shinnecock indian tomato

[Minnesota Mato]

I just went to seedsavers and bought a shinnecock indian tomato and wondered if anyone has grown them or has any info on them.
craig

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Minnesota Mato

I just went to seedsavers and bought a shinnecock indian tomato and wondered if anyone has grown them or has any info on them.
craig

I just lost my post and all the links Iwanted to give you,so I'll just try to summarize.

What you have is a currant variety, S.pimpinellifolium, wee fruited variety.

The list of varieties that can be bought as plants ONLY at SSE itself, lists it as one for 2014, so that's where you must have bought it.And no one there could tell you anything about it?

I was confused at first and saw no listing for it in the Public catalog,nor in my 2013 SSE Yearbook for seeds, I don't know where my 2014 one is, perhaps someone here can check quicker that I can find it.

The Shinnecock nation has member still on their original site on Long Island,NY, and I doubt this variety was one grown in way back times, rather, someone found this currant one growing either on the reservation or in the lowlands nearby and just attached the name Shinnecock to it.

Hope that helps.

Carolyn

[Minnesota Mato]

They had a brief description on a sign which stated that it was a currant and that it had been at the reservation for at least 3 generations. It doesn't sound like very many people have grown it. craig

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Minnesota Mato

They had a brief description on a sign which stated that it was a currant and that it had been at the reservation for at least 3 generations. It doesn't sound like very many people have grown it. craig

Craig, a red currant is a red currant and are listed in the SSE YEarbooks, the public SSE catalog, and more.

http://t.tatianastomatobase.com:88/w...rrant_Tomatoes

Above is a list from Tania's website of some, and there are many more that are just listed as Red Currant with no name at all.

Currant varieties are available in red, yellow,white, and now a pink one, called Ted's Pink Currant, which I've been offering in my annual seed offer here at Tville.

Currant varieties were first spread from Mexico to the US by Spanish missionaries and have taken root, as it were, almost everywhere, seeds spread by birds, etc.

Are there differences in tastes of various red currants, yes, I think there are having grown several myself,

So as for the one you got from SSE, having been grown for three generations is not that important, to me at least, since there have been red currants that have been grown wild since the late 1500's. Not that many folks grow them regularly in their gardens since the fruits are so tiny and are a pain to harvest. I used to pick just a whole truss at one time to snack from.

My fave from Tania's list above is Sara's Galapagos.

There are those who say you have to grow them far away from other varieties since the stigmas of currants stick way above the pollen bearing anthers, thus more available for insect cross pollination. But it's now been shown that not all currant ones have what are called exerted stigmas and one person I know, who knows lots about tomato genetics, says he's more worried about his regular varieties X pollinating his currants.

Hope that helps.

Carolyn