My biggest tomato ever! (Plus a few more.)
 

Two days ago I picked the largest tomato ever in my garden. It came off a Malakhitovaya Shkatulka (Malachite Box) and it came from a megabloom. It was from the first blossom cluster on the plant. It weighed 18.7 oz. I've never grown anything larger than a pound before!

Yesterday, I picked two Ananas Noir, one 14.5oz and the other 12 oz!

Here's a couple of photos. I find It makes a tomato look even larger when an 8YO holds it!:lol:

Dances With Smurfs
 

Pretty good. I've only picked three off the plant, which is loaded with greenies, and they taste much better than any other blue I've tried. I'm just learning what they should look like, and they definitely taste better when ripened as long as possible on the plant vs. ripening inside on the counter. First ripe fruit: July 17.

Jaune Flamme
 

Wow, just WOW! I've grown this for at least five years, but I've never had a Jaune Flamme plant that was this prolific. It's amazing. I've been picking them since July 12.

Pink Champagne
 

I got seeds from this last year in a swap with Casino (Joe) here on Tomatoville. Gorgeous pink cherries with glittery bubble-like skin. So sweet. I find myself out there "stalking" this massive, prolific plant for more. I've only picked two so far, on July 14.

Starfire Isis
 

From J&L Gardens. It took a little while to know when to pick these, but leaving them on until they are very bright orange did the trick. They are very sweet! The contrast with the yellow stripes are not quite like the photos on the website, mine are more subtle. YUM!

Amethyst Cream
 

I got a plant directly from Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms when he came over to do a talk at a local nursery. I couldn't find a photo, and didn't know what they were supposed to look like, so kept picking them too early and they tasted awful. Finally, I just left the plant alone and stopped thinking about it much. About a week ago, I looked up inside the plant and saw a cluster of nearly translucent fruit with a purple blush. This time, they are really sweet and tasty!

Those look great!

Kathy

The biggies aren't always pretty, but it is exciting when you find one that weighs more than any you've ever grown.

Enjoy looking at your pictures, Robin- my Starfire Isis is looking a little different from yours and from the website photo- bigger, lumpier and a paler color. I'll take your advice about letting it stay on the vine longer. When I tried to pick early and let them ripen on the counter, they got mushy in 2 days so I know that won't work. In fact, I can't remember ever having luck ripening cherries inside although I use that technique with all my larger tomatoes.

Btw, your 8 yr. old is adorable- my now 8 yr. old grandson will be visiting soon, but not before he turns 9...time does fly.

kath

[QUOTE=RobinB;365193]Wow, just WOW! I've grown this for at least five years, but I've never had a Jaune Flamme plant that was this prolific. It's amazing. I've been picking them since July 12.[/QUOTE]

Agreed - great pics of [URL="http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Jaune_Flamm%C3%A9e"]Jaune Flammée[/URL] which is a great little tomato - reliable and tasty (note the extra e, which although the official name, seems wrong in French, since Jaune is a masculine noun. Why isn't the name [URL="http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Jaune_Flamm%C3%A9e"]Jaune Flammé?)[/URL]

Nice pics, Robin! My Jaune Flamme is really killing it, production wise, this year too! A lot of really interesting varieties you are growing there. Looks like a few new candidates to add to the ever growing list (sigh).

so exciting to have these nice maters coming! They look great.

Any Mini Yellows yet? And do they look the same as the Russian Mini Yellows?

I love your pics. The Amethyst Cream really looks intriguing.

My sole objective is to grow giants for competition.

Your tomato is very impressive!!

Congratulations Robin!!

Russian Mini Yellow
 

Hey, Patty B! I hope your season is off to a great start!

I've been picking Russian Mini Yellow since July 2 (it took 66 days), but just picked the first Mini Yellow this morning (it took only 49 days). They look the same, taste the same, and grow the same. The one thing that I can't say is the same is the DTM. I was unable to put one of each variety out in a Wall O'Water, so the "regular" MY got put in the ground in early June and the RMY got to be inside a WOW in late April... I suppose it's possible that mine is just a slightly earlier selection? More likely, they are the same but just weren't put out under exactly the same conditions.

For those of you who don't know what we're talking about, Mini Yellow is a tomato that I bought seeds for on eBay about eight years ago. I've grown it ever since, and I was told it is from Siberia. It is the earliest tomato that I've grown (usually around 50-55 DTM) and they are sweet from day one. The fruit are tiny and marble-sized, pale yellow with bright yellow shoulders. The plant is a compact indeterminate, 4-5' by the end of the season. It produces hundreds of fruit per plant.

I was thinking that I might have a problem with too many tiny yellow tomatoes, but so far my son is keeping the RMY picked clean!

I'm not in a position to take photos of the Mini Yellow right now, but here is a photo of the RMY:

Chadwick's Cherry
 

I am really impressed with this one. I love the flavor. I'll grow it again, and give it a nice spot in the garden. It was kind of an afterthought (I was offered a plant after the main garden was planted) and is in a rather small pot on my front deck. Really nice acid/sweet balance and rich tasting! YUM!

