Grub Update
 

I'm on top of the world, looking down on creation, it's the only explanation I can find...

What a day. Much cooler, the new chicken is settling in and promptly laid an egg, and the big guns are in position.

We've had a few hearts of late, all from Heart Alley, so now the big pinks are coming around. Welcome to the Pink Patch :D

Lithuanian is looking good.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060202/full_size/48148_Lithuanian.jpg[/img]

Soldacki is back for the second year running. Here's why.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060202/full_size/48149_Soldacki.jpg[/img]

Trying Olena Ukrainian for the first time. I read in Carolyn's book is faired very well in disease-resistance trials. It sure is healthy in the humidity and close air.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060202/full_size/48150_Olena-Ukrainian.jpg[/img]

You may have read about my Hat Trick. Baseball caps cover the fruits I have that are colouring up. If the birds can't see them they don't eat them.

Now what have we got here...

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060202/full_size/48151_Hat-Trick.jpg[/img]

I'll tell you what we have. Livingston's Favorites. Really pumping them out now. Equally as big as Red Brandywine and equally as good tasting. Oh, and a lone very ripe and juicy German Red Strawberry to have on the rocks or straight-up.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060202/full_size/48152_Livingstons-Favorite-and-1-GRS.jpg[/img]

Imagine how those reds will look in two days :lol:
Cheers, Grub :wink:

Nice looking fruit Grub. Thanx for sharing.... but you must
tell us how they taste!

Lee

Taste Update
 

Hi Lee,

I always follow-up w/ taste reports.

Okay, how about an interim report for now, considering it's Friday night and all.

Livingston's Favorite: First couple of fruits were very good. I rated them as a 7.5/10, which on my scale is on par w/ Red Brandywine. The level of a very good tomato to me.

Having just eaten four more LFs, which is a lot of tomato, I might add that LF has jumped to a an 8.5/10. I don't re-rate this out of sympathy for anyone.

I left my Livingstone Faves on the vine till they gave a bit, like Earl says, and then we brought them inside and just ate them like mangoes.

LF has a very good balance between acid and sweet, has a lovely tomato flavour, is eye candy. Strangely, my partner thinks it looks like a bought tomato. Nothing too complex in tomato terms, just a really good prolific one.

Y'know what. It's on my shortlist for a return visit next season. CHeers, Grub

Grub's Pink Patch
 

This is starting to hurt........ Grub, you're gonna have all us NHers starting seeds in February!

Well, with it being 70 degrees today Regine, it feels
like I should be planting out in February!

Lee

Plenty Now
 

Rain forecast so I picked a peck.
Some ripper ones in there.
Cheers, Grub :arrow:

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060206/full_size/50880_Todays-Lot.jpg[/img]

Taste report t/c

wow Grub, they are all winners ! Looking forward to the results of your "taste test" ~ Tom

Taste test
 

Soldacki is just great again. Even though it was the first one it has a great balance of flavours, without th fruity depth of some other pinks, but much greater production. It's among my must-grows.

Wes is a stunning, productive red heart with very good taste. However, German Red Strawberry packs an even more intense punch. And it's just as productive, though the fruits aren't as big for me this first time around as those on Wes. GRS is coming back, for sure. And probably Wes too.

Can't wait to get back into one of those Mystery Grub's Greens. I have great big fruit on the RL, two of which can be seen ont he above pic, and on PL plant has fruits turning green-gold, too. I wil use these early but unbagged fruit for a seed save. Pure saves hav also ben made, but they are a month away.

Chers, Grub.

I see a tinge of amber on the Grub's Mystery PL Green fruit - which would be another niche filled. Green Giant doesn't get the distinct amber skin tinge that Cherokee Green does. Thus, another heretofore unknown combination of genes!

Can't wait to grow it out this year - am also going to go back to my original Green Giant seeds from Reinhard and hope to get a RL seedlings to grow out to compare (I had one each of the last two years but...gasp!! - tossed them!)

