Very prolific variety.

I am growing 3 varieties ( all potato leaf) that have similarly size and shaped fruits:

---MATINA
-- Bloody Butcher
-- STUPICE

You might google those and see if yours is one of them.

beautiful tomatoes

you must know what to do with your mockingbirds...........

Mike, I just did a long post to you about the seeds you sent to me of this variety and when I went to read it before sending it this site went crazy. So I'm trying again.

Mike has given the background on where this variety came from in a long previous post. It is unique b'c of the square shape and deep ribbing.

Mike, I think you remember that you sent me some seeds and I distributed them to three folks who wanted to grow it. I haveall three on a group e-mail and all is well with seeds that did germinate Ok and plants that were set out and two of them have sent me pictures.

All three see it as a novelty and two have tasted it and they agree it's a novelty but also say, as you did originally,that it's crunchy as to consistency and probably would not be a variety one would grow for taste.

B/c it is unique I'm hopeful that one or more of the persons I know who breed tomatoes might want to use it as a parental input in breeding projects.

You also know that there aren't many seeds in those fruits, so I'm hoping that those three will get enough seeds so that I can offer it in my next annual seed offer elsewhere.

So thanks again for the seeds.

Carolyn

Outrageous!! I'm a fellow SoCal resident (in Corona). Would love to pick your brain on being successful like, or even close to this. Amazing :)

Hi! I just heard about this variety on a seed exchange group on Facebook and am very interested in possibly getting a few seeds. I have been searching high and low for a ribbed cherry tomato, and this looks so interesting. Not sure how many have ended up growing it in the couple of years since the original posting, but if anyone is willing, please message me. I would be so very appreciative. Thanks!

Carey

Carey, there were three folks who did seed production for me this past summer and opinions were divided on taste and flesh consistency and if you can find Mike Selbos initial thread doing a search here ( is in Google link at bottom) all the better for opinions.

All of my folks said that they would consider it more of a novelty tomato than a fresh eating tomato and possibly of use in a breeding project. Two of them also noted that even with fresh saved seeds that germination was not great.

Tania does not list it so I have no idea of any commercial seed sources. And I do know that Mike sent it to quite a few others,

In the Google link you can find the original thread about it here at GW and you may be able to read the several links listed at another message site where I spend most of my time, but policy here at GW says if I directly give a link to that other site I can be banned,

And it still is my intention to make an offer at the other site along with many other varieties, but just in the past two weeks I've learned of some medical issues that are new to me so right now I have no idea when I'll get that seed offer up and runing.

But do read the Google links to see if it's something you really want,

Hope that helps,

Carolyn

Here is a link that might be useful: Selbo's Red Ribbed

Hi Carey,

That's my tomato you've been asking about. Personally I find it to be the best smaller tomato I've ever had. I enjoy the crunch, which seems similar to eating small green pepper texture wise (well, not THAT crunchy, but you get the idea), yet I find it normally has a nice tomato flavor with a decent amount of sweetness, not overly acid. One thing I like is that it has very few seeds, mostly solid flesh. The seeds are smaller than most other tomatoes I've grown, yet I have never had any problems getting more than enough seeds to germinate every year. But it does seem to produce larger seeds and smaller seeds, I never try to save the smaller ones which don't germinate readily, perhaps that has been the issue with others having germination problems - they don't look for the larger seed to save.

I'm now probably on my 20th year of growing these since I first noticed this strange variety in my garden in the early 1990's.

I read a post of Carolyn's about crossing with other varieties and it inspired me to make a stab at emasculating a few flowers and using pollen from other varieties. I got a few fruit and will see if there was a true crossing or not - I suppose the emasculated flowers could have been pollinated by airborne pollen from other flowers on the plant. But if it works, I'll have first generation crosses of this tomato with (1) Joe's Pink Oxheart, and (2) Indigo Rose. I'm very curious to see how those turn out.

Mike

Those look absolutely amazing! Can you tell me the exact make-up of the soil in your pots? Thank you!

Mike, I agree completely with using Joe's Pink OXheart, but if it were me I wouldn;t use Indigo Rose, the reason being that many who have grown it did NOT like the taste at all.

I think it does need to be a bit sweeter IMO and there are plenty of other varieties that could introduce not just that but also the antho and you might consider something like Purple Bumble Bee to name just one,

And it's good to remember that in the F1 that small fruit size in dominant,

And I hope that when I finally get my seed offer up ( not here at GW) and running that some will use it in breeding projects, b/c it is unique IMO.

Carolyn