Whippersnapper
 

I was trying this one to see if it would be a contender to grow inside in the Winter. It's not a candidate for a gallon pot like a micro-dwarf, but I might try it in my south-facing window... It's tart not much sweetness, but the taste is good.

[QUOTE=RobinB;365197]I got a plant directly from Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms when he came over to do a talk at a local nursery. I couldn't find a photo, and didn't know what they were supposed to look like, so kept picking them too early and they tasted awful. Finally, I just left the plant alone and stopped thinking about it much. About a week ago, I looked up inside the plant and saw a cluster of nearly translucent fruit with a purple blush. This time, they are really sweet and tasty![/QUOTE]

It is candy-looking like. Robin, nice tomatoes. Keep on posting.

Blue Boar Berries
 

The other plant I bought when Brad from Wild Boar Farms came over. The plant looks a lot like Mini Yellow -- everything about it is small including the fruit. It looks to be indeterminate, and I'd be surprised if it ends up more than 4' tall. The fruit is about the same size as MY too. I can't take a photo of the two together because I just ate the BBB. Couldn't help myself. The taste is amazing! I picked a few on July 6 (68 DTM), but didn't photograph them. Since then, I've been stalking the plant watching for more. It was a long wait. The plant has been having an aphid problem, but they are more under control and it's loading up with fruit now. This is a tomato that can haunt your dreams in Winter! A great balance of sweet and acid. Oh MY!

Brazilian Beauty
 

I got the seeds from Heather's big swap last year. Picked the first one two days ago (July 20, 88 days). This one was a bit slow to start producing fruit, but it's got quite a few now. It doesn't look like the plant is going to be monsterous, 4-5' maybe? It's not been tasted yet, probably today for lunch.

Edit: I tasted this one and I'm not impressed. It was just the first one, so hopefully it will improve.

Hey Scott, as someone living in a bilingual region, I'm just happy when the first name Jaune is spelled correctly, instead of the all-to-common Juane :) Never mind the number of e's and accents, lol. Alas, my plant is quickly being taken down by blight so Robin's pic is the closest I'll get to one.

Can't wait for my Chadwicks to ripen, yours looked delicious Robin!

Ananas Noir
 

I just realized that I didn't post a photo of this one. I'm really surprised and pleased that I could pull this one off. It got planted out in mid-April inside a Wall O'Water. Sometimes this helps and sometimes it doesn't. With Ananas Noir, it definitely helped, as it started forming fruit down inside the WOW almost immediately. The first two ripened on July 19 (89 days). One weighed 14.7 oz. and the other 12 oz. I doubt I could have pulled this one off without a WOW. The plant has quite a few greenies on it now, too. I haven't cut either yet, as they were picked early, but BLTs are on the menu tonight! I didn't know it would turn such a gorgeous shade of red! Taste test to come.

Fish Lake Oxheart, Maya & Sion's Airdrie Classic, Japanese Black Trifele, and Pervaya Lyubov are all blushing. It's starting to rain tomatoes! Woo Hoo!

[QUOTE=RobinB;365538]I just realized that I didn't post a photo of this one. I'm really surprised and pleased that I could pull this one off. It got planted out in mid-April inside a Wall O'Water. Sometimes this helps and sometimes it doesn't. With Ananas Noir, it definitely helped, as it started forming fruit down inside the WOW almost immediately. The first two ripened on July 19 (89 days). One weighed 14.7 oz. and the other 12 oz. I doubt I could have pulled this one off without a WOW. The plant has quite a few greenies on it now, too. I haven't cut either yet, as they were picked early, but BLTs are on the menu tonight! I didn't know it would turn such a gorgeous shade of red! Taste test to come.[/QUOTE]

Get us a picture of this one sliced. Ananas Noir has to be one of the prettiest tomatoes when sliced.

[QUOTE=RobinB;365538]I just realized that I didn't post a photo of this one. I'm really surprised and pleased that I could pull this one off. It got planted out in mid-April inside a Wall O'Water. Sometimes this helps and sometimes it doesn't. With Ananas Noir, it definitely helped, as it started forming fruit down inside the WOW almost immediately. The first two ripened on July 19 (89 days). One weighed 14.7 oz. and the other 12 oz. I doubt I could have pulled this one off without a WOW. The plant has quite a few greenies on it now, too. I haven't cut either yet, as they were picked early, but BLTs are on the menu tonight! I didn't know it would turn such a gorgeous shade of red! Taste test to come.[/QUOTE]

Hello, RobinB, happy for you. Nice size Black Pineapple/Ananas Noir tomato. It improves with time. It does like high temperature and water. I grew one last year. It was a monster in production: 2 lb, 1 lb 8 oz, 1 lb 4 oz, 1 lb 3 oz, 1 lb 2 oