Tomato Growing Thread 2023

I entirely agree Baalmaiden. It is so important to know the variety if you're going for flavour.

When I give plants away they are all clearly labelled. You may have read somewhere here that it makes my teeth grind when recipients can only say they "...are very nice thank you" and have no idea of the variety because they have ditched the label.

Anyway, your questions. Second one first. I had a terrible year crop-wise and something affected the roots but other than that I had just a bit of blossom end rot on just one variety and that was Marmande. A dose of calcium hydroxide (builders lime) sorted that out instantly. So, with diseases I was very lucky.

Taste. Of course, just my opinion and I didn't grow all of these this year but as I keep notes I can say what I thought last year.

Azoychia.A very big tomato and great taste. A must grow for every year until another yellow can beat it.
Carbon. A good tasting tomato but not stand-out for me.
Coir de Bure. A good tasting tomato but not stand-out for me.
Datterino. One of the best I have found if you like a smaller salad tomato.
Flame. A good looker. Big and a fabulous taste.
Golden Sunrise. A good looking 'normal size' yellow and good taste.
Indigo Blue Beauty. A striking looker in the salad bowl and a very nice taste.
Indigo Cherry Drops. Good taste but it's in the name 'drops'. Tiny compared to IBB above.
Marmande. Nothing special. I won't bother again.
Omars Lebonese. None germinated and never tried before so can't comment.
Piccolo. Very similar to Datterino.
Purple Cherokee. Big brown/red tomato with fabulous taste.
Purple Dog Creek. Big and nice tasting but not when compared to PC above
Raspberry Oxheart. Probably the most productive this year and a very pleasant taste.
Zlatlava. Unusual contrasting colour inside and pleasant taste but grow it for the novelty and not the taste. Hope this helps.

 

Thanks - Most of those I have never heard of but have seen Piccolo in the shops and thought it was a good taste. I thought it was an F1 but it seems not. On the whole I find the cherry tomatoes tastier than the big ones. We do like Black Russian though but it takes a long time to get ripe ones. If anyone knows a variety with the same smoky taste that crops earlier I would be interested.

 

I have one plant left, cappuccino. I think it was my first or second to flower too. A few green toms have been picked off the last plants I pulled out but most had ripened. My green house beds have now been planted up with salads and I'll put the garlic in either tomorrow or next week. I've got mustards to go in the pots in the converted shed.

 

Totally agree TWK. Hope I'm not speaking too soon but I have done this for the past 20+ years and haven't been bothered with whitefly, other than the odd one having a look around before scooting. There might be little scientific proof that it works but isn't pyrethrum made from marigolds? Pyrethrum is what your mum or nit-nurse put on your head if you had nits. There's no flies on those whitefly!

 

Post-holiday check of the greenhouse. Dwarf Wild Fred clearly hasn't missed me.

 

OK O wise ones. Any idea what type of tomato this is? It certainly isnt one of the seeds I originally planted so I guess it’s a rogue seed? Haven’t tasted it yet because I think it has a bit more ripening to do. All the tomatoes are shaped like this!

 

Thank you! Certainly looks like them. Mine are huge, unfortunately the slugs are very partial to them. So not a brilliant harvest. Seems fairly blight resistant too as they haven’t been affected. Maybe I’ll save some seeds for next year

 

I keep raiding my few plants on the balcony & very few ever make it to the kitchen - certainly not to a meal! I eat them straight off the plants & they are delicious! Just this morning while watering them I picked, & scoffed, the few that were ripe!

 

Right, then.

Here's what I have to share from this year:

Santiam Sunrise
Gerald's Mystery
Haley's Sweet Mystery
Zauberstab
Black "Russian" Cherry
Dwarf Wild Fred
Dwarf Mary's Cherry
Mango Lassi
Cherry Roma
Reinhart Kraft's Purple Sugar
Haley's Purple Comet
Gobstopper
Lost Marbles
Ron's Carbon Copy

Quantities vary so don't hang about. PM me.

 

@NigelJ I do indeed have a few Jaune Flamme put away, if you would like some. I've also posted a list of other seeds I have available to share. K

 

One stamp for all of them together, @Fred Clarke. I like to get good value out of a stamp.

The message system is how we were talking before. I think it's called Conversations on here.