You have a fantastic set up and a beautiful and functional greenhouse. I am envious!

Black Prince has done quite well also producing like mad till the temps hit the low 90's the plants are showing sighs of dying off from the heat. Once the last of the tomatoes ripen up I will probably pull them, and plant something else there.

Another one that has done quite well is Creole hybrid. 3 plants have given off over a bushel so far, with few more still on the vine to ripen.

Your plants are looking good as always.

Dave

You ask if there's a variety, well let me quote from what you posted:

(Is there any other variety that is as prolific, hardy, aggressive with such a great tasting fruit? If so - what is it - I would like to try it - seriously! )

And my answer is, IMO yes there is and that variety is Neves Azorean Red, linked to below.

Since I've grown about 4,000 varieties it takes a lot out of me to name just one. (smile)

Forget the fact that I was the first to introduce it and also note note that the many places that offered it in 2013 indicate how popular it is, and also note that the number of vendors is less for 2014 but that's b'c they didn't send in their list of varities to Tania, that I know.

Carolyn, who named just one variety as you requested but there are several others she could also have named.( smile)

Then I switch to a granular 12-15-15-13s-7h with a light application every three weeks. Note: we purchase our fertilizer from a farm fertilizer company that has analyzed the soil in our area. Be sure to fertilize based on the needs of your soil!

Carolyn - I accept your suggestion/challenge for Neves Azorean Red (a simple catchy name may have marketed better?) for next year - mostly because I admire your experience and knowledge and opinion! I don't carry
any Burpbee history but I am happy that they made Brandy Boy hybrid from an heirloom because it is such a wonderful plant? I'm not sure why I should be ticked at that? What is the name of the tomato plant - hybrid - they made out of Red Brandywine? Is it as great at the Brandy Boy?

I wished it were earlier in the season so I wouldn't have to wait until next year to try Neves Azorean Red - is there a source for seedlings for this variety still available for this year? Thanks for your comments Carolyn - I always enjoy reading your comments on all the threads!

This is the last weekend to order tomato plants "Online" from her.

She still shows the NAR in stock. I bought one and it has some really nice tomatoes on it.

"Neves Azorean Red aka NAR. (Pronounced Nehzh Ah ZOR ee uhn) ($5.75) 75 days. Boy are you in for a treat! This terrific, boldly flavored, 1 to 3 lb tomato is produced on a big hearty plant with a large central stem branching out into loaded branches of big beefsteak tomatoes so delicious they have become the talk of the tomato world."

Another of my Big Red Fav's is: Cuostraleé

Cuostraleé ($5.75) (Koh-struh-LAY or Koo-strah-lee) (BBB) 85 days. Big, hearty, prolific plant, with huge red beautiful beefsteak tomatoes, up to 4 lbs. I have to use both hands to pick them. Gigantic fruits have a superb, classic tomato flavor. Very easy to grow, disease resistant and a reliable producer, in my top 10 favorites. Another hot weather favorite which will grow easily and wonderfully in all gardens.

Now, I will be the first to admit that Laurel does do some "Creative Writing" in describing these tomatoes, but I grew Cuostraleé last year and it was great, really nice shaped tomatoes and tasted great.

This year both the NAR and the Cuostraleé are loaded with big green tomatoes~~~~I can hardly wait for them to ripen.

Since it is an inexpensive telephone call for me, I can call Laurel later today, Saturday June 14 just to be sure the tomatoes are in stock and she can ship to WV.

Gary

Gary

Gary

Laurel's pronunciations are off a bit on Coustralee, and one other, and yes, I know Lauel well, and she got into this tomato plant business b'c of me.as she has said.
We were at that time at the same message site where I was the lead moderator,

Burpee first listed their hybrid as Red Brandywine Hybrid,I bought tplants and seeds and compared with my own RB which I'd had for years. They then changed the name to Buck's County Red,Bucks County in PA being Burpee headquarters.

Carolyn

How about some photos?? And I don't mean just you Gary - there are so many statements made without a visual to support it on this forum. Awesome talk and Awesome photos are two totally different things! I try to back up everything I post/say with photos so readers can be the judge. If one is proud of the variety - please share some photos to back up what you are saying? It takes time and effort to try a variety and photos just help make decisions - if all that can - will - please.

Carolyn - a google search did not get me to Dar's website - must not be be using the right words to search - when you have time will you let me know the website address?
Thanks!