Update pics
 

Well spotted, Craig. These are from the RL. Mighty heavy fruits and they feel so dense. They are the same meaty numbers I devoured with gusto last year. I can just tell. Fruit is as coloured on one of the PLs now. Life is great. I think you will really like them.

Update from today:

Three of the pinkest tomatoes I've ever seen. Two big Olena Ukrainians and a fat Soldacki at the back.
<img src=http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51782_Big-Pinks.jpg>


Two of the heartiest hearts I've ever seen. Wes. And red :)
<img src=http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51783_Two-Nice-Hearts.jpg>


A plate of nice colours: Grub's Mystery Green back, some (orange) Jaune Flamees, a lone Jaune Negib and two of PP's chillies. HOT!!!
<img src=http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51784_Coloured-Tomoatoes.jpg>


And finally a lousy pic of two of the greenest with envy greens you will ever hope to see ;) Grub's Mystery Greens, off the RL plant, both exaclty 10oz. PL fruit not far behind.

Stay tuned for some sliced pics of this vibrant, tasty green and other new specimens ;)

<img src=http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51785_Grubs-Mystery-Green.jpg>

TAKE TWO
 

:oops:

Update from today:

Three of the pinkest tomatoes I've ever seen. Two big Olena Ukrainians and a fat Soldacki at the back.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51782_Big-Pinks.jpg[img]

Two of the heartiest hearts I've ever seen. Wes. And red :)

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51783_Two-Nice-Hearts.jpg[img]

A plate of nice colours: Grub's Mystery Green back, some (orange) Jaune Flamees, a lone Jaune Negib and two of PP's chillies. HOT!!!

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51784_Coloured-Tomoatoes.jpg[img]

And finally a lousy pic of two of the greenest with envy greens you will ever hope to see ;) Grub's Mystery Greens, off the RL plant, both exactly 10oz. PL fruit not far behind.

Stay tuned for some sliced pics of this vibrant, tasty green and other new specimens including my first Golden Monarch ;)

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51785_Grubs-Mystery-Green.jpg[img]

[/img]

:oops: :arrow: :twisted: :shock: :oops:

Will have to try and fix this tomorrow.

Sorry. [/img][/url]

Okay One Last Try
 

Here's Grub's Mystery RL Green on the turn. It will turn really amber soon, with darker shoulders. Very pretty in the flesh. Speaking of which I'll post some sliced pics very soon :)

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51800_Grubs-Mystery-RL-Green.jpg[/img]

[url]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060207/full_size/51800_Grubs-Mystery-RL-Green.jpg[/url]

Update on my Patch
 

Hi,
I’m not sure what is happening this season, but every tomato I pick is just pure bliss. Don’t mistake this for me being non-judgemental, subordinate, or a case of looking through rose-coloured tomato glasses. It’s just that after a few seasons I’ve struck on a mighty fine growlist — thanks to my tomato friends and peers — and, over the course of time, developed an appreciation for tomatoes other than the blockbusters.

Like wine, there are nuances to saviour, be it a smoothness, a great balance, an earthy undertone, some spiciness, lingering sweetness or other subtlety. Take Jaune Negib, an early yellow that some may criticise as being one-dimensional. While it was far from early for me, the mild yellow is just as welcome now as the big reds, exhibiting hints of loam and lemon on a soft palate.

Then there is Wes, a big red heart, that’s not overly complex. But it’s a $30 bottle of red with great balance and aesthetic appeal. And German Red Strawberry, which is so fruity it reminds me of a top pink. It should be made into a cocktail complete with an umbrella.

Of the pinks, Soldacki, Olena Ukrainian, Polish and Lithuanian all pack that sweet-tangy punch that almost leans towards the melon spectrum. Okay, maybe pushing things a bit far, but these are very full-bodied tomatoes, with huge slices, that sit well on their own. Or just on bread. Salt and pepper. Nothing more.

