Terry's Garden
Your Favorites
AJ wrote:
Here in Tucson, AZ we are limited to short season tomatoes
because the extreme heat in June/July stops the production of
flowers/tomatoes. Therefore I have to look for plants that will
mature in less than 60 days if at all possible (the last frost
date generally being March 15). I have had the best luck with
cherry tomaotes such as Sweet 100. I have planted a number of
cherry types this year (i.e. indeterminate or determinate with
small fruit) such as Green Grape, Sun Gold, and Sweet Million.
I have also had a lot of success with Early Girl because of its
short maturity and toughness. I am attempting some cold tolerant
varieties this year such as Stupice, Koltas, and Moskvic which were
planted for the most part inside of Wall O' Waters in late Feb. -
early Mar.... Among the other new varities I am trying this year are
Husky Cherry Red (bush indeterminate) and Matts Wild Cherry
(cherry tomato). I will report back later and let you know my
results. AJ
Follow up:
ajg wrote: 1/9/97
I wrote you last year about what I had planted or was going to plant
here in Tucson, AZ and I thought that you and the visitors of your
homepage might be interested in my results and what I anticipate
planting this year.
The overwhelming favorite among friends and family and the most
productive plant in my tomato garden was Sun Gold. Everybody loves
Sun Gold and the plants are very prolific.
I also had great success with Sweet Million which was also very tasty
and very prolific.
Perhaps the greatest suprise were the Moskvic plants. They produced
3-4oz. fruits continuously and quite heavily throughout the season.
Quite tasty too!
Matts Wild Cherry was also very productive although the fruit is really
pea size and somewhat difficult to pick without crushing. I am debating
whether or not to plant this one again.
Husky Cherry Red and Gold were decent performers and their fruit was
fairly tasty.
Stupice provided some nice larger fruit that has a very nice taste to it.
This year I plan on trying some of the following for the first time:
Siletz - First Lady - Persimmon - Dona - Italian Gold - Lemon Boy -
Costoluto Genovese
Sincerely,
AJ - Tucson, AZ
Cheryl Pinkerton wrote:
A Winter-keeping tomato that worked well for us in zone 7 last year was
Burpee's Long Keeper. I began picking "ripe" tomatoes in late August
thru last frost (Oct. 21), and wrapped them individually in newspaper.
They were stored on a basement table in a single layer, NOT stacked atop
each other. We finished eating the last of the stored tomatoes the third
week in January.Definitely a keeper!
Cheryl in Maryland
Janet Wintermute wrote:
I'm casting my vote for 'Mama Mia' as best paste tomato.
It's a 'Roma' type, very flavorful, unfazed by diseases, and highly
productive. Fruits keep well, too.
--Janet Wintermute
helen cottreau wrote:
Has everyone discovered the terrific little tomato Sun Gold?
I shared plants with a few friends a few years ago....now I'm up to
starting about 60 or so plants. Can ''sweet million" possibly be better?
Anyone tried them both?
Helen Prince Edward Island, Canada
Archie Harders wrote:
I'm in the Virginia Suburbs of Your Nation's Capital. Caramello is a
particularly sweet, rather small tomato which we like to eat raw.
And we'll grow Romas for cooking and canning.
archieh@mnsinc.com
Andrew M. Skier wrote:
I'm growing Atkinson & Cherry. First time gardener, so I'll keep the
newsgroup posted.
Andrew Montgomery, Alabama
Paul & Angela Jacobson wrote:
My Dad tells me the best New Zealand tomatoe for Canterbury
conditions in glasshouse is the Counter hybrid. Good flavour
shape ripens December when plant first week in September.
paul
Frank De Simone wrote:
MARGLOBE is one of the best tomato that there is. This variety is one
of the most vigorous and disease resistant of the standard varieties. It
is resistant to 'FUSARIUM WILT' and resists blight well even in the wet
weather. The fruit is large, globe shaped, smooth and bright red right to
the stem. 'MARIGLOBE' also loves the heat, and it would grow great in Hot
climates like Arizona. It matures 58 days to 60. This tomato has 'Early Girl'
licked. However not too much is ever mentioned about 'MARGLOBE'. Try these, they
have the smack that others lack.