Carolyn

Right now they are about "fist sized" and I want to let them get a tad bigger, & perhaps blush.

Now to be honest, they do NOT look as good as your Brandyboys!

First I have kinda "Lazied out" when it comes to support systems, 2nd, my plants are WAyyyyyyy to close together.

But~~~~~~the plants are loaded with tomatoes, and as I'm not nearly as talented as you obviously are, (as far as growing tomatoes)~~~~~well, as long as I get a bunch of great tasting tomatoes!!!that's good enough for me.

I suspect if you grow the Cuostralée and NAR, with your talents~~~~~~~Well~~~~~I can't wait to see them!!!!!

Gary

I'm game, Gary, but first want to know exactly where you're gardening, just to see what I'm up against!

Gary

The weather here has been perfect for tomatoes, except for some 100F days in May due to a "Santa Ana"~~~but ever since then it has been perfect and likely will be till late Sept~~~when we "Normally" get our hottest weather here.

Tomorrow I will take pics of the tomato garden for you and Hudson, as Hudson wants to see pics of the NAR and Crustolee tomatoes.

We have terrible soil here, Clay, but I had my gardner bring in a truckload of great compost/soil and to tell the truth, this is the best in the ten years or so, I've grown tomatoes~~~~~I hope that does not "Scare You Off"!!!

Now on the downside the tomatoes are planted too close to each other and I'm sure Digdirt will have a good laugh at my "Staking System"~~~~~but Hey they are still all "vertical" and about 6 feet tall!!!

Gary

In any case, you're on! Cuostralée and NAR are two of 57 (not planted too close together, ha)

Gary

When and why did we stop my sending you tomato seeds in exchange for your starts of excellent roses? The one on then bank of the stream out front is just starting to blossom and is so darn big it's spectacular.

I'm not that good at remembering names but would that be Lillian Gibson, pink and a once bloomer?

Carolyn, who is not entering any contests for either of the two varieties being discussed. ( smile)

"Neves Azorean Red aka NAR. (Pronounced Nehzh Ah ZOR ee uhn)

Is that a native American name? The reason I'm curious is because I know a lot of folks with the Neves surname and they are native American, Cherokee I think?

Carolyn, I have never planted tomatoes by seeds, always plants, (except for volunteers) LOL.

I do grow roses too and I have about 60 patented varieties, Some of my tree roses are actually helping to prop up my tomato patch~~~~~Now how's that for a different "Trellis System"?

Gary

Gary

Gary

Gary

http://t.tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Neves_Azorean_Red

And the pronunciation given by Laurel, is not correct, it should be pronounced as written, that's Neves , last name of Anthony Neves, Azorean, b'c Tony was from the Azores, and Red, b/c it is.

I know how to pronounce the name when I made contact withthe the owner of the Neptune harvest co where Tony traded his fruits for Neptunes fish and seaweed products, which Ialso use since they are cold pressed and great.

So NAR was from the Azore islands off the coast from Portugal and no doubt it could have originatged in Portugal and then taken to the Azores since many from Portugal immigrated to the Azores.

Hope that helps.

Carolyn

I have a curious (sometimes crazy) mind!

I am growing Brandy Boy (from seed) for the first time this year. I am impressed with the quantity of fruit, so far, vs red Brandywine. More fruit per bush.

I am still a few weeks from harvesting though. Time will tell me if it's a keeper or not!

I think I might order some NAR seeds for next year, they sound interesting!

"Is there any other variety that is as prolific, hardy, aggressive with such a great tasting fruit? If so - what is it - I would like to try it - seriously!"

Although NAR appears to be a great variety and may taste wonderful - it hardly looks prolific? Brandy Boy will have 12-15 tomatoes on just a cluster! This is what I would consider prolific (photo) - these are Brandy Boy tomatoes? I would like to try another variety that are as prolific as these - what would that variety be?

Here is another variety that we have already tried and love - Better Boy - it is also very prolific?! It just has a little different taste than Brandy Boy - but we grow and enjoy them both.

Of the 9 Beefsteak Heirlooms, I planted this year, Green Giant appears to be the best producer, (Largest Fruit, Most Fruit, and nearly perfect shapes.

There is lots written on the Green Giant tomato, so google and find out for yourself,~~~~~~If you like, I can post a picture of my Green Giant Tomato.

It is early here, and this is just the "1st crop" of NAR's, I suspect "The other Gary", will far outdue me in production, but we will see!