Then we shift to the classic tomato flavours. Livingston’s Favorite, pumping out 8oz red fruit, and Red Brandywine, similar size, are great reds with virtuous, vintage tomato tastes. And headstrong growth habits to boot.

The earlies, Kimberly and Sophie’s Choice, were more rewarding than I ever imagined. The former is a tomato factory, with sweet tasting golf balls that sweeten up some more in the height of summer. Sophie’s Choice has a more traditional tomato flavour, with scoffable big slices. The same can be said of New Big Dwarf and Mountain Princess. Russian Red is more like Kimberly. Very honest, prolific and salad-sized. They were all very good and I have trouble splitting them.

I’m enjoying the zippiness of Jaune Flammee, again, the aforesaid mildness and colour contrast of Jaune Negib, and there are Cherokee Purple, Picardy, Arkansas Traveller, Cuostralee and Kelloggs Breakfast X Akers West Virginia (F4) cross to go.

I have Rinaldo, Ernesto and Prue to pick and eat. Then there is Dr Neal, another nice pink that I have grown before. And in my slow patch there is Earl’s Faux, Box Car Willie, Mule Team, Neves Azorean Red and Mortgage Lifter (Esters Strain, no fruit yet). Akers West Virginia is just a wonderful looking plant. I hope it sets fruit soon. It has such pretty yellow flowers.

In the Rainbow Patch I have Grub’s Mystery PL and RL Green, both of which have ripe 10oz fruit right now, to tuck into and save seeds from. I noticed two Golden Monarchs approaching ripeness this morning. The green variant of Hughs isn’t showing many flowers. Only a few fruit on Golden Queen. Amongst those towering plants, Marianna’s Peace, a nice PL pink, is struggling for light, but here come the flowers.

Last but not least, my Fall Crop. I see fruit on Ashleigh, more Grub’s Greens, good flowers trusses on Green Giant, fruit on Grandfather Ashlock and another Neves Azorean Red. College Cropwell is setting some, while Yasha Yugoslavian thinks about it. And yet to try in pots: Persey is colouring up and Victorian Dwarf is loaded with mini beefsteak.

In respect of cherries: Sungold tastes wonderful sans all the sugars, in a low-brix position receiving 2hrs direct sun in the morning, two hours dappled light at midday, and two hours sun in the afternoon. Perhaps this lighting isn’t bringing out the flavour of Matts Wild, which is okay. Broad Ripple Yellow Currant is nice and lemony, but as I have discovered it’s not a currant. Note to self: chase down that wee yellow currant with dynamic flavour you tasted interstate at the farmer’s market. Rose Quartz Multiflora (red) is a very nice prolific cherry and satisfying in every way.

So there you have it. Plenty to celebrate and plenty to look forward to. I honestly can’t say there’s a dud amongst them. My palate is broadening, as with my mind, and I’m learning to appreciate that there is merit in a tomato whose taste isn’t necessarily a blockbuster. There are a lot of things that make an enjoyable tomato.

This particular season, my fruits are just huge, disease has been kept at bay, and fruit and white fly are scarce. It’s destined to be remembered as a great growing season. I planted out late. The fall crop holds great promise. It will be interesting to see how late they yield and whether the wonderful taste sensations continue.

Good growing to you all,
Grub.

Colour My Day
 

Rainbow Road is starting to produce. The Grub's Greens are all RLs. They are big 10oz numbers. PLs picked tomorrow. Same size.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53264_Rainbow-Lane.jpg[/img]

And it's colouring up my day. The big yellow (bicolouor) is my first Golden Monarch. The bench is looking good. The reds in the background, Red Brandywine and Livingston's Favorite, have proved themselves as workhorses.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53265_Colour-My-Day.jpg[/img]

I use the local cellar's six-pack wine-carrier boxes to carry them indoors. Another product from Sad Sac Enterprises.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53266_Tomato-Carrier.jpg[/img]

Such fun, Grub :D

Grub,

Just a wee note here but Golden Monarch is not a gold/red bicolor, as you wrote.

