buy — That’s true love and homegrown tomatoes.”

    For 35 year I haven’t planted, watered, picked or eaten a homegrown tomato without humming it!

  12. Um, 25 years! I’ve been listening to Guy Clark for about 35 but apparently not that particular song. And while I’m correcting, it’s “Only” two things”, not “just.”

  13. Um, 25 years! I’ve been listening to Guy Clark for about 35 but apparently not that particular song. And while I’m correcting, it’s “Only” two things, not “just.”

  14. The song sliced tomatoes became a “Northern Soul” standard in the dance communities that grew up in northern England in the late 60s and 70s. Mainly obscure soul records but backed up with motown and other soul tunes were played at venues where dancing to mainly upbeat “4 to the floor” records was the sole activity. Probably not much gardening going on, but lots of buying and selling of records and dancing.

  15. I remember a folkie chum of mine entertained us with a parody sung to “Guantanamera” – his version was “One-ton tomato, I need a one-ton tomato”, etc.

    Ahhh Guy Clark – “it’s gotta come from the heart if you want it to work”

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