Alaska 2015 tomatoes

AKmark · February 2, 2015

My first batch is up. These were started in promix under a HPS as usual. Nearly every seed sprouted, and those that did not were from a couple of strains. I will start a large batch in a couple of weeks, I am pretty excited to get this going so I can taste some fresh tomatoes again
I think I have compiled quite the selection this year.
Have a great season everyone.
Mark

kath · February 2, 2015

I'm excited for you, Mark- you do have an amazing selection this year! Can't wait to see how they do for you- I loved looking at your 2014 thread. Still can't believe what a long season you have been able to create up there in Alaska! Wishing you your best year yet-

kath

zero244 · February 2, 2015

Your already starting seedlings. I have three plants growing indoors under HID lighting. But I am not even thinking about starts for outdoors yet, and I live in Oregon which is about 40 to 60 degrees warmer than Alaska.
Your green house grow last year was incredible.

KarenO · February 2, 2015

awesome variety Mark, best wishes for another excellent year!
Karen

salix · February 2, 2015

As Karen noted, great varieties! Who other than Tomatovillians would spend time checking out so many labels on a picture of tomato seedlings,lol...

Worth1 · February 2, 2015

Wishing you a bigger crop than last year.
Let's hope the weather hold for you again this summer.
Worth

AKmark · February 3, 2015

Worth, I also hope for a nice summer, but if it's not it will be interesting to see how some varieties perform. You obviously have been up here for many summers and know how bad they can be sometimes, rain, clouds, mist, fog, and more rain.
This year I am doing a lot more stuff outside, I have a pretty decent collection of early type varieties for the gardens. I also bought some Big Zac seeds and plan on growing a couple of plants for pure tomato shock affect, we will see how that goes though.

Zero, I have found it is worth it to start plants as early as possible, I will be eating beefsteaks in May. You can really cram a lot of plants under a small HPS, then put out big healthy starts when it's time
Kath, so many of these are from PA, you live in tomatoland.
Salix & Karen, we can talk tomatoes, but not salmon right? lol

This year I feel I got a decent handle on varieties that are notable, I absolutely cannot wait to try them side by side.
Thanks, I hope this is a fun season for all

greyghost · February 3, 2015

Your plants look terrific, Mark. If you have as nice a crop as you had last season,
you'll have a lot to look forward to. I hope everything does well! Keep up
the photos-we love them!

Darlene

AKmark · March 12, 2015

The first batch that was planted on January 20 have been transplanted into gallon bags, and are doing great in the greenhouse now. A couple of crosses we did last year are pretty early, and a few already have flowers puffing out pollen.
I got a new gift brought to me today, a tomato called Klondike, I only found these seeds on Ebay, and from what I heard they are good. Anybody here ever try Klondike?
As the length of day increases the plants go crazy.
Another fun filled year of tomatoes

KarenO · March 12, 2015

everything looks fantastic Mark. I'm getting jealous...
I've never heard of Klondike but rats rats rats that was a name I was thinking of for one of my crosses... back to the drawing board.
KO

AKmark · March 25, 2015

Out of the first batch, the Bloody Butcher crosses that Sherry and I have been tinkering with have beat Early Girl for producing the first tomatoes. Potato leaf Black Krim x Pl Early Girl is second.
I have noticed in the F2's of Brandywine Cowlick's x Bloody Butcher that none out of 9 plants are as early as the F1's that are in the same row. What I will do is back breed the F1 into the earliest of the F2's, so I can recapture the early gene in there somewhere, then I will try again before I start segregation, and move the line forward. My hope is to capture the quality, as well as the early trait that I found in this F1 cross last year, as well as this year.
The BB x Dester F1 is just as early as the Cowlick's x BB cross, but I have not tried it yet. We have not done F1 of Caspian Pink x BB side by side yet, but it has been good tasting too.

As far as the classics, I have a Stump of the World that is earlier than Sudduth's, Cowlick's, and Fred Limbaugh's, as well as other Stump's, all in the same row. We also have a Mrs Benson which seems pretty earl.

heirloomtomaguy · March 25, 2015

I wish i had a awesome greenhouse like yours. Very nice crosses also.

