Large fruited variety with highest productivity - Page 4

sic transit gloria · June 29, 2011

KBX has always been very productive and large for me. Green Giant is as well. Neves Azorean Red seems to fit your bill as well.

b54red · June 29, 2011

J Peazy, I grew Dr. Wyches this year and it produced 22 tomatoes the largest one was 1 lb.

Bella Rosa, made 27 toms with the largest being 17 ounces.

Big Cheef made 30 tomatoes with the largest being 17 ounces.

Milka's Red Bulgarian made 16 with the largest being 33 ounces.

Brandywine Sudduth has made 14 so far and the largest is 24 ounces; but it still has several fruits on the vine.

Germaid Red? has so far produced 19 tomatoes with the largest being 26 ounces.

This year got extremely hot very early in the spring so the size of my tomatoes has suffered. The tomatoes with the largest fruits that also had decent numbers this year are Milka's Red Bulgarian, Germaid Red?(not sure what it is) and Brandywine Sudduths. I did not include any varieties that didn't have at least a dozen large fruits off each plant.

Aphid · July 2, 2011

Hi Jpeazy,
I have not tried Dr wyches.
many of the beefsteaks do well in mid Tenn like the Brandywines.
the trick is getting thru the mid summer heat and humidity ... without loosing a million blossoms...lol
once temps get above 97f pollen pretty much becomes sterile ,,, heat tolerant or not... there are only a few degrees that seperate "heat tolerant" from the rest

I find I can grow many non-heat tolerant varietys no problem, but even the heat-tolerant varietys can struggle. Our hot summers are not very good for Tomatoes in general. Fall crops are a very good option

stopping disease and bugs is probably the bigger task, this is the worst bug year I have encountered ever.

I try to plant as early as possible to beat the heat ,,, often by mid summer the heat and disease begin to take it's toll ,,,,so by mid july out goes the fall tomatoes... I have had amazing plants, huge production with much less disease and bug pressure during that period.

mid summer is a battle and the hardest part of growing tomatoes in Mid Tenn.

planting "heat tolerant" really does not make a very big difference here. some varietys just do better than others.

some of the best survivors for me have been the brandywines, amazon chocolate , cherokee purple , celebrity,roma,many of the cherry and grape varietys like sweet 100, sungold do very well.

I'm growing alot of new varietys this year but it's too soon to tell what has the best tolerance so far ,,, aside from Amazon Chocolate,it has been amazing so far !!

raindrops27 · May 17, 2012

CamoChef,

In your 2007 planting year, what date did you plant your brandywine cowlick seedlings in the garden?

camochef · May 17, 2012

In 2007, my Cowlicks were planted out on 9 May 07, and 10 May 07. Not sure you could call them seedlings at that time as they were in large pots and stood close to 3 ft tall.
That was the great tomato year and they produced right up to our first killing frost on 1 Nov 07
There were other years when they went out earlier and others that were later. Most early years required covering plants due to frosts and even a freeze or two. I think 2008 was the year I started a bunch of Cowlicks on the 28 of Jan and had repotted them to larger and larger containers before the weather was fit enough to set them out.
This year, nothing is set out yet...but hopefully soon.
Enjoy!
Camo

raindrops27 · May 17, 2012

Thanks Camo,

I will definitely have to start some Cowlick Brandywine next year, thanks!

kath · May 17, 2012

Wow, Camo- I never knew that you ever started plants so early and still put them in the ground! This year I started 7 plants at the beginning of Feb. and planned to keep them in large containers- first in the greenhouse when they were too big to stay under lights indoors and later just moving the pots into the fenced garden. I decided to take a chance on transplanting them to the garden when they were about 2' tall- fruits and all and I'm really pleased and surprised that they kept growing and producing fruits and flowers as though nothing happened. They are all either determinates or semi-determinates and have been allowed to do their thing so far with only pruning of bottom leaves that touched the ground. We've had fruits from 2 of them so far and two others have fruits that appear to be breaking. If they continue to do well, I might try it next year with a few of our favorite early indeterminate varieties.