Gary

I could list which varieities are high yielders for me, but that wouldn't translate at all as to how others growing the same varieties would fare.

So I take yields with a grain of salt,as it were,actually much more important to me is taste,but growing up on a farm where we had many acres of tomatoes that were sold wholsale, I do understand the need for yield in those kinds of situations.

Carolyn

Carolyn - Here in Wyoming - we do not have the luxury of a tomato climate - the only tomatoes we get are the ones we grow in the GH or get at the grocery store (yuk)! Yield is very important to us - and so is taste - so we are looking for the tomato varieties that have the yield genes and with the best flavor. That is why I inquired about other varieties with yields comparable with Brandy Boy. We realize that we do have to grow them here to find out how they produce in our climate - but why bother if they don't have the yield gene? We do grow a couple of heirloom plants for just flavor and are trying different varieties every year looking for the ones we like best - this year it is Cherokee Purple and Mortgage Lifter - neither of those are prolific - in our GH.

We are certainly not unhappy with Brandy & Better Boy but would just like to know other tomato variety options that have the yield gene like the B&B Boys. Other varieties with their yield and same or better taste is what we are looking for?

I'll make another suggestion for you and that's Break O Day. When folks ask me if there are any OP varieties that yield as much as MOST hybrids, I always name Break O Day as being one of them.

Link below.

Carolyn

I counted 40, but probably missed some.

Gary

PS, Hudson, my neighbor across the fence has two Hudsons, a 1949 and a 1952 Hudson Hornet~~~Do you think my maters would be "more Productive", If I got my neighbor over to "Bless the Tomatoes"???

The Green Giant's look great! Thanks for posting the pics! It is always easier to make a decision on wether or not to try a variety when photos are posted. They appear to be living up to their name too - good sized tomatoes!

Thanks Carolyn - Break O Day looks like a good option - I checked out the link - I need a bigger GH !!

And in the final analysis, according to the Gulliver's Travels, it is all relative and Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity is also applicable. LOL

Also - that is why Brandy Boy may be the perfect variety for a GH - a hybrid made out of a heirloom !! Brandy Boy has great production with the taste of a great heirloom - perfect. Now - if there are any other hybrids out there that produce and have a great taste like Brandy Boy - I'd like to try it!

Nanelle - Thanks - We just love Gardening and Greenhousing like our friends on GW. Our GH is 16X28 - but other than we custom build it - not much different than most GH's. I have a couple of threads on GH structures if you would like to look - other than that - let me know what you would like to see and I will try to accommodate.

"I have a friend with a greenhouse business in the Yukon that swears by the variety Cobra F1. They gave it a glowing review as a gereenhouse tomato. It would be interesting to try Cobra F1 against Brandy Boy F1."

I finally did a little research on Cobra F1 - you are right - there are glowing reviews for Cobra F1 as a prolific GH tomato. Has anyone tried this variety that can confirm this variety as a good option for a GH grower - how about taste? Photos would be great!

THEy might include:

Big Boy F1 and Betterboy F1, each of which have one parent, Teddy Jones, an heirloom from the midwest/

Those F1's bred by Harris Seeds

Jet Star F1
Supersonic F1
Moreton Hybrid

And finally

Ramapo F1

I've grown all of the above, as have many, and been very pleased by both yield AND taste.

I do have a problem when someone says grow hybrids for yield and heirlooms for taste. There are some F1's that have both, and many don't. And there are many OP varieties, not just heirlooms, that don't have great taste either.

Carolyn

Nights are below 55 here until May 1st, then days can be triple digits and without rain for months. My raised beds can no longer compete with redwood roots. I gave up for several years, then this year I've taken to growing determinates in self watering containers.

This year (might be spelling errors)

Russian Persimmon
Principe Borghesse
Bella Rosa
Yaqui
Marianna
New Big Dwarf
Clear Pink Early

They are in earthboxes, and small enough to shade when it's too hot ( 88+).

However , I've always had better production, (such as it is), with the heirlooms.

I usually buy the "Big Name Hybrids", Big Boy, Better Boy, Jet Star, Big Beef, and several others I can't recall just now.

I did want to try a Brandyboy this year, but alas I could not find a plant for sale anywhere!!!

Now the Hybrids I bought, (except those I bought at the University), I bought at a "Big Box Store", usually Home Depot and the Heirlooms I usta buy at the University but now I buy from Laurels Heirloom Tomatoes~~~~~so maybe the "Source of my Hybrids" had something to do with their productivity?

