2008 report

[Suze]

This thread seems as good a place as any to offer observations about some of the new-to-me ones I am growing this year. Still many to photograph and taste, and I am waaay behind in doing this. I've not had a lot of free time lately, because it seems I'm constantly having to water something in the garden (hasn't rained here for almost a month), secure plants so they can take these high 35+ mph winds, etc. Plus, it is brutally hot here. Ok, I'm done whining now. On a positive note, my tomatoes taste superb (in general) because the flavor is not getting diluted by excessive rain, as it did last year.

Amazon Chocolate is an excellent dark, close second in taste to Pink BTD. PL dark, history unknown. My source's original source was Amishland Seeds. I was sent the seeds as a freebie enclosed in an SSE request I made to a long-time listed member, and told to grow this, it is a good tomato. So I did.

Blackfoot is one I grew last fall. I need to look at the epidermis again, because I could have sworn it was a pink. Looks more like a red this year. History unknown for sure, although I think someone may have indicated it came from the Blackfoot tribe, hence the name. There is a thread about it here somewhere, and also one on Dave's Garden in the tomato forum. Taste is very good to excellent. Edit -- it's a red, because the epidermis is definitely yellow.

Cleopatra is a great tasting red cherry, and I'm not easily impressed by most cherry types.

Dr. Wyche's Yellow is one I've grown in the past, but it has been quite a while. Excellent flavor, kind of like KB, but a notch or three above. Avg productivity.

Faster is a nice, productive red. Good flavor, super productive, compact indet. Would make an excellent canning type, but is also good for fresh eating. Globe/std shape, but with a sharp point at blossom end on most fruits.

Heaven's Joy is good to very good. Very productive, darkest dark for me so far this year. It's no CP for taste, but still worthwhile.

Hege German Pink - Wow! Best tasting pink in the garden this yr and also the most productive.

Jewish - Wonderful tasting red oxheart. Throws some big ones, avg to low avg productivity.

Jumbo Jim Orange - When I looked at the sliced tomato, I figured it wouldn't taste like much because of the spaces in the locules. But I was dead wrong. Tied with Tasmanian Blushing Yellow for the best yellow/gold/orange I have tasted so far this yr. Avg productivity.

Koroleva - this plant is under major stress and has not done that well (at one point it almost died), so take my comments with a grain of salt. Flavor was avg, and fruits are not as big as what I was expecting. Shape and color seem right, though.

Pink Berkeley Tie Dye is probably the best dark I've tasted so far. Delicious! I say dark, because the flesh is dark (pink-black) inside. Moderate fruit set, around 7-9 tomatoes. Edit - ended up with 12-15 fruit, some was hiding, and a couple also set a little later.

Ramapo F5 is a good solid/dependable red. Not an 8-9-10, but a 7 easily. Pretty red globes, extremely productive.

Sheboygan is super productive, just loaded. It's no Prue, etc., but very nice, on the sweet side.

Sprite is a pleasant surprise. Tastes like the pricey grape toms in the grocery, but a notch above. Stays a tad crunchy even when dead ripe, but great flavor for what it is. Very productive, plant is about 4 ft tall. Green fruits have a major tendency to drop if bumped when picking. My plant is RL.

Spudatula Black is very productive, and great taste. Just a slight notch below this Pink BTD and the Amazon Chocolate I've mentioned earlier. I believe this is a cross of Black from Tula x some unknown PL.

SunPlum PL - Mark, if you are reading this, it was stable for me this yr from my saved seeds (fall '07). I still like this one. Jaune Flamme sized, pretty deep orange-red fruits. Productive.

Tarasenko 6 is the best red beefsteak I've tasted so far this year. Moderate productivity.

Tiger Tom (not to be confused with Tiny Tiger, which is blah) is one I grew because Craig says he likes it. A nice two or three bite tomato, Jaune Flamme sized or thereabouts. Tart, but not one-note. Tangy, refreshing taste. Pretty fruits, productive. Indet.

Wild Bill's Big Red is very good to just shy of excellent, just a notch below Tarasenko 6. Avg productivity.

Zore's Big Red is delicious. Tastes kind of like Wes, Linnie's Oxheart or any number of other excellent large red heart/variable shaped types. This is a PL oxheart, so a bit unusual. Yes, the foliage has a sort of "droop" to it. Low-avg productivity, throws some big ones.

Thumbnails attached in the order of my comments. You can also go to My 2008 album to view.

More later as I have time to do some more tasting and take photos.

[nctomatoman]

Nice report....was wondering if Amazon Chocolate was just an Amishland renaming of Cherokee Chocolate...what do you think, Suze? The interior structure does not look right, so after looking at your pic, I suspect not...but still curious!

[Suze]

Craig, 1) Amazon Chocolate is PL, and 2) epidermis seems to be clear. Sure does look like a red-black on that plate, but technically speaking, I guess it isn't. So no, I don't think it is a renamed Cherokee Chocolate.


Click for Larger Size

More info -- Fairly compact plant, 4.5 ft or so in my garden. In a more moderate/non-drought yr, it might have gotten a little taller for all I know. Avg productivity for the weather I am having -- 7-8 fruits or so. Doesn't remind me of any other PL dark I've grown so far, or any RL dark, for that matter. Hard to say what it might be...

And I guess I also have my answer re Blackfoot too, since the skin is obviously yellow.

[Tomstrees]

Good growing Suze & thank you so very much for the reports!
Great pics too ...