Hope you get to set out soon and that you have an enjoyable and productive season-
Kath

camochef · May 17, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by raindrops27

Thanks Camo,

I will definitely have to start some Cowlick Brandywine next year, thanks!

I hope you enjoy them and find them to be as productive as I did back in 2007.
Enjoy!
Camo

camochef · May 17, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by kath

Wow, Camo- I never knew that you ever started plants so early and still put them in the ground! This year I started 7 plants at the beginning of Feb. and planned to keep them in large containers- first in the greenhouse when they were too big to stay under lights indoors and later just moving the pots into the fenced garden. I decided to take a chance on transplanting them to the garden when they were about 2' tall- fruits and all and I'm really pleased and surprised that they kept growing and producing fruits and flowers as though nothing happened. They are all either determinates or semi-determinates and have been allowed to do their thing so far with only pruning of bottom leaves that touched the ground. We've had fruits from 2 of them so far and two others have fruits that appear to be breaking. If they continue to do well, I might try it next year with a few of our favorite early indeterminate varieties.

Hope you get to set out soon and that you have an enjoyable and productive season-
Kath

Kath,
That was the earliest I ever started any plants. I received my Limbaugh's Legacy potato tops in the mail that day and took that as a sign to try planting some tomatoes. The first couple were planted out in the garden on April 25. Some more on May 2, 6 more on May 3, the last 6 on 15 May. That was the year I had planted out just shy of 400 tomato plants, and the last one went in the ground on June 12. The rest got dumped in the woods.
I don't do that sorta foolishness anymore

Enjoy!
Camo

habitat_gardener · May 18, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by camochef

...The rest got dumped in the woods.
I don't do that sorta foolishness anymore

I should hope not!!

ScottinAtlanta · May 18, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by WVTomatoMan

@J Peazy:
No offense, but we have a terminology issue.

I am going to assume that you are really asking what large fruited varieties are most productive. In my garden the winner would have to be Aker's WV. The added benefit is that it is most resistant to the most common foliage diseases we have around here (Early Blight and Septoria leaf spot).

A long time ago someone actually counted the number of tomatoes per plant of many varieties and posted the results on the internet. I don't know if you can find a link to those results by searching (google?) or not.

@tam91:
I have to agree with you on the Mortgage Lifter. It is a big honkin' plant that can throw out some big ones, but in my garden it is bland. Tomatoes taste differently when grown in different environmental conditions and individual tastes vary. But we're on the same page with this variety and I'm from West Virginia. The implication is that one wouldn't want to knock a tomato from their home state based on anything but results.

Good luck.

Randy

Randy, on the strength of your post, I ordered some Aker's WV seed. Thanks for the tip, Scott

camochef · May 18, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

I should hope not!!

I had started over 800 tomato plants that year, Got almost 400 of them planted out in the gardens, gave away to friends and neighbors all that I could. By June 12 I was done and dumped carts full in the woods.

When I said I don't do that type of foolishness anymore, I meant growing so many tomatoes. This year I have a grand total of 22 plants.
Enjoy
Camo

Liz · May 20, 2012

I'd agree Brandyboy is a real star for a big slicer. Am also happy with Goliath for a fine production. xoxo Brandywine, but yield is small for the size the plant needs! good luck

zabby17 · May 21, 2012

Red brandywine has been very productive for me most years. Amish paste and Opalka as well if you want something meatier.

Like others, I've had different plants become stars one year or another, but those three are prob. the most reliably productive ones I've had over the years in the large-fruited realm.

Good luck!

Z

June 29, 2011	#46
sic transit gloria Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: KS 5b/6a Posts: 249	KBX has always been very productive and large for me. Green Giant is as well. Neves Azorean Red seems to fit your bill as well.