As a publisher of American Liberty News. I recommend all my readers to try
this outstanding tomato.
Yours Truly
Frank De Simone
Brian Bearden wrote:
I don't know how readily available this variety is but its called
Texas Wild. The tomato is a little larger that pea size and is sweet
not acidic. Grows easy. Plants produce hundreds. I live in Houston,
TX which is in zone 9. Great for salads and pastas.
don wrote:
>
I've grown more than 50 varieties, and there are only two that I must have
every year - Lemon Boy and Sugar Lump.
I try 3-5 new types every year, but these two combine a sweet flavor with
great disease resistance and productivity that can't be matched. For a
red medium-size tomato, the one with the best combination of growing
characteristics and sweetness has been Big Girl (much better flavor and
more productive than Early Girl).
PAUL ASHTON wrote:
howdy,
My favorite, hands down, is the Red Brandywine. It's a heirloom variety, medium
sized, very meaty and tastes incredible. A close second is Pruden's Purple, another
heirloom. It's not purple, it's red, big, meaty and tasty.
We're growing both this year along with six other varieties. Three of which I'm
particularly anxious to see and eat. Ruby Gold which is a marbled red and yellow.
Garden Peach which I'm told is yellow-orange and fuzzy (Honest). Green Zebra which is
green when ripe with white stripes. All in all the makings for a wild looking salad.
I'd be interested in hearing about other unusual heirloom varieties. They tend to
be a liitle difficult to grow, particularly if you steer away from chemical treatments,
but they're worth it.
Paul Ashton
Windham Center, CT.
Gae Xavier wrote:
Just got a big bunch of ripe, heat-loving Costoluto
Geneveses. Ninety-plus heat doesn't bother them. They are
big, beautiful, fluted like a pumpkin, and with a delicious
slightly-acid tomato flavor. Great looking with scalopped
edges when sliced. Accidently used too much 15-5-10 in
preparing the bed and covered it with balck plastic and they
loved it.
--Gae
--Austin Tx, zone 8
Crsdd222@aol.com wrote:
I have several favorites in my garden this year. For productivity in
extremely hot weather (many days over 100 degrees, quite a few 107 or more
degrees) Yellow Pear and Black Plum produced abundantly all summer and had
good flavor. For best taste I guess I would say Brandywine( a pink, potato
leaf heirloom ) and Green Grape (ripens green with a little yellow on the
bottom) were my favorite.
Steve Waltz wrote:
I don't eat'em! I just grow'em!...But my wife says they're good!
Oregon Spring, developed out of OSU, purchased out of Territorial Seed.
Here in Anchorage Alaska at the 800 foot level spring comes late and
winter comes early. Tomatoes outside turn into little green 'rocks', so I
grow all mine in a south facing sunroom. With all our summer sun the
temperature rises to well over 100 degrees indoors so the plants have to
be able to tolerate heat, lack of water, and cold stress. Oregon Spring
does the best job, another good choice is Sub Arctic Plenty from
Johnny's. I've had bigger tomatoes from beefsteak but they don't produce
as heavily. Cherry tomatos generally do well....'
Determination is an Alaskan trying to grow good tomato!
L'AGRARIA CAVALLINO di Lazzarini Enzo wrote:
Hello to everyone reading this, excuse me for my non-perfect language,
I'm writing from Italy. I work in horticulture-seeds, I know about
500 different varieties of tomato, peppers ecc..
If anybody is interested about, please leave me a message in my
write to agraria@doge.it. My name is Enzo Lazzarini. Bye-Bye
Hunts Brook Farm wrote:
It is difficult to rate on one growing season, climate affects yield
and flavor. I am a home gardener so flavor is #1 consideration; I
also value a meaty tomato with less seed cavity. The varieties I
have found to be outstanding are:
sungold: the best overall for flavor and vigor, but susceptible to cracking
whippersnapper: my earliest to pick by far
golden pearl: current type flavor comparable to sungold
capri pink: outstanding delicate flavor but not carried by Parks anymore
sun cherry: my favorite red cherry
sochulak: outstanding oxheart variety from Fedco
supersteak: dependable high quality
valencia: outstanding orange among last years blight ridden crop
dad's barber: my favorite of all, meaty and delicious despite green shoulders
manny: very similar to dad's barber (from Hockanum, Storrs, CT)
These are some of the tomatoes i have grown in last few years:
CHERRY: sweet million, chello, sweet 100, german sugar, green grape,
gardeners delight, gold nugget, red current,,principe borghese,
asian cherry, pink pear, yellow pear, matts wild cherry, german sugar
LARGE RED: brandywine, striped german, carmello, prudens purple,
cows heart, celebrity, Black krim, odoriko, big/early
boy/girl, parks whopper, jet star, big beef, firebird, mortgage
lifter, oxheart
LARGE ORANGE YELLOW: persimmon, garden peach, jubilee
SAUCE: amish paste, viva italia, yellow plum, milano paste, roma, san remo
C.M. in Ct.
