Favorite Tomato

[CottageFarm]

In addition to growing tomatoes for market sales I also grow plants for nursery sales.
I still have some space left in my plug trays and I usually try to add a couple of new ones every year for trial.
This year I've not been able to come up with anything exciting to try, :help: so I thought I'd look to you all for some ideas. What's your favorite? What do you like best about it?

Inbred, I know yours is Celebrity. :lol:

 

[Aaron]

Not a tomato fan, but I know a big hit in this house is a Polish tomato, similar to a Roma. Lots of flesh, little to no seeds. Hard to find.

 

[chippie]

I am going to try Amish Paste this year.

Amish Paste (Heirloom): Very productive heirloom from Wisconsin that produces up to 12 oz, deep-red oxheart-shaped, meaty fruit. (Probably one of the largest paste tomatoes) Lots of sweet, tomatoey flavors from this coreless meaty fruit. A great slicing and sauce tomato.

you can find the seeds online.

 

[whatisgmo]

In addition to growing tomatoes for market sales I also grow plants for nursery sales.
I still have some space left in my plug trays and I usually try to add a couple of new ones every year for trial.
This year I've not been able to come up with anything exciting to try, :help: so I thought I'd look to you all for some ideas. What's your favorite? What do you like best about it?

Inbred, I know yours is Celebrity. :lol:

Hey me and ol inbred have yet another thing in common, I like the Celebrity maters too. Damn GMO's

 

[3waycross]

Cottage go to growitalian.com and order some seed for the "Comice" pear tomato. It is a northern italian heirloom that gorws to 16 to 18 ounces easy and is an amazingly short season tomato. I promise you will be amazed byt that tomato!

 

[CottageFarm]

Thanks all. Keep them coming!

Chippie, I've tried the amish paste in the past. My customers just didn't seem interesed. Paste type tomatoes haven't done real well with my customers in general, though plant sales are somewhat trendy from year to year.


3way, they're not showing a variety by that name. Is this the same variety/different name?
http://www.growitalian.com/products/Tomato,-Red-Pear.html

 

[3waycross]

Thanks all. Keep them coming!

Chippie, I've tried the amish paste in the past. My customers just didn't seem interesed. Paste type tomatoes haven't done real well with my customers in general, though plant sales are somewhat trendy from year to year.


3way, they're not showing a variety by that name. Is this the same variety/different name?
http://www.growitalian.com/products/Tomato,-Red-Pear.html

Yes that is it. I have never grown anything like it in my life and it made at 7000feet and made early!
I put the plants out on May 15th and covered them for 3 weeks. We were eating tomatoes by Aug 10th. They were as tall as my head before the end of July

 

[Kathie in Thorp]

I always put in Celebrity, but I also get some heirlooms from a gal not far from here every year. The problem with those heirlooms is it seems they always take S O stink'n long to finish, so I pray for warm weather early in the Fall. But for those, I like Box Car Willie, Hillbilly and (for sauces/paste) Amish Paste. But you have to be patient, and the plants are indeterminate, so they get huge!

 

[cow pollinater]

I love the cherry tomatoes. My wife will eat the big ones some but the kids and I don't care to much... instead we eat the sweet100's like candy.

 

[chippie]

I am having second thoughts about the Amish now. The Red Pear looks interesting.
I like to can tomato preserves and my husband likes to make salsa.

What would be best for us?

 

[Kathie in Thorp]

Chippie, my tomato lady set a few TEXAS STRAWBERRY last year, and I brought one home. Looks like a sauce type tomato, but they are HUGE! But they didn't do real well in this climate -- got some, but not many. I don't see them on her list this year. Here, we are stupid to put in tomato plants until mid-May.

