16,949 Garden Web Discussions | Growing Tomatoes

Carolyn,
Leave it to you to inject humor! Which all gardeners need! I confess, I did use a few clear plastic containers last year as a last resort, and they did germinate very fast, but were not the healthiest seedlings. Correct me if I`m wrong here but germination does not require direct sunlight as much as warmth?
I worried alot about temperatures as the seedlings grew, but apparently tomato seedlings do not need an overly warm environment, just lots of good light.

Carolyn:

The doctor put the wrong lenses in your eyes and that is why you are 20/20 for distance and can't see up close. He could have made you near sighted in one eye and far sighted in the other but that did not happen.

Thank you Zeuspaul.

BTW, I don't understand how do they qualify to be called "SMART" !!!

I dont have a clue, why they are called smart, this is my first year to try them so I need education, I guess when I said raised bed I was speaking of the affect that the earth below the grow bag has on the substrate inside of them, since these are made of a permeable material what affect does the ground have on them as far as the hydrology affect is concerned? I kind of new the garden soil would not be correct dogdirt thanks for the info roots cannot go into the ground agreed, soiless mix definitely, maybe a little more water retentive then standard 511 if it is setting directly on the ground?

I just spent a couple days with the lead supplier of tomatoes for TJ's. He'd likely laugh at trying to determine variety because they source from many different growers over quite a large region.

Thanks bmoser and mule,

As you pointed out, most variety name are just confusing.
I suspect that they have given many different names for the same thing. Just as you said, Aunt Ruby, Aunt Judy, Aunt Dorothy, ..GERMAN GREEN, Cherokee green,, plus a whole lot more are almost identical and what I have in my first picture is one of them.

Well, we will have to wait til DNA becomes affordable.

Thanks. Like I said the website called the EVP a unique or different flavor... got me a little nervous

I bought 2 CP's at Lowes last season. It may be the best tomato I have ever eaten.

I am growing from see for the first time. Getting excited and eager to taste results. I will report back the 5 varieties I am trying this season.

Cherokee Purple
Vinson Watts
Eva Purple Ball
Matts Wild Cherry
Chocolate Pear

Matts Wild Cherry is very very tiny and will reseed next year. I think it is kind of pretty for a tomato. The little tomatoes are really red. I cut the sprays of fruit because it is tedious to pick and the skin pulls off when you pull on it. I would plant it closer to your door or in a special place. Eva is a nice pink medium sized tomato. It has a good taste but not unique in my opinion. Cherokee Purple is a good one. It is a more fragile tomato. They rot for me in rainy weather which is rare here in summer but it tastes great.

I posted a link that may help from Rutgers talking about the Ramapo and Rutgers ect.... I grew the about 10 Ramapo plants last season for myself and family/friends it did great and tasted great and very prolific. But I am no expert but have been eating Jersey tomatoes my whole life same with others that have tasted them and I and the people who had the Ramapo aggreed it was great.

This year I am ordering Ramapo again (even though I kept last years pack), KC 146 and a Moreton just to compare. As stated above, I read from Rutgers site that they are trying to revive the original Rutgers or close to it.within a year or so. I also hope to make it up to the Rutgers event this year.

Also on that site the order form is for them, it says 2013 but it is updated.

I hope this helps,
Mr. Beno

Here is a link that might be useful: Rutgers U

I've now received my Victory Seeds order and sent off my Rutgers order form, so I'm well on my way to a Joisey tomato-off in my garden this summer!

I did rummage around in old threads and found some of the Rutgers discussions I'd been thinking of - it seems that there are determinate, semideterminate, and indeterminate versions out there all just labeled as 'Rutgers.' I presume this is due to the continuing segregation the Rutgers NJAES referenced. Victory indicated determinate, so hopefully I'm getting something close to the iconic Rutgers tomato, but for my purposes I don't know that I care about the determinancy overly much. I will be slightly disappointed if it survives the toxic maelstrom of foliage disease that is my garden only to abruptly quit making tomatoes, but I doubt that will be the case.

I will be very excited to see what Rutgers NJAES comes up with for their Rutgers re-intro.

Thanks everyone for your input! Now please make it stop snowing so I can plant tomatoes!

~emmers

Early, cold (rather cool) tolerance.
Check out these:

Glacier, Siletz, Legend, Stupice, Oregon Spring, Siberia, ...

I am going to grow 3 of those named above this season, as we have very COOL spring and late summer/early fall weather.

Hope it helps.

It's not unheard of to get frosts right into the first week of June here in Saskatchewan. If I've put the tomatoes in the ground in late May and a subsequent frost is in the forecast, we cover them with blankets for the night, exactly like we would in the fall. The plants always reach the same size as they do every year. We don't notice any stunting or drop in production with any of the early determinates. The mid and late indeterminates take lower temperatures much harder.