Many yellow tomatoes have a reddish/pinkish blush to them at the blossom end and perhaps a bit more, but true gold/red bicolors have those blush colors inside in the flesh as well as a marbling effect.

Golden Monarch is listed in the yellow/orange section of the SSE Yearbook, not in the Other Color Section where all the gold/red bicolors are listed.

And I remember Grub just perhaps three years ago when he was asking what a tomato was. :shock:

Now look at him go. :D

I forgot to post in that other thread, but Green Giant as grown by me up north here does have a slight amber tint, same as your PL Mystery Green, and I'm still looking for seeds my friend, even tho I have no idea if I'll be able to sow seeds this year or not.

Just to fondle the GMGS's ( Grub Mystery Green Seeds) if I can't sow them would be lovely.

I mentioned the amber tint thing b'c you said that your MG differed from Green Giant in that regard. Craig and some others in the south say they don't get an amber tint with Aunt Ruby and now Craig says that for Green Giant.

Craig sent me seeds of his Aunt Ruby and they certainly do have an amber tint when grown here in the north, and his friend Jeff also gets an amber tint when those seeds are grown in Michigan.

I think most of us tentatively conclude that it's a temperature, perhaps UV intensity related phenom.

Carolyn, dribbling on the keyboard looking at some of those pictures. :)

GRUB...
REALLY enjoyed your "inspirational" descriptions & pictures!!! Sounds like you're having a bang-up season and it definitely left me with a few more varieties on my ""to grow"" list!! Wish YOU Continued success.....keep'em comin'.....

More Pics
 

Hi Aunty Carolyn,
I was under the misunderstanding Golden Monarch was a bicolour. Lol. But when I went to pick it I'm thinking: hey, not much of a bicolour. I was expecting a Regina's Yellow kind of thang. Anyway, I brought it inside and it looked great. A big yellow with a pink blush on the bottom which, as you say, appears to be quite common on yellows.

So, still thinking this is a bicolour and therefore without great shelflife, I awoke and, when She Who Must Be Obeyed said which one? I picked up Golden Monarch. She sliced it and we had it on fresh hot rolls that I picked up from the local baker down the road.

Wow! Golden Monarch is a very very tasty yellow and among the most delicious yellows I have eaten. It's got a depth of flavour, not all that common in yellows, and a great balance, with fruity undertones and a tanginess that reminds me of how I like my mangoes.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53598_Golden-Monarch.jpg
[/img]

Next thing I know the doorbell riings: ding dong ding dong. That's right. Last night I phoned my MIL's friend who looks after my plants and chickens when I'm away. I said: come on down with a bag for a feast. And she did. So I packed tomatoes and eggs for her and she left with a very broad smile.

Then I moved onto seed saving with Grub's Mystery RL Green. Terrifically meaty fruits. I busted two open and nibbled on them both. One was riper than the other and, it should be noted if you have followed this thread to this point, that the fully-ripe golden hued GMGs have the greatest depth of flavour. Just a great fruit.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53599_Grubs-Mystery-RL-Green.jpg[/img]

And sooo meaty.
[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53600_Grubs-Mystery-RL-Green-2.jpg
[/img]

That is it for today. Thanks for all your help Aunty Carolyn and I really do appreciate it.

You make my summer :D Grub

gosh darnoodley
 

Sorry, made a mistake with the codes. :oops:

Here's my Golden Monarch on a breadroll for breakfast.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53598_Golden-Monarch.jpg[/img]

And here's Grub's Mystery RL Green sliced.