CarFeen@aol.com wrote:
A few that have done well for me here in zone 4 (near Minneapolis) include
Sungold, Enchantment, Green Zebra (which surprises everyone who tries it),
and Dona. I grew Matt's Wild Cherry last year and really enjoyed it. I envy
all those who rave about Brandywine - I've tried growing it several times but
it just doesn't have enough time here to ripen. I also continue my search
for a yellow tomato that doesn't taste too bland. I've tried several but am
still looking.
Don Feeney
whats good for the goose....
Raymond E. Haren wrote:
I have a market garden in southern Ohio. Last summer 20 of my domestic geese
raided the garden. They ate every last ripe Red Brandywine and German Johnson
tomato. They didn't eat any Big Beef or Golden Boy! I have to agree with
them.
- Ray Haren
From Stu, zone 8 in Virginia,
I've been impressed with many varities, but here are my
current favorites...
Big Beef--hybrid excellence at its best
Sweet Million--one ceaseless cherry mill that won't quit
Mortgage Lifter--hierloom flavor worth spraying for
Roma--traditional saucetaste in a timeless plant
Purdens Purple--rivels Brandywine with more sucess
Champion--an old reliable with big results
Celebrity--a winner for taste and production
Early Girl--still first on the block
thanks and good luck this year
Toad522@aol.com wrote:
I'm here in your backyard Keith and have always found Better Boy to do
well..no suprise there. Last year I tried Champion and did it ever do well! I
had big tomatos all season long once things got going. When frost finally got
them, I had many a big friut remaining. It broke my heart. Marglobe was so-so
for me. Better Bush has also been quite productive for me. I have not decided
which different tomato to try this year. i will report later. Thanks for the
Web Page. I think it is really great.
Herbert B. Chermside wrote:
Here in central Virginia (Richmond) I find Celebrity and Heatwave
productive and delicious. Better Boy does poorly, though it did well in
SW va (Blacksburg). Gardener's Delight is a little larger and slightly
less sweet than such other cherry types as Sweet 100, but I love to toss
a handfull into a container to go with my brown bag lunch. Have tried a
lot of others for fun, but heat and drought are tough here. For years
I've planted a gallon milk carton (up side down, hole in bottom) by each
plant for rapid watering at the roots, but for the last two years I have
used a net of soaker hoses on my raised beds, with equal luck.
Watashi
Lorraine Hoag wrote:
I'm planting Red Fig, Garden Peach, throwing out my collected Celebrity
seeds, and Beefmaster(from Wilhite). Wish me luck.
Regards, Lorraine Hoag
Rulon I. Hancock wrote:
A GREAT tomato that I have grown for several years
and is my favorite is Park's OG-50 Whopper II Improved. The "Improved"
came out last year. It is in my estimation and all those I have shared
the harvest with and given plants to, that this is the best tomato
ever....Good large, blemish free and very tolerant to blossom end rot.
Rulon "Ike" Hancock -
SMaclin wrote:
My current two favorites for my area (San Antonio, TX) are Dona and the
new Goliath variety. Taste, production and disease resistence are the
most important qualities to me. Sam Maclin
JASON HUNN wrote:
for anyone who hasn't tried red brandywine, you must. It is by far the
best tasting tomato I've ever tried. Delicious is a distant second.
