After Months Of Hard Work, Local Man Harvests Two Very Small Tomatoes From Balcony Garden

By Scott Slute

City Place - What started out as a small plant purchased from a nearby Metro in May has now fully bloomed and yielded two very small tomatoes, after one local man devoted the majority of his summer to caring for it.

28 year old Justin Meer, a recent gardening enthusiast and proud owner of the very unimpressive crop, tells us that after spending the entire summer of going home early so he could wake up to water the balcony plant, it’s time to reap the rewards of his urban farming.

“My grandparents always had a garden, so in the spring when I was walking out of the grocery store I saw a tomato plant and thought ‘Hey, I should grow that.’ And now after months and countless hours of watering, pruning and fertilizing, it’s finally paid off,” says Justin, showing us what is either two cherry tomatoes or two very small regular tomatoes.

And even though though the plant cost $9.99 and yielded $0.17 worth of tomatoes, Justin tells us you can’t beat the taste of tomatoes picked right off the vine and tells us his plans for his harvest.

“Initially when I bought the tomato plant I was planning to use all the tomatoes to make dozens of cans of tomato sauce and live off that through the winter, just like my grandma did. But I’m not sure I have enough to do that,” says Justin, “Maybe a caprese. A very small caprese. You can’t beat that fresh taste!”

Though less then expected, Justin says he’s learned a lot from his farming journey, and believes his balcony’s close proximity to the Gardner Expressway may have resulted in a less than ideal harvest. He tells us next year he may try placing the plant on the other side of the balcony a few feet further from the highway, which should solve the problem.

Scott Slute is the Editor in Chief at The Toronto Harold