 

[chippie]

I think that I found the Texas Strawberry seeds.

http://www.myseeds.co/german-red-st...h&adtype=pla&gclid=CN3Ao-a4vrUCFQWxnQodiU4ALQ

This site has some interesting ones:

http://www.swallowtailgardenseeds.com/veggies/heirloom.html

 

[CottageFarm]

Chippie, I need to preface the following statements by confessing this: I DON'T LIKE TOMATOES!
I know, it's almost blasphemous :lol2:
Now with that out of the way.
For tomato preserves, my recommendation would be to stick with sweeter, lower acidic tasting varieties. They don't need to be drier varieties, just really full flavored. Typically, the paste types don't offer that. They're really meaty, low juice & seed, but (my tastetester hubby tells me) the flavor is always a bit lacking. I am going to order some of the Italian variety that 3way mentioned. It sounds very interesting.

For salsa, I make mine with a mix of varieties. A paste type for some good chunks, I like the San Marzano. A beefsteak type for juice. My major standbys are Big Beef and Beefmaster. A couple of heirlooms for color and flavor. I like Prudens Purple and Mortgage lifter. I also use some Cherokee Purple for the smokey accent that it adds. I don't eat the salsa either,but others seem to really like it. :lol2:

Kathie and Inbred. What do you like about the Celebrity? I grew it a few times in AZ, but it never did very well there. I've not tried here, however, so maybe I should reconsider it.

 

[Kathie in Thorp]

CottageFarm -- Here, Celebrity is always dependable, if you're looking for a salad tomato, or to slice one up for your burger. It will mature in our growing season, reliably. They aren't the greatest for canning, but they'll do.

 

[alisonb]

I ordered purple black tomato seed from a local supplier but it was a bit too late in the season to plant, rather disappointing as it's something I really want to try. Oh well.... next season .

Cottage - have you given them a try yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFNNhVhi7vY

 

[chippie]

Celebrity seems to do well regardless of the climate.
t survived our 100+ degree summer days in direct sun & produced a bumper crop

I had bush Goliath last year for the first time & they did well too
I had Cherokee purple heirloom & they couldn't stand the heat or sun

 

[CottageFarm]

Ali, I usually grow Black Prince and Cherokee Purple. I do almost like the black tomatoes. Some of the yellow ones aren't too bad either. The Cherokee is especially unique. They have a smokey flavor that hits the back of the tougue and adds a special flavor to salsa & sauces. I use some of these in my spaghetti sauce when I have them. I've also grown the Black Krim, but I found the Black Prince to be a superior performer so I stick with that one.

 

[CottageFarm]

Thanks, Kathie & Chippie. I might consider the Celebrity for plant sales. I think for production hybrids I stick with the Big Beef and Parks Whopper. Celebrity doesn't seem to offer anything superior to those two.
My priorities for production varieties are taste, size (large 12-16 oz), high yields, disease resistance, and plant manageabilty. The latter factor is the only reason I've abondoned the Better Boy. I have a serious love/hate relationship with that one. :lol2:

 

[alisonb]

Just went through my seeds, some 30 odd varieties :roll: . Have Black cherry, Black from Tula and Black plum.....none of the one's you mention so thanks, now I know what to look out for .

My mom loves Oxheart so I usually plant a couple just for her :heart: . Something you may want to look at, if you have not already, is the Sub-Artic for you area??? Oh, and the Italian tomato Pricipe Borghese?? I have seed for them both so if they are any good please let me know.

 

[Kathie in Thorp]

Thanks, Kathie & Chippie. I might consider the Celebrity for plant sales. I think for production hybrids I stick with the Big Beef and Parks Whopper. Celebrity doesn't seem to offer anything superior to those two.
My priorities for production varieties are taste, size (large 12-16 oz), high yields, disease resistance, and plant manageabilty. The latter factor is the only reason I've abondoned the Better Boy. I have a serious love/hate relationship with that one. :lol2:

I agree, CottageFarm, that Celebrity won't have anything over Big Beef and Parks Whopper for size, and maybe not for flavor either. But I like them because they are ready almost 30 days before I get anything off my heirloom plants. I'm not very patient.