JohnM40988@aol.com wrote:
I have a small garden every year here near Charlotte, N. C. and every year it
seems that I get a free pack of Homestead tomato seeds in the mail from a
magazine. For the past few years I have started the seeds in an insulated
room under my carport using florescent lights. The seeds have never failed
to come up and do great after transplanting. One year I even took the seed
tray with me on vacation to be sure the seeds got the proper water. Last
year I gave my neighbor 4 transplants, and we were amazed at the height his
plants reached. They were at least 8 feet high, and he had to use a ladder
to reach the top of the plants. Believe it or not, the plants produced well
into December. This year I have given him 6 homestead transplants and I
will later post his results. He says he uses no special fertilizers, but I
find this hard to beleive.
JohnM40988@AOL.Com.
Allan wrote:
We live in a high desert area so our growing season is shorter than
most. Plants need to produce quickly or get out extra early with the
help of Walls of Water.
Besides Early Girl, I like Parks Better Bush. The Tomatoes are very
large at the start of the season with very good flavor on a medium sized
bush. Last year I planted Big Beef which did very well with extra large
fruit. I have enjoyed Long Keeper in the past but found Golden Treasure
keeps much longer. It is a little drier than Long Keeper which probably
helps it keep. Harvested the middle of October and they will stay on the
basement shelf in good condition until May.
Allan Farnsworth
Zone 5
Peter Czyl wrote:
Hi, Best tomatoe for me is Beter Boy. Grows like a weed and has a high
yield. I also like Celebrity but find Beter Boy a little sweeter.
Peter Czyl - Long Beach,Ca.
Karen Otto wrote:
We absolutely adore most any kind of Roma tomato. That is our eating,
snacking and cooking tomato.
I am a complete novice gardener, but I've started some tomato plants
inside that are looking pretty good right now. I am VERY anxious to put
them outside, but my calendar says wait another couple of weeks.
It will be so thrilling to actually eat veggies I have produced in my
own garden! I can't wait!
karen
John F. Hughes wrote:
I live in RI.
Cherry Tomatoes: I've tried Sweet 100+, Yellow Pear, and Ruby Pearl. The
yellow pears didn't do too well (it was a rough year), the Sweet 100+
did fine, and produced a decent cherry tomato. But the Ruby Pearls
are just heaven -- smaller than the Sweet 100s (about the same diameter
as a nickel, I'd guess...maybe just a hair larger), but incredibly
sweet and tomato-y. They're what I dream of during the long winter.
Larger varieties: Oregon Spring did OK for me a couple of years ago,
but I've generally gotten low yield and not particularly great
flavor. Carmello was OK. So was Lorisa. And so, come to think of
it, were Big Beef and several others. But I've yet to find the
perfect tomato for our season/my soil. I'm giving Brandywine
and Celebrity and a couple of others a try this year...we'll see.
paine-d wrote:
PRUDEN'S PURPLE
Heirloom indeterminate tomato that is large, firm-fleshed and very sweet,
with very few seeds. Fruit is actually pink and ridged like a cantaloupe.
Has been a very prolific grower here in the North East with very little
tending and average soil. (Actually, if you could see all the rocks in my
garden plot you'd say below average soil would do, (but the drainage is
terrific!))
Barbara Paine
Germansville, PA
denise beck wrote:
So easy -- it's Green Zebra, no contest! I had one from an organic farmer's
stand last summer and this year there are five plants of it in my garden.
Fantastic taste, the most tomato-y tomato I've ever eaten, crisp, tart,
meaty but juicy, a taste as distinctive and good as tomato leaves always
smell to me. It's green stripes with pale yellow background -- doesn't look
like what we think of as a ripe tomato, but just cut one open and put a
slice on a piece of sourdough toast with a grating of seasalt and fresh
black pepper! Wowee!
This summer I've also planted both red Brandywine and yellow brandywine, as
well as Principe, my first determinate variety, and Gardener's Delight
cherrys, as well as six Graham's long-keeper, because it's so nice to have
fresh-tasting tomatoes sitting on the counter in January that you harvested
back in October!
Denise McCann Beck
Coastal Bristish Columbia
Shawn Westaway wrote:
Hi Keith,
My favorite for flavor and huge production and beautiful perfectly
shaped tomatoes is First Lady F1. I bought the seeds from Territorial
Seed Company and they grew wonderfully down here in Southern
California.