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060209/full_size/53600_Grubs-Mystery-RL-Green-2.jpg[/img]

That is it for today. Grub

Cant wait for the fruit on my GMG to grow and ripen. Pulled the shade cloth off the greenhouse today to give it more sun. Looks like the hottest weather is behind us down here. Got the main greenhouse cleaned up and pots loaded ready for a plant out on the weekend of my fall crop. All the seedlings have their first true leaves and are looking good. Going to put in a cutting of my Nepal X Tommy Toe as well. It is loading up with fruit outside whilst sprawling all over the place.
Oh, sorry, this is the Grub update page eh :arrow:

Lol
 

Lol Mantis,
All welcome. The more the merrier. Sure is cooler here these last few days like, er, a taste of Autumn. I think we'll both be well stocked in the fall. Let's keep in touch :)

Yeah I hope so Grub. The chooks are starting to lay better now in the cooler weather as well. Really looking forward to seeing how the fall crop will develop. I may have started them a bit to late, but the greenhouse should help out with that.
I've even got my plan for the spring greenhouse already LOL.

Golden Monarch is I suspect Buist seed company's "selection" of Golden Queen (get it - Queen, Monarch...!) - so a bright yellow tomato with a pink blush fits with what we've seen with Golden Queen (even Livingston's old seed catalogs mention the occasional blush) - though they are certainly not the classic red/yellow bicolors (I find Golden Monarch much better flavored). I got out out of the USDA in 1995 after reading about it in the Buist catalog. Monarch, a large pink Buist variety, is also a good variety - Victory now sells it. I found Golden Beauty, also from the USDA, very similar to Golden Monarch - a few people in Australia tried it out a few years ago when I sent seeds around, and liked it.

Grub,
You make Golden Monarch sound great...I think I'll grow it this year! I still have seeds for Golden Queen....which I liked, so a side-by-side will be in order, I think. Monarch looks like it's a bit larger.

Great pics!

Yee ha
 

Thanks Craig for the background. I got the seeds from your namesake Craig in South Australia and he really liked it and now I see why. It's got a great taste.

That is really funny about Golden Queen — and yes I see the relationship now — because I have Golden Queen growing right alongside in Rainbow Run, where the colours are stacked together.

You are so right, Cat.
Golden Monarch is most definitely bigger than Golden Queen. So now I might know what to expect when I tuck into a GQ in the next week or so.

GQ has been a strange plant for me. Huge, dense RL, smothering things as it grows. So few fruit. But there are fruit and they are later that Golden Monarch.

Thanks again for circulating the oldies, Craig.

Here is a catalog page from a 1946 Buist catalog that describe Monarch (on the left, large pink), and Golden Monarch (right page).

[img]http://nctomatoman.topcities.com/Seed_Catalog_Scans/1946_Buist/1946_buist_tomatoes3.jpg[/img]

Nice to see the catalog, Craig!

Grub, do let us know which one you prefer of the two as far as taste....great you are growing them both 8)

I remember Golden Queen as being quite productive, but I've only grown it one season.

Some More
 

When you watch them all the time nothing seems to change. Then when you go away for a day or two there's a nice surprise waiting for you when you arrive back home :)

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060212/full_size/55147_A-Peck.jpg[/img]

In case those Grub's Mystery Greens don't work out just put my mug shot on the dartboard :) BTW: Would this be a peck?

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060212/full_size/55148_Grubs-Mug.jpg[/img]

The bench is looking good. Those Livingston's Favorites, the lined-up red ones, are just great and very very prolific. One plant in a top spot is producing 1.5 times as many as two Red Brandywine's in top spots. And the flavour is that of a really good old-fashioned red.

I've been looking for a maincrop reliable red and both these are coming back for sure. [i]Never[/i] without a red slicer now. [b]Never[/b].

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060212/full_size/55149_Some-More.jpg
[/img]

Best wishes for the coming season.
:)Grub.

Bench Press
 

Yeh, as I was saying, the bench looks good. :)

[img]http://pixmixer.com/uploads/images/20060212/full_size/55149_Some-More.jpg[/img]

The cherries are being cut in trusses. Matt's Wild, Sungold ( which I love BTW), and Broad Ripple Yellow Currant (not a currant at all ).