Up here we almost never get good ripe tomatoes on the wet side. We go to the dry side –around Yakima - and buy all the fixings for salsa then make big batches. I will make you some. I like mine hot too.

We have had some success here on the wet side if you try some of the following:

Grow the plants inside a tire or two. The black of the tire holds and absorbs heat.

Grow them next to a fence, concrete foundation wall, etc. In both cases the reflected heat really helped.

Place aluminum foil sheet around the base. Not only does it keeps the weeds down but reflects heat.

We even got quite a few nice ripe ones last year, even though spring didn't come until July.

Lastly, we buy pretty good sized plants to set out. Takes way too long, for us, to start seeds even in the house and get good harvests.

Carcassman

I have been growing tomatoes here for at least 40 years. Sometime okay sometimes not. All of your tips are good - except the one about planting large plants. To my surprise, extensive research has shown that planting small plants produces more tomatoes and a faster harvest. I think the study was done my OSU but am too lazy to look it up.

Even in the years we get lots of ripe tomatoes they are not IMHO as good as the big thin-skinned delicious ones grown in eastern Washington.

Of course I still grow them, as the worst ripe tomato from my garden is 100 times better than those red plastic balls sold in grocery stores. In recent years I have been growing a Japanese heirloom from Territorial called Black somethingorother. It is I the best tasting I have grown yet.
Have you tried the new grafted tomatoes? They claim to ripen faster and be healthier.

We have very good luck with those hanging upside down tomato baskets. We do have them in a greenhouse which helps with the heat.

We have been growing Tomatoes for at least 10 years. Like said above, some years good, some meh.

It is not too soon to start your plants . Check this out
http://www.amazon.com/Jiffy-5089-Starter-Greenhouse-36-Plant/dp/B00318RL46
These things work great. You might find them at Home Depot, but not for a few eeks at best.

Here is an interesting article written by a tomato fanatic
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/al...html?cmpid=2628

Has anyone had much success with tomatillo's? I thought about trying some this year.

I have done fine with them. In fact, I get volunteers every year from the previous year's crop. I expect there are various types with various maturity dates, so . . .

We grew tomatillo's for the first time last year. No problems with disease. Didn't require much care. Their production was nothing short of amazing. All three plants were so loaded with tomatillos that they pulled the tomato cages we were using for support over. They'll be in the garden again this year!

"We have a few wet weather systems to get through before then...starting tomorrow morning... but no lowland snow or major storms. We now have only a month left of western WA winter---after the 3rd week of February the worst is almost always over the lowlands. The sun becomes stronger, bulbs push up, and the lawns need to be mowed again. And yes, we can start thinking about those tomato plants."- Cliff Mass, Thursday January 26th, 2012.

http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/[/url]

I've heard that old age can cause your tomatoes to touch the ground but I haven't experienced that yet.