Shawn Westaway
John R. Bowen wrote:
My favorite is the heirloom Cherokee Purple. Large, red to purple,
sweet with a very rich flavor. Not very productive here in zone 5 St.
Louis, MO, but do bear all season and don't sucumb to Early and/or
Late blight that takes most of my other varieties by seasons end.
Large indeterminate plants easily outgrow my 6-foot cages. I acquired
seed thru the Seed Savers Exchange, but they are becoming commercially
available.
Toad522@aol.com wrote:
Hope everyone's garden is on the move. I am trying out the husky varieties
this year..Husky Red and Husky Pink. I am also trying Super Bush 36..just on
a whim. My favorites Champion and Better Boy are moving along as well as my
first German Johnsons. I am growing GJ because when I am ready for a tomato
sandwich I dont want to fool around with several juicy slices falling from
between the bread! I plan to e-mail you as to my success.
big-dog@pobox.com wrote:
Every year I promise myself that I will control myself, and every year I
seem to end up buying every tomato variety at the nursury. This year, I
built a raised bed and planted 12 varieties of tomatoes. These include;
Roma, San Marzano Hybrid, Yellow Boy, Yellow Pear, Banana Legs, Husky
Gold, Amish Paste, Saint Pierre, Brandywine, Homestead 24, Marglobe
Select, and Rutgers Select. The one problem I have at the moment is
that the last six plants came in a Heirloom Tomato Variety Pack, and I
don't know which plant is which! So far, so good. No pest problems, and
growth has been steady despite the recent heat wave here in Los Angeles.
Miki
USDA Zone 10
Craig LeHoullier wrote:
Hi, Keith!
How can I pass up an opportunity to chime in on one of my favorite topics.
Of the 400 or so tomatoes I have tried over the last 15 years or so, these
stand out: Red tomatoes: Nepal, Bisignano #2, Hunt Family Favorite (red
outcross), Lillian's Red, Gallo Plum, Aztec, Dinner Plate A and B, Turkey
Chomp, Opalka, Reif Italian Red Heart, Livingston's Favorite, Maule's
Success, Optimus, German Red Strawberry, Buckbee's New Fifty Day, Sweet
Million, Whopper, Better Boy, Sweet 100, Adelia, Old Virginia, Zogola, Red
Brandywine, Druzba, Rasp Large Red. Pink tomatoes (in general, my
favorites): Brandywine (the best tomato I have yet tasted), Mortgage
Lifter, German Heirloom, Russian, Taps, Curry, Sandul Moldovan, Gregori's
Altai, Stump of the World, Ukranian Heart, Anna Russian, Magnus, Nicky
Crain, Polish, Soldacki, Wins All, Eva Purple Ball, Belgian Beauty, Pink
Sweet, Livingston's Beauty, Fritsche, Goliath, Burcham's New Generation.
Yellow to Orange: Ruby Gold, Yellow Cherry, Madara, Pineapple, Yellow
White, Persimmon, Hugh's, Lillian's Yellow Heirloom, Yellow Oxheart,
Golden Oxheart, Coyote, Pink Grapefruit, Yellow Brandywine, Potato Leaf
Yellow, Golden Monarch, Golden Queen, Dr. Wyche's Yellow, Sun Gold, Djena
Lee's Golden Girl, Robinson's German, Azoychka, Orange, Yellow Bell.
Finally, my favorite striped is Tiger Tom, favorite white is Sutton, and
favorite "purple" is Cherokee Purple and Price's Purple.
That's about it...
Craig in NC
MAYPOFOOF@aol.com wrote:
Coming from Iowa 25 years ago, I have a memory of what a real tomato should
taste like. That is a Iowa grown Beefsteak (call it a 10). A typical
tastless Supermarket tomato would be a 0. I use Walls of Water here in the
front range area of Colorado (near Denver) to extend the season. Most
tomatoes have had the the acid and flavor bred out of them. In my constant
quest for a 10 in Colorado, I have had success with Celebrity (a 7 on the
taste scale), but the best, at a 9+, is the Red/Purple Brandywine. Wow, you
don't need to add any vinegar to wake up the memories. Few seeds, all meat,
but thin skinned and not bred to ship around the country. Dona is now also a
standard at about 8.5. Super Sioux has been a favorite for the last 5 years (
7.5). Carmello has an interesting earthy taste. Persimmon is being grown
currently and the plants look good. Mark
Duane Clupper wrote:
For over six years now we have been growing out in our trial garden a
tomato named Cold Set. This tomato seed was orignialy purchased from
Gurneys and was recommended for a cool climate. We now have this tomato
adapted to our hot desert climate in Kingman, Arizona. I would be
willing to share some of the seed with other arid climate gardeners for
them to try.
