I planted two types of tomatoes this year: Better Boy and Big Beef. I was checking them out after work tonight and it dawned on me that I don't know anything about these varieties, so I did some Google searches. (They are both hybrids.) As I was doing this I came across an interesting tomato growing tip from a gardening web site:

To boost the pH and potassium level of the soil up to tomato standards, we simply add wood ashes. Not only do they have almost the same lime equivalent (85 percent) as garden lime, but they are also about 5 percent potassium. For a normal soil, I will add 10 to 15 pounds to a 300-square-foot bed. Fall is the best time to add lime and potassium to the garden because it gives the nutrients time to spread into the topsoil.

We still have ashes in the fireplace from last winter, so I know where they will be going this fall!

Most (maybe all) of my plants have a few green tomatoes set so far. They range in size from half of a golf ball to three-quarters of a golf ball. I pounded in three stakes last night. I need to find something to tie the plants to the stakes this weekend. Last year I used strips I cut up from plastic grocery bags. I think this year I will cut up some socks that I never wear because they have "too much sock in the toe."