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This message was self-deleted by its author (NRaleighLiberal) on Mon Jun 20, 2016, 12:55 AM. When the original post in a discussion thread is self-deleted, the entire discussion thread is automatically locked so new replies cannot be posted.
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so that is the first step here......but it is still so so cold. They tell us that we may get to the 50's this weekend, but with a lot of wind so far, it feels bitter out there to me. I hope winter is over soon. 
Soon.
we fell in love when we lived in Seattle during my post doc in 1983...been back a few times. My daughter is moving to Seattle in a few months, so we will have an added excuse to go visit!
Ah, yes, we remember the slugs well!
have a great gardening season
And we had 7" of snow on Thursday. Still, everything seems to be coming up on schedule and I'm especially happy that the Clematis vines I planted last fall all survived and have new growth. 
i've got four 'maters in pots now, growing like crazy: cherokee purple, better boy, golden globe and sweet 100. hopefully, they'll do better than last year.
nraleighliberal, i know you are the resident tomato expert 
, so tell me, is it always a good idea to pinch off suckers? i've heard that not doing so provides the plant with more shade. all of my plants are south-facing, so they get LOTS of hot summer sun. i'm in sacratomato (hee). no really, that's sacramento's nickname.
It depends
actually, it really does. Suckers are nothing more than additional fruiting stems. Pruning is the way to gain control over a plant, for those who stake them/grow vertically. But it reduces potential fruit set, since flowers form at various points along the main stems - and once they form and either set fruit or drop, that's it. More flowers won't form. So allowing additional fruiting stems (suckers) grow on provides more flowering, hence more fruit. Additional stems also meet additional foliage, which shades the developing tomatoes and prevents sunscald.
So the "depends" choice part is all about how you wish to grow and how much yield you hope for....and how massive a plant you can handle!
I prune minimally, but mostly just keep tying everything loosely to the stake very foot or so - I use 8 foot stakes. The plants do get quite huge, and minimal pruning, esp. with high temps (which can lead to blossom drop) means a better chance at a decent yield.