Every winter we plan a little weekend getaway with some of our good friends. We rent a cabin at a resort in Northern Minnesota and spend the weekend sitting by the fire, drinking wine, catching up with each other, splashing around in the pool with the kiddos, and all around enjoying a much more relaxed pace than life usually affords each of us. This year, it was a very snowy weekend, and while I would normally lament the unfairness of such a massive snowfall when I have spring on the brain, a day-long, heavy, wet snowfall in the northern woods is unbelievably beautiful (especially seeing as I was secure in the knowledge that the precipitation was falling in the form of rain back home). As gorgeous as the snow-covered landscape was, it was definitely a good feeling to return home after a few days away and see a few patches of grass starting to peek through the snow along the south side of the house.
But the real highlight of returning home was the surprise inside a card from my Aunt Betty that was waiting for us in the mailbox. Inside her card was a little bag full of Anna Russian tomato seeds, saved from her Northern Idaho garden! I'm not ashamed to admit that the sole reason I unpacked the laptop as quickly as I did after reading her letter was to Google "Anna Russian tomato." Anna Russian is an early, pink-red oxheart-shaped tomato. It sounds like it's not unreasonable to see 1 lb. fruit on these tomato plants! They were a huge hit with my aunt's co-workers and friends last year, which prompted her to save some of the seeds. I will not be wasting any time getting a few of these tomatoes going under the lights! They will make a nice addition to the tomatoes I've already selected for this year's garden.
Labels: heirloom, seeds, tomatoes
