|
James Reda has been growing tomatoes in Willow Glen since he bought his Coe Avenue home in 1958. This year, however, he's harvesting a prize crop. Just like James and the Giant Peach, Reda has his giant tomato.
"I've been gardening all my life and that there is a tomato," Reda says, pointing to a juicy red-ribbed tomato sitting on a scale, weighing in at 2 1/2 pounds.
The tomato, which he harvested on Aug. 16, is the largest of Reda's crop. Reda, 89, said he harbors no garden secret. He simply waters the plants deeply once a week and feeds the garden with granular fertilizer. His modest garden also contains bell peppers, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes and hot peppers.
Reda first learned to garden from his father in Kansas. He credits his father for teaching him how to scoop seeds out of a tomato to dry and save them for next year's crop.
After Kansas, Reda moved to Chicago and finally, Willow Glen. Reda's brother, Ed, also lives in the neighborhood.
For many years, Reda said he bought tomato seedlings and tended them into large plants. The fruit, however, was a disappointment, such as the beefsteak tomatoes that didn't grow as big as promised.
So nearly a decade ago, Reda returned to his father's method, taking one beefsteak tomato, scooping out the seeds and drying them on newspaper. Today, Reda continues this method each year, planting all his seeds in a 10-foot by 3-foot fenced area, where the vines ramble and tomatoes can be found large and ripe in the entanglement.
Reda enjoys his summer crop fresh in salads, or passes them on to grateful women at the Willow Senior Center, where he has lunch five days a week.
The 2 1/2 pounder, however, will remain at home with Reda.
"This one here I'm going to cut it in half and take the seeds and next year I'm going to plant them," he says.
|
Photograph by Vicki Thompson