Du Jour: Kiki Fontenot

This month, community garden expert Kiki Fontenot is ordering her own varieties of heirloom tomato seeds, and she’s telling garden enthusiasts to do the same. “Now is the time to start looking through seed catalogues and ordering what you want to plant because companies tend to run out – especially of heirloom varieties,” says Fontenot, LSU AgCenter vegetable community/school garden specialist. In her experimental tomato patch last year, Fontenot had good results with varieties like Cherokee Purple, Striped German, Brandywine, Sweet Tangerine, the high-yielding Patio Princess and a unique cherry tomato called Italian Ice, which produced pale yellow or white tomatoes. “It’s so interesting looking in a salad. It’s great for the person who wants to be top gardener on his block,” she says. Fontenot recommends companies like Burpee or Johnny’s to source heirloom seeds. Click here to read the whole story.—Maggie Heyn RichardsonTo read previous Du Jour features on local chefs and other culinary experts, click here.