Barb_FL · March 25, 2015

I loved following your thread all last year and look forward to it again.

They look great, as expected. In the last picture, are they still in the gallon grow bags? If so, they are huge.

What are you feeding them this year?

I didn't realize your GH was so wide. A totally different perspective than when the plants are giants.

Heritage · March 25, 2015

Looking great... thanks for taking the time to document your progress.

Have a great summer!

Steve

bower · March 25, 2015

Oh, Mark, this is great to see! Starting with beautiful plants and early crosses, I'm so glad to see pix of 2015 in Wasilla... it'll be interesting no matter what kind of year, but I have no doubts about your setup... you're going to have a good one, rain or shine!

February 2, 2015	#5
salix Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: north central B.C. Posts: 2,310	As Karen noted, great varieties! Who other than Tomatovillians would spend time checking out so many labels on a picture of tomato seedlings,lol... __________________ "He who has a library and a garden wants for nothing." -Cicero

March 25, 2015	#12
heirloomtomaguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: glendora ca Posts: 2,560	I wish i had a awesome greenhouse like yours. Very nice crosses also. __________________ “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."

February 2, 2015	#2
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	I'm excited for you, Mark- you do have an amazing selection this year! Can't wait to see how they do for you- I loved looking at your 2014 thread. Still can't believe what a long season you have been able to create up there in Alaska! Wishing you your best year yet- kath

February 2, 2015	#3
zero244 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Oregon Posts: 47	Your already starting seedlings. I have three plants growing indoors under HID lighting. But I am not even thinking about starts for outdoors yet, and I live in Oregon which is about 40 to 60 degrees warmer than Alaska. Your green house grow last year was incredible.

February 2, 2015	#4
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,922	awesome variety Mark, best wishes for another excellent year! Karen

February 2, 2015	#6
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Wishing you a bigger crop than last year. Let's hope the weather hold for you again this summer. Worth

February 3, 2015	#7
AKmark Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Wasilla Alaska Posts: 2,010	Worth, I also hope for a nice summer, but if it's not it will be interesting to see how some varieties perform. You obviously have been up here for many summers and know how bad they can be sometimes, rain, clouds, mist, fog, and more rain. This year I am doing a lot more stuff outside, I have a pretty decent collection of early type varieties for the gardens. I also bought some Big Zac seeds and plan on growing a couple of plants for pure tomato shock affect, we will see how that goes though. Zero, I have found it is worth it to start plants as early as possible, I will be eating beefsteaks in May. You can really cram a lot of plants under a small HPS, then put out big healthy starts when it's time Kath, so many of these are from PA, you live in tomatoland. Salix & Karen, we can talk tomatoes, but not salmon right? lol This year I feel I got a decent handle on varieties that are notable, I absolutely cannot wait to try them side by side. Thanks, I hope this is a fun season for all

February 3, 2015	#8
greyghost Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: southeastern PA Posts: 760	Your plants look terrific, Mark. If you have as nice a crop as you had last season, you'll have a lot to look forward to. I hope everything does well! Keep up the photos-we love them! Darlene

March 12, 2015	#10
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,922	everything looks fantastic Mark. I'm getting jealous... I've never heard of Klondike but rats rats rats that was a name I was thinking of for one of my crosses... back to the drawing board. KO

March 25, 2015	#13
Barb_FL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Indialantic, Florida Posts: 1,999	I loved following your thread all last year and look forward to it again. They look great, as expected. In the last picture, are they still in the gallon grow bags? If so, they are huge. What are you feeding them this year? I didn't realize your GH was so wide. A totally different perspective than when the plants are giants.

March 25, 2015	#14
Heritage Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: San Diego Posts: 1,255	Looking great... thanks for taking the time to document your progress. Have a great summer! Steve

March 25, 2015	#15
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,793	Oh, Mark, this is great to see! Starting with beautiful plants and early crosses, I'm so glad to see pix of 2015 in Wasilla... it'll be interesting no matter what kind of year, but I have no doubts about your setup... you're going to have a good one, rain or shine!