@ OP: You mentioned that you LOVE strawberries. How do they taste to you ? To me they taste more acid w/very little sweetness. If this is the case with you then you should look for acidic tomatoes with slight sweetness, sometimes called tangy.

Another thing is that we don't eat every vegetable and fruits as it comes from the bush ; we prepare them a certain way. Most people will add SALT, PEPPER, VINEGAR and OIL to raw tomatoes and then eat them: That is also called SALAD !

I recommend a good sweet, small tomato like lldi for someone who doesn't like tomatoes. It even looks more like a fruit than a tomato..

I heard you mention you give most of the fruits of your labor away. I wouldnt be so quick on handing it over, save some of it and try to get accustomed to the taste. Very very healthy stuff your giving away, do yourself a favor, embrace your health. Keep growing, nothing is healthier than your own fresh produce.

If I wanted to plant tomatoes in hanging basket, that had to be some small fruited cherry, with trusses of flowers/fruits, with ability to cascade/hang down. Indeterminants are better for this purpose. I can always trim the tips of new growth if needed. I did that once with a upside down basket. It could have been better with just a hanging basket.
JMO

I am hoping to try growing my red currant tomatoes in a hanging basket this year, just for fun. I found it kind of cumbersome in the garden with my big tomatoes last year but the foliage is so feathery and pretty, and with it hanging right by the door it will be easy to grab a handful and throw it on a salad. First hanging tomato attempt, so we will see how it goes.

It is an interesting question and it is partly the nitrogen balance. Tomatoes don't need much of it. You are right about restricting water which essentially concentrates the flavor. Certain salts also increase the brix level. Test for brix with a refractometer, then cut back on water and test the difference.
Lee

Others have addressed your questions very well, so I'm going tomake just one comment.

In general, the more foliage a plant has leads to increased photosynthesis which results in more production of the energy compounds ATP and GTP.

ATP and GTP are what drives development of everything associated with the plant, from root structure growth, to above ground growth, to blossom formation, fruit growth, and most importantly for some, synthesis of all the compounds that determine taste , of which the primary determinates are the specific genes in the DNA of a specific variety.

Yes, for sure there are lots ofother variables involved in taste, some that can be controlled by the gardener and some that cannot be controlled, such as weather.

Just noting that for many years I grew tomatoes in Denver, not many, and they did just fine in a small strip of just dirt at the side of my home that was shaded a good part of the day.

Carolyn

I'm going out on a limb here, which in my case, is covered in snow! It kills me to read people are experiencing 100 degree weather!
Anyways, I noticed that your plants are close to your wall which is white. I'm wondering if it's due to excessive heat reflected from the house onto the plants. I also have a section of garden that borders my house, also white stucco, and have witness some burning from the heat when the plants are touching the walls.
It's just one variable amongst many possibilities.

Too little too late, folks;
Those tomatoes are history now (June 2013)

But the OP never reported back as what happened finally.

The tomato isn't necessarily named for a place. A lot of varieties are named for saints or for other things. I have one tomato that I bought in France called Reine de Ste. Marthe.

Try the link below for more history, naming places for Saints, etc.

Carolyn, dealing with two feet of new snow, actually just looking at it and it's still snowing.

Here is a link that might be useful: Saint Pierre

I lived in Central Illinois (45 minutes West of Peoria) for years and had good luck then (80's & 90's) finding great tomato plants in the temporary nurseries that often popped up in grocery store lots and the like.

I was willing to give them a try because it was a long trek to Peoria to find a big box store. And, they weren't as pricey as the permanent nurseries.

As it happens they were local and a great source of information and conversation about local conditions. The varietal offerings then weren't nearly as diverse as the market is today, but it was a nice local connection.

And, as Kathy mentioned, the soil there was incredible! It was dark, loamy goodness and never a hint of blight. I've been told it was due to the Illinois River, its tributaries and a millenia of flooding. I really had to do little more than fertilize and water - no ammending necessary.

I now live to the southwest of Chicago and it hasn't been as good. I've been working for 8 years now to improve my garden soil. It's getting better every year but this here swamp clay was a wet mess in the spring and got rock hard in the summer. Compost, compost, compost...

Thanks kathy and tom for your valuable inputs. Really appreciated. Kathy I can totally relate to that, because last year was my first time and I hardly took any notes. Now I am kicking myself.

Tom I agree the soil is really good here. Last year I added some compost and thats it other than regular watering. I was pretty satisfied with the results given it was my first year of gardening.

If I remember correctly I had like 5-6 varieties of tomatoes. Celebrity and big boy did really bad. The others were good. Too bad, I just remember pink girl out of the varieties that did well.