Anyway, this year I only bought heirlooms.

I would wait to see how the "Other Gary" does with his NAR's and Cuostralees before writing off Heirlooms!

In fact when the blossoms appeared on my bushes we were in the middle of a "Santa Ana", (Hot dry winds and temps over 100F)~~~~~so I probably had a lot of "Blossom Drop".

Maybe" it's best to wait and see how these Heirlooms do the rest of the year and also see how my "Co-hort" in Minnesota does with his~~~Ya Thinks?

I mean, "if any body can get an heirloom to produce,
(We all know who that is), ~Now don't we??
(Hint A now "Defunct Car") LOL

Gary

Then I switch to a granular 12-15-15-13s-7h with a light application every three weeks. Note: we purchase our fertilizer from a farm fertilizer company that has analyzed the soil in our area. I am not sure how to feed container tomatoes though - probably different than our method.

Gary -
"I would wait to see how the "Other Gary" does with his NAR's and Cuostralees before writing off Heirlooms!"
Good point - I still grow at least 3 different (Heirlooms) every year and I plan to grow some of the ones you and Carolyn suggested next year. I am glad that you did plant all Heirlooms this year - I hope that you will share which varieties you like the best for production and taste. You have Mother Nature on your side - if anyone can get Heirlooms to produce - that would be you?! I seem to do best with Hybrids so far - the Hybrids seem to be more adaptable to this high elevation and cold temperatures?

Every year this Brandy Boy tomato variety amazes!! Here we are in the middle of June and the plant is huge and loaded with tomatoes. Is there any other variety that is as prolific, hardy, aggressive with such a great tasting fruit?

Another shot

I didn't space them far enough apart, again! It's a jungle!

The weeds, are gone now. I am picking up straw in the morning.

The Brandy Boy are not as big as your Heirlooms but they do produce mostly from 8-16 oz - and we have had a few larger. We don't grow for size - but we do like the big ones!

We don't have as may ripe tomatoes as you - we have had only a half dozen or so - so far. The Heirlooms we planted are a month away from ripening - it appears. The Brandy Boys are producing well again for us this year though - with lots of tomatoes coming soon!

I'm still wating for the NAR's to ripen just a bit more and then I will report on my take of the Tastes.

The Kelloggs Breakfast taste great, really sweet with very little acid, (to me at least)~~~~~wife loves them!

Gary

The fried green tomatoes were great to me, (Not as strong of a "Tin Can Taste"), (LOL),~~~~~but wife said they were too ripe~~~~go figger! We had both fried green and just sliced Green Giant tomatoes for dinner.

The green giants turn a lighter green, (at the bottom), when they are ripe but the best way to tell is to "Put the Squeeze on them"! They are really gorgeous inside.

As I mentioned before, The Green Giant will most likely be our most productive Heirloom.

Gary

They are still producing big fruits while most of my other tomatoes are dying out.

My OP Red Brandy Wine's, Better Boys, and some others have just about died out.

The Steak House plants are still going strong also.

I don't have a kitchen scale so I don't know what any of them weighed individually, but I would say most were well over a pound.

I have probably harvested over 200++ pound's. from 4 plants and they are still coming!

Brandy Boy and Steak House are on my list for next year!

I didn't get a ripe one until the end of June and I had been picking better boys for weeks.

I got some cat facing and a lot of fused, double fruits. But not nearly as much cat facing as I normally do with my OP Brandy Wines.

I agree with Wertach - our Brandy B's are still producing large fruit where other varieties are starting to close down for the season - except Cherokee Purple - it is also still producing good sized fruit. No cat facing on any of our Brandy B's. I know a GH is easier to control the outcome.

We have a lot of larger tomatoes from Brandy Boy this year for some reason - we always get several over a pound - but this year there were at least twice as many as in the past. They ripen at different intervals so I couldn't get a photo of all of them - but here are a few of the the ones around a pound or larger.

Big, meaty, very good taste.

One of the things I like at Brandy Boy is the fact that - while the peel is not very thin, is not very thick either - the tomato can be peeled easily, especially if the tomato is well ripped.

My wife doesn’t like the peel so she’s very happy with BB.

For her, the taste of BB, is exceptional.

For me, exceptional taste this year had Mortgage Lifter and Park’s Whopper, while Brandywine Pink' taste was OUTSTANDING.