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Have Smurfs in your garden, the stunning blue tomato called Dancing with Smurfs

January 27, 2021

Garden long enough and some things become second nature, as if you learned them, but don't really remember learning them: cutting off dead flowers so new ones will grow, or not overwatering cactus. Language has unwritten rules, so we instinctively make our nonsense words follow a strict pattern, so for a three-word nonsense phrase the order has to go I, A, O. If only two words, then the first is I and the second is either A or O. Which is why we say fiddle-faddle not faddle-fiddle, tick-tock not tock-tick, ping-pong and pitter-patter rather than pong-ping and patter-pitter.

Sometimes nonsense words not only take on their own meaning, but become an industry.

When Belgian artist Pierre Culliford couldn't recall the word for salt he asked his dinner companion to pass the “schtroumpf." Playfully, his friend replied, "Here's the schtroumpf. When you are done schtroumpfing, schtroumpf it back."

Pierre liked the word and created a cartoon series based on it, "Schtroumpfs,” better known in America as "The Smurfs."

Now you can have Smurfs in your garden, the stunning blue tomato called Dancing with Smurfs.

These blue-topped cherry tomatoes are named after the 13th episode of the 13th season of the animated television show “South Park.”

These impressive purplish-blue cherry tomatoes gradually turn a deep blue-red when fully ripe.

The plants pump out tons of delicious tomatoes in clusters of six to eight.

Even the foliage is decorative, with dark-green, dusky leaves. They are vigorous plants and easily reach four to five feet tall, so you will want to tie them to a trellis or use tomato plant cages to support them.

The colorful cherry tomatoes are great as a snack right off the vine, or added to salads. Their dark-blue color makes them a stunning garnish.

Dancing with Smurfs cherry tomatoes grow on indeterminate vines, which means the vines will keep growing and keep producing tomatoes right up until killed by frost.

Seeds are available from several specialty seedhouses such as Adaptive Seeds (www.adaptiveseeds.com) or Sustainable Seeds (www.sustainableseeds.com).

You can start seeds indoors a few weeks before the last frost or direct seed Dancing with Smurfs right into the garden. Set out the plants or sow seed after all danger of frost has passed and the ground is warm. Plant in fertile, well-draining soil in full sun.

The ideal soil pH for tomatoes is pH 6.2 to 6.5, and they require four to six hours of sun each day.

This is an open pollinated non-hybrid tomato, so you can save your own seeds. Squeeze seeds and pulp into a cup and top with water. Let this sit in a warm spot out of sunlight for a few days and a mold will form on the surface of the water. This mold kills many seed-borne diseases.

Plant Dancing With Smurfs and you will see what all the jibber-jabber is about. Plant seeds and stand back. It is that simple. Badda-bing, badda-bang, badda-boom.

  • Paul Barbano writes about gardening from his home in Rehoboth Beach. Contact him by writing to P. O. Box 213, Lewes, DE 19958.

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