Disease Resistant(REALLY!) Semi-Det, Det. or Dwarf

[parah]

Just an small update, Amazon Chocolate & Sandul Moldovan seem to have very strong natural resistance to TSWV (Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus) Royal Hillbilly does not seem to have resistance to this nasty virus.

Also, Amazon Chocolate and Royal Hillbilly are very tolerant of the higher humidity and lighter wind flow from growing inside netting. Sandul Moldovan and Zolotoe Serdtse are not, they seem to need more airflow.

And, finally Gribovsky tomato seed is available according to Tatianas tomato base:
http://t.tatianastomatobase.com:88/w...le_Helix_Farms

[Marcus1]

parah, out of curiosity was the Bella Rosa plant in the picture growing in the ground ? The reason I ask is that it looks more like a nutrition problem possibly from free lime from concrete.

[b54red]

Gray Mold is one of the hardest foliage diseases to slow down in my garden. Black tomatoes and green when ripe types are the most susceptible. Daconil doesn't seem to prevent it from starting up and once it does it is usually only a matter of time before the plant will succumb. I did find that alternating Daconil and a copper spray was more effective in preventing outbreaks. Once an outbreak starts then the only thing that has been fairly successful is spraying with a dilute bleach spray using a slightly stronger than normal solution and repeating two or three days in a row, then following up with a copper spray. The spraying has to be very thorough each time and spray the ground and surrounding plants as well. The spraying must begin as soon as you see signs of Gray Mold or it will not be successful. Waiting to begin treatment just assures failure with this disease. This treatment also works fairly well with Septoria which just decimates plants during prolonged rainy spells.

Bill

[parah]

Hey B54red, have you tried Amazon Chocolate? It seems to have very strong resistance to Gray Mold. Last year half my garden was Amazon Chocolate because all the other black tomato plants were dying before the first fruit! I did try your suggestion of dilute bleach spray and it definitely helps, but the disease pressure comes from my close neighbors and they are never gonna change. It seems easier plant the extreemly disease resistant varieties. I can see the black mold early spots on the stems, but It never gets out of control. Life is good!

[parah]

Originally Posted by Marcus1

parah, out of curiosity was the Bella Rosa plant in the picture growing in the ground ? The reason I ask is that it looks more like a nutrition problem possibly from free lime from concrete.

That is an interesting thought, all my tomatoes are grown in containers with peatmoss and Foliage Pro + Pro-tekt for nutrients.

I will try Bella Rosa again. I had a Symphylan infestation in some of my containers and didn't know it so I have to reconsider some varieties. It is not fair to judge a tomato plant if its root structure is being eaten by nasty little 10 legged bugs. Symphylans are as indestructible as a severe Mealy bug infestation. I had to throw away all the soil and soak the whole container in strong bleach solution.

I finally figured out that I am the Typhoid Mary of my Garden! Now I am twice as careful about disinfecting Gardening tools and checking the sickest plants last.

[bower]

Hey Parah,

Thought you might like to know, the winner of the 2013 end of season grey mold challenge was a Russian variety I got from Marina called Rozoviy Flamingo (heart). This plant was still standing with no sign of mold at all about three weeks after the season was over. The fruit was very nice quality, large and beautifully shaped sweet dark pink hearts in clusters of two or three. It was a huge plant though, for the amount of fruit, yards and yards of vine. I crossed it with the dwarf Al Kuffa, hoping to get the outstanding disease resistance and fruit quality in a more compact plant.

Danko was a close second behind RozFH in the challenge, not showing any sign of it very late while Kimberley and Stupice next to it were rotten with mold. I left them on purpose, just to see how long a nearby plant could withstand so many spores...

[parah]

Rozoviy Flamingo, thank you Bower. I am looking for it, who is Marina? You didn't say anything about the flavor... I remember a few years ago I was thrilled to be able to grow ANY edible tomatoes. Now I am searching for tomatoes at least as tasty as Amazon Chocolate, Sandul Muldovan, Royal Hillbilly and Perth Pride.
Zolotoe Serdtse is disease resistant and productive, 4 tries so far have produce tomatoes that are edible and pleasant but not tasty. I think I'll give another try, the baseball sized orange tomatoes are pretty.

You asked about Pink Berkeley Tie Dye, I like it! Raybo recommended it for containers, it is a compact plant. I have 3 plants growing now, if it makes fruit, the fruit is always tasty, like Sandul Moldovan. In my garden it has good disease resistance, maybe a little less than Royal Hillbilly. It seems to have reasonable resistance to Grey Mold (Actinovate and Great White seem to help)

[bower]

Parah, this Rozoviy Flamingo is not the same one I've seen in shops online in North America, the seed came to me from Marina Russian who posts here at T'ville, which she got from a seed vendor in Russia. It is a large fruit and very pointed heart. Yes it was delicious fruit, especially if you like pink tomatoes. Picture below shows the shape, this one just starting to ripen, the DTM was the same as Indian Stripe.

I've happily managed to get seed of Amazon Chocolate and Pink Berkeley Tie Dye for next year, and also Perth Pride. Really looking forward to seeing how they do.

[parah]

Ooooh! That is a pretty tomato picture. Tasty, pretty, disease resistant and same DTM as Indian Stripe... that is very promising.

I really want to hear how Amazon Chocolate does in your garden.

[parah]

Hi, Bower.

I am thinking more about Pink Berkeley Tie Dye, I have three plants growing now.

They all have the little brown telltale spots on the stalk that shows the mold has started. That is frustrating because Neves Azorean Red and Tarasenko 6 in the same containers show no sign of disease yet. All plants are just starting to flower, so I suspect Pink Berkeley Tie Dye will be over run with grey mold by the time fruit blushes. Maybe it is time for your weak bleach solution.

Actinovate seems to slow the Grey Mold, but doesn't stop it.

[bower]

Sorry to hear about the Pink BTD... fingers crossed it will do better in the cold. I haven't started my seed yet, this winter is too brutal and looks to be a late spring. So thanks, for confirming Tarasenko 6 on my grow list (when you have too many 'must grows' it helps to know which one NOT to drop!)

[parah]

Cheers Bower, as you know Tarasenko 6 is a monster, but Pink BTD is compact so I am foolish to grow them in the same container. Sometimes I have to plant the seedlings that are ready, not the ones I want to compare.

RFH x AK cross already sprouted! That was fast, only 3 days. I wonder if it can survive daily temps over 100 and monsoon rains, fun to try.

[bower]

Cheers, Parah. I have the same problem with pairing plants in a container, the more compact plant definitely gets the short end. I'll have to find a good partner for Tarasenko 6.

I expect the Rozoviy-Kuffa F1 to be a big jungle vine like the mother, as the indeterminate trait is dominant. In the F2 generation, 1/4 plants will be dwarf, so easy to select at the seedling stage. The F1 fruit will be red, and probably round not pointed, and maybe intermediate in size or closer to the smaller fruit. Al Kuffa is not a cherry per se, although small: it has three locule fruit, rather a nice shape, in clusters of six... I'm not sure about all the fruit trait dominance and inheritance, but I believe 1/4 of the selected F2 dwarfs should have pointed fruit like RFH and 1/4 of those would be large fruit.... 1/4 is the usual ratio for simple non-dominant traits. As for disease resistance, that is more complex. Save lots of seed from the F1, they say.

But first of all, survive the 100 degree temps and monsoons and set some fruit! Best of luck, I look forward to hear what happens.