June 29, 2011	#47
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	J Peazy, I grew Dr. Wyches this year and it produced 22 tomatoes the largest one was 1 lb. Bella Rosa, made 27 toms with the largest being 17 ounces. Big Cheef made 30 tomatoes with the largest being 17 ounces. Milka's Red Bulgarian made 16 with the largest being 33 ounces. Brandywine Sudduth has made 14 so far and the largest is 24 ounces; but it still has several fruits on the vine. Germaid Red? has so far produced 19 tomatoes with the largest being 26 ounces. This year got extremely hot very early in the spring so the size of my tomatoes has suffered. The tomatoes with the largest fruits that also had decent numbers this year are Milka's Red Bulgarian, Germaid Red?(not sure what it is) and Brandywine Sudduths. I did not include any varieties that didn't have at least a dozen large fruits off each plant.

July 2, 2011	#48
Aphid Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Nashville TN zone 6-B Posts: 133	Hi Jpeazy, I have not tried Dr wyches. many of the beefsteaks do well in mid Tenn like the Brandywines. the trick is getting thru the mid summer heat and humidity ... without loosing a million blossoms...lol once temps get above 97f pollen pretty much becomes sterile ,,, heat tolerant or not... there are only a few degrees that seperate "heat tolerant" from the rest I find I can grow many non-heat tolerant varietys no problem, but even the heat-tolerant varietys can struggle. Our hot summers are not very good for Tomatoes in general. Fall crops are a very good option stopping disease and bugs is probably the bigger task, this is the worst bug year I have encountered ever. I try to plant as early as possible to beat the heat ,,, often by mid summer the heat and disease begin to take it's toll ,,,,so by mid july out goes the fall tomatoes... I have had amazing plants, huge production with much less disease and bug pressure during that period. mid summer is a battle and the hardest part of growing tomatoes in Mid Tenn. planting "heat tolerant" really does not make a very big difference here. some varietys just do better than others. some of the best survivors for me have been the brandywines, amazon chocolate , cherokee purple , celebrity,roma,many of the cherry and grape varietys like sweet 100, sungold do very well. I'm growing alot of new varietys this year but it's too soon to tell what has the best tolerance so far ,,, aside from Amazon Chocolate,it has been amazing so far !!

May 17, 2012	#49
raindrops27 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: long island Posts: 327	CamoChef, In your 2007 planting year, what date did you plant your brandywine cowlick seedlings in the garden?

May 17, 2012	#50
camochef Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Posts: 707	In 2007, my Cowlicks were planted out on 9 May 07, and 10 May 07. Not sure you could call them seedlings at that time as they were in large pots and stood close to 3 ft tall. That was the great tomato year and they produced right up to our first killing frost on 1 Nov 07 There were other years when they went out earlier and others that were later. Most early years required covering plants due to frosts and even a freeze or two. I think 2008 was the year I started a bunch of Cowlicks on the 28 of Jan and had repotted them to larger and larger containers before the weather was fit enough to set them out. This year, nothing is set out yet...but hopefully soon. Enjoy! Camo

May 17, 2012	#52
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	Wow, Camo- I never knew that you ever started plants so early and still put them in the ground! This year I started 7 plants at the beginning of Feb. and planned to keep them in large containers- first in the greenhouse when they were too big to stay under lights indoors and later just moving the pots into the fenced garden. I decided to take a chance on transplanting them to the garden when they were about 2' tall- fruits and all and I'm really pleased and surprised that they kept growing and producing fruits and flowers as though nothing happened. They are all either determinates or semi-determinates and have been allowed to do their thing so far with only pruning of bottom leaves that touched the ground. We've had fruits from 2 of them so far and two others have fruits that appear to be breaking. If they continue to do well, I might try it next year with a few of our favorite early indeterminate varieties. Hope you get to set out soon and that you have an enjoyable and productive season- Kath

May 20, 2012	#58
Liz Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Columbia, SC Posts: 57	I'd agree Brandyboy is a real star for a big slicer. Am also happy with Goliath for a fine production. xoxo Brandywine, but yield is small for the size the plant needs! good luck

May 21, 2012	#59
zabby17 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Ontario Posts: 211	Red brandywine has been very productive for me most years. Amish paste and Opalka as well if you want something meatier. Like others, I've had different plants become stars one year or another, but those three are prob. the most reliably productive ones I've had over the years in the large-fruited realm. Good luck! Z