Hope all is well,

~ Tom

[Gobig_or_Gohome_toms]

Spudatula Black Sounds very nice, how was the production and average fruit size? This one sounds like one to go on my wish list to grow sometime.

[duajones]

Very impressive as always Suze.

[Suze]

Originally Posted by Gobig_or_Gohome_toms

Spudatula Black Sounds very nice, how was the production and average fruit size? This one sounds like one to go on my wish list to grow sometime.

Mostly med-lg fruits (usually anywhere from 9 to 14 oz), although it did throw a couple over a lb for me. I don't weigh every fruit, so the size range is just an estimate. Production is around 14-15 fruits, those picked + those still on the vine. Again, an estimate.


Here are more pictures of new-to-me ones I took today. (I have tasted Little Lucky before, but this is the first yr growing it.) They are attached in list order. I'll come back and edit this post to add comments when I have a chance to taste them all. Most are still piled up on the counter.

506 Dwarf Bush Early is very productive, as you can see from the pic. Flavor is good. 4 ft plants.

Aunt Astrida's Latvian Oxheart (sliced, and whole) - Delicious! Wonderful flavor, rich, sweet. Low productivity. Almost seedless, hope I can save enough seeds for this one.

Japanese Oxheart (sliced) - also wonderful flavor, similar in taste to the Aunt Astrida's. Low productivity. Almost seedless.

Little Lucky - In my opinion, the most flavorful bicolor. One of the best tomatoes I have ever tasted of *any* color. Outstanding. Sweet-tart and juicy. This is a "10" - perfection. I like the flavor of this even more than Lucky Cross, and am going to make room for at least two plants next yr. Low-avg to avg productivity for a tomato of this size (small-medium). Mid to mid-late season for me this year.

Orenburg Giant - Well, it tastes better than it looks. Better than avg flavor, but nothing amazing. Reserving judgment on this one until I harvest and taste a few more. Hopefully the others won't have all that hollowness/space in the locules. Avg productivity.

Puszta Kolosz (sliced, and whole) - Very good to excellent, just shy of greatness. Avg productivity.

Swisher Sweet - Delicious, sweet but not bland. Avg productivity.

West Virginia Sweet Meat - Delicious, on the sweet side. Most fruits are a pound or over. Avg productivity.

Yasenichki Yabuchar - slightly above avg flavor (good). Super productive.

[FlipTX]

That Heaven's Joy is really striking! Where'd you get the seeds?

[Suze]

Originally Posted by FlipTX

That Heaven's Joy is really striking! Where'd you get the seeds?

Thanks. I requested seeds from another listed SSE member. I don't think it is commercially available at this time, but could be mistaken.

[duajones]

Well, my final count will end up being 375 plus. Jet Star has helped pad my numbers lately but most of the fruit I am harvesting from it are only 3 ounces or so. I have around 3 or 4 left on Aunt Gertie's Gold and Green Giant, a few each on Cherokee Purple, although the quality of the fruit has declined a great deal. 2 or 3 left on SOTW which was my biggest plant overall at around 8 ft. I have been picking a couple Beefmasters every other day and it appears to still be setting even in this heat and its actually a pretty decent tomato. Cherokee Purple may still be my favorite and the two plants rewarded me with around 30 each, and I really enjoyed Green Giant this year. Paul Robeson cranked out over 30 fruit but the flavor wasnt quite what I thought it would be. All in all a pretty decent year.

[ChuckBartok]

Congrats again for such great numbers and ripe fruit.

I just came home form the Western States Horse Expo.
Gone of four days.

One of me Stupices now has 36 nice sizing fruit.
Can't wait for color and ripening.

The other plant has 23.

Last week the two had total of 26 so I am pleased with blossom set

[feldon30]

I am still picking Jet Star, Gregori's Altai, Stump of the World, Marianna's Peace, Ashleigh, etc. Fruit size is also going down for me on the Jet Star and the others. Not a single ripe one from Cuostralee. It's at the furthest end of the bed getting the least sun so that might be an issue. Believe it or not some Earl's Faux and Brandywine are still hanging out there, big ones.

I think everything needs to be fed and watered. Maybe this afternoon. I believe feeding in the middle of the season might help keeping fruit size up. I am picking a basket of tomatoes every other day still. I can't believe it.

Pool guy came today to fix the plumbing going out of the pump into the filter. We caught the pump running dry but the damage was done. Sliced up a Hege German Pink and the look on his face when he tasted it. He went home with a half dozen tomatoes and a bunch of cherries. Black Cherry is still going strong.

[FlipTX]

The plants I still have in the ground look pretty good! Marglobe is doing great (hope I didn't just jinx it) and still has roughly twenty tomatoes on it. I think it's still setting fruit, too, because I noticed some pea-sized babies just now when I went out to take the picture below.

[duajones]

My Beefmaster is the equivilent of your Marglobe this year as far as longevity and fruitset. Maybe the inferior tomato but still happy with its production and taste. 28 harvested so far and counted 23 on the plant as of this morning and the plant is still healthy. Good luck to fellow Texans on their immediate future harvest as I know the pickings start to get slim from here on out, at least for most of us.

[FlipTX]

I almost didn't grow Marglobe this year. I grew it last year in a container, and it wasn't very happy. Now I can see that I just didn't give it enough room.

It's not my favorite, but it's a very nice tomato. It'll be back next spring.