[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":85},["ShallowReactive",2],{"nav-profile":3,"story-the-tomato-surplus":4},null,{"id":5,"title":6,"author":7,"body":8,"category":74,"date":75,"description":76,"extension":77,"image":78,"meta":79,"navigation":80,"path":81,"seo":82,"stem":83,"__hash__":84},"stories\u002Fstories\u002Fthe-tomato-surplus.md","The Great Tomato Surplus of Elm Street","Sarah M. — GreenThumb_Sarah",{"type":9,"value":10,"toc":67},"minimark",[11,15,18,23,26,29,33,36,39,42,46,49,52,55],[12,13,14],"p",{},"It started as a miscalculation. I ordered 48 tomato seedlings thinking I'd lose half of them. I lost none.",[12,16,17],{},"By late July my backyard looked like a scene from a science fiction film — vines climbing the fence, the shed, even the gutters. I had Cherokee Purples the size of softballs, clusters of Sun Golds so heavy the cages were bending.",[19,20,22],"h2",{"id":21},"the-overflow-problem","The Overflow Problem",[12,24,25],{},"Every morning I'd fill a basket before 7 a.m. just to keep up. My fridge was full. My counter was full. My neighbors were getting random bags left on their porches like some kind of produce Santa.",[12,27,28],{},"Then my daughter suggested Fresh Neighbors.",[19,30,32],{"id":31},"listing-my-first-harvest","Listing My First Harvest",[12,34,35],{},"Setting up my first listing took about ten minutes. I posted 30 lbs of mixed heirlooms at $4 a pound and within two hours I had four reservations from people on the next street over — people I'd lived beside for years and never met.",[12,37,38],{},"The first pickup, a couple named Marcus and Deja, stayed for twenty minutes talking about their own herb garden. We traded contact info. A week later they brought me fresh basil to go with my tomatoes.",[12,40,41],{},"That's the thing nobody tells you about backyard growing: the surplus isn't a problem. It's the invitation.",[19,43,45],{"id":44},"what-came-next","What Came Next",[12,47,48],{},"By August I had a little community around my garden gate. Regulars who'd text me on Wednesday nights asking what was coming that weekend. A retired teacher who traded me sourdough loaves for cherry tomatoes. A family three blocks over who started their own raised beds because \"if Sarah can do it, we can do it.\"",[12,50,51],{},"This year I'm planting 60 seedlings on purpose.",[53,54],"hr",{},[12,56,57],{},[58,59,60,61,66],"em",{},"Sarah lists fresh produce every Thursday through October. Find her at ",[62,63,65],"a",{"href":64},"\u002Fgrowers\u002FGreenThumb_Sarah","@GreenThumb_Sarah"," on Fresh Neighbors.",{"title":68,"searchDepth":69,"depth":69,"links":70},"",2,[71,72,73],{"id":21,"depth":69,"text":22},{"id":31,"depth":69,"text":32},{"id":44,"depth":69,"text":45},"Grower Story","2026-05-15","How one neighbor's accidental overplanting turned into the block's best potluck tradition.","md","https:\u002F\u002Fimages.unsplash.com\u002Fphoto-1592924357229-e79f0c8a3641?auto=format&fit=crop&q=80&w=1200",{},true,"\u002Fstories\u002Fthe-tomato-surplus",{"title":6,"description":76},"stories\u002Fthe-tomato-surplus","OPuVoVG-wdnucaUjwiyXoTRuAY0oa4Ms9ePYqLsA8ns",1786668338593]