I'm looking for a BLT worthy micro tomato

[Hatgirl]

Given the sad news of TV closing, is there somewhere I can follow along this project to its conclusion? I have been enjoying reading about the micro hunts for many years.

[dfollett]

Originally Posted by Hatgirl

Given the sad news of TV closing, is there somewhere I can follow along this project to its conclusion? I have been enjoying reading about the micro hunts for many years.

I'd like to continue communicating with as many of the T'ville folks as possible. Send an email to danbfollett@gmail.com. I will be happy to communicate with anyone about them - especially anyone who would have an interest in helping grow some and work with some of the new lines.

[SeanInVa]

Here's a few pictures and a quick update

113X was entirely carrot-leafed, as you expected.
150x had very, very few carrot leafed plants. Only one has made it through, in fact, I believe it was the only one that made it to first transplant.

I just selected down today, so I need to update documentation. A total of 37 going currently. There is another tray of 8 in the tent not pictured (included in the 37 count). Three of the ones below are other micros (in the far left tray)

The flower shot below is of a 113X

[Jayc]

Adorable!
What size pots are you growing them in and are they the final size?

[SeanInVa]

Originally Posted by Jayc

Adorable!
What size pots are you growing them in and are they the final size?

I just today potted them up to 6" pots from 4" azalea pots. Most were originally transplanted from starting cells 11/24 or 11/28. I am not sure what size they should get to - Dan might be able to provide that info - but given they are micros I would expect anywhere from 6" - 18".

The Red Robins I grew over the summer in 6 inch pots under sun only got to maybe 8-10".

[Jayc]

Thank you SeanInVa, I agree 5''-6'' pots seem to work well enough for the small micro toms.

[PureHarvest]

Trying to picture what your eventual winner will look like.
A plant 8-10” tall, with about baseball sized tomatoes?
So each plant that short/small in a single 1-gal or less pot would mean you would get 4-5 fruit at most per plant? And then it would be done? Or would there be another flower cluster coming behind the first truss of fruit on the terminal growth point or lateral branches?

[dfollett]

Originally Posted by PureHarvest

Trying to picture what your eventual winner will look like.
A plant 8-10” tall, with about baseball sized tomatoes?
So each plant that short/small in a single 1-gal or less pot would mean you would get 4-5 fruit at most per plant? And then it would be done? Or would there be another flower cluster coming behind the first truss of fruit on the terminal growth point or lateral branches?

I don't know. To me BLT worthy has more to do with taste than size. Although it will still need to have decent size. I kind of doubt I'll find a 6" plant that produces a fruit that will cover a piece of bread with a single slice - but a few sizes with the right flavor would work for me.

Some of these little guys will produce more than you imply. The first two are 6" tall, the third is 9" and the last is 12". All are in 6" pots. Time will tell if they put out a second crop or if they croak - and if they are BLT worthy. What I don't want is one that tastes like a cherry tomato. I want it to taste like a real tomato. These haven't ripened yet, so I can't speak to their flavor. If they only ripen what they currently have, they will have been worth the effort. Any second crop will be a bonus.

[Jayc]

Stunning!

[Hatgirl]

Oh wow. And do they all only have a single stake to hold them up?

[dfollett]

Originally Posted by Hatgirl

Oh wow. And do they all only have a single stake to hold them up?

The second one doesn't have any support. The other three only have the single stake you can see. I just hope they have good flavor and I can get them stabilized.

[PureHarvest]

That is helpful Dan.
I am going to be setting up production in the basement for fun and personal consumption.
Off season indoor tomatoes have always tugged at my green thumb. I have seeds for mega bite and juni, recommended from another thread.
Your project has grabbed my attention. I was trying to visualize what a crop would look like and yield, and how you might cycle these plants. Maybe much like a hydro lettuce table where you are always seeding the replacement crop and cycle through accordingly.
Either way, I was thinking with plants this compact, you would do something like sea of green that pot growers do, where each individual plant might not produce tons of yield, but it is made up for in the large volume of plants in a given square foot area.

[dfollett]

Originally Posted by PureHarvest

That is helpful Dan.
I am going to be setting up production in the basement for fun and personal consumption.
Off season indoor tomatoes have always tugged at my green thumb. I have seeds for mega bite and juni, recommended from another thread.
Your project has grabbed my attention. I was trying to visualize what a crop would look like and yield, and how you might cycle these plants. Maybe much like a hydro lettuce table where you are always seeding the replacement crop and cycle through accordingly.
Either way, I was thinking with plants this compact, you would do something like sea of green that pot growers do, where each individual plant might not produce tons of yield, but it is made up for in the large volume of plants in a given square foot area.

I do just like you suggest. I continually cycle through. The replacements to these will be sown in the next couple of weeks. They don't take up much space for the first month or so. I have a 90-day frost-free growing season, so I can't do much serious growing outdoors. I have grown tomatoes indoors year-round for about seven years. I tried full-size in containers, then dwarfs. But they were all way to cumbersome and too much work. These little ones are just fun.

How would you like to help look for some new worthwhile micro varieties? I am going to try to put together a 'Micro Project' along the lines (although probably not on the scale) of the Dwarf Project that Craig and Patina did. I have made way more crosses similar to the crosses these came from than I can possibly grow out. I am looking for people interested in helping grow them out. If you would have an interest in something like that, PM me and I'll get you more details. I am also looking for folks willing to help with the organization and coordination of the project. Anyone interested, please PM me.

[PureHarvest]

I’m game.
I’ll pm you.

[oakley]

Everyones micros look amazing. Very happy to see this.

I agree we need a designated spot to keep this 'micro project' organized.
(I got your pm Dan)
I usually have to do a bit of searching to find the older threads.
Might have to start with something as simple as a new posting in all caps...
'The MICRO TOMATO PROJECT'
Your description,
Then link the various threads to that description. (?)

I have a big photo file of my grow-outs. I could probably put together a decent
tutorial about the 'hunting' and dense planting. Culling, what to look for, etc.
(I get randomly way too busy, then find some weekend time on occasion)

Hence my November tray did not get any love and perished...the dismal winter months following a busy holiday season I seem to have more time.

As mentioned before, I have 4 lines I have carried forward. I started a 1010tray of those last week with my peppers.

Next tray is the two varieties you sent last fall, 2019. Lots of seed! I'll start those by this next weekend. If all goes well in 4-6 weeks, I'll request two more varieties.

As you can see, you sent plenty of seed...top two packets