Duane Clupper
our web site http://www.NonprofitNet.com/cog/
Chris Fleming wrote:
My all time favorite is a cross that my grandfather gave me in 1971.
Some friend of his crossed his father-in-laws seed with his own in the
50's. This fruit was BRIGHT red. It seemed to turn red when it was
just forming. The taste- out of this world. However, the plants were
prone to just about everything. I think in the 17 years I was able to
grow them, 9 of those years the plants got something and died before I
even got buds. Just a little too much rain and every fruit would be
cracked. Even growing them at 4 different houses didn't help. BUT when
they had a good year you couldn't beat the taste. In 1988 the last
plant grew. The seeds I had left were 2 years old and the last plants
produced no fruit. I tried to germinate ALL (@70) seeds I had left and
nothing. I only hope that someday I find another tomato that can match
the taste of the Perth Amboy, NJ (Zone 6) Red. While I am waiting I
grow Burpee Big Boy & July 4. Both are doing well even with spring
getting here 3 weeks late.
Happy Harvest !
Richard Allan wrote:
I have tried probably 50 Heirloom varieties over the years with varying
success. They tend to be very dependant on the season. The most reliable
and prolific and also tasty( sounds to good eh!) has been Grosse Lisse.
It is a very old commercial variety that is grown in Australia from the
tropics down to us in the southern states. It is the most popular
variety in Australia. It is almost the end of winter here and I am still
picking tomatos from one remaining Grosse Lisse in my (unheated)
greenhouse. It just will not die!
Richard Allan
Jeff Cruise wrote:
My favorite is a new variety out of Oregon State University, Siletz. It is
very early and produces very tasty, very large tomatoes.
BobbiNell@aol.com wrote:
Red Brandywine Tastes great, Good looking mine have been 1-2 lbs.
Prudens Purple Best taste, Pink with green sholders, Potato leaf foliage.
Bobbinell@AOL.com Zone 9b
Rob Sovinski wrote:
Thought you would find this of interest. I did a quick (and very
un-scientific) search of your entire 'favorites' page came up with the
following word counts:
Brandywine (16)
Celebrity (7)
Sweet 100 (7)
Early Girl (5)
Sweet Million (5)
Better Boy (4)
Sun Gold (4)
Long Keeper (3)
Marglobe (2)
Pruden's Purple (2)
Beefsteak (1)
What does it all mean? I dunno. Personally, my Brandywines last year ago
were terrific. My Sensations didn't do well in our dry Indiana summer
this year, My Marglobes fared much better, and were heavily fruited,
but the flavor was a bit, uh, flat. I'd have to cast my lot with the
Brandywine folks, though it's not exacty hard science.
-Rob at Purdue
RCBach@aol.com wrote:
Am enjoying your tomato web site enormously, as well as the links you've
added. I read about your site in the New York Times recently and decided to
check it out. I grow tomatoes in large pots due to a space problem in Rhode
Island, in the Narragansett Bay area, which I believe is zone 6b or almost
zone 7. My favorite tomato in terms of taste, disease resistance and yield
is Lemon Boy . I've been growing this variety for a number of years now, and
have been enjoying their sweet taste. Given that I use 12 inch plastic pots,
I'm always amazed at the yield, well over 20 medium and large tomatoes per
plant ! They also make a great looking salad with their lemony color in
contrast to the red varieties I plant.
RCBach@aol.com
D.D. Gamble wrote:
D. D. Gamble from Waxhaw, NC. I tried Lemon Boy this year in my 7B red clay (amended) soil,
and really liked it. Everyone who tasted these said they were the best they had sampled.
Golden Jubilee did well, as usual, as did Marvel Striped. All of these OP's did best of the
15 or so varieties I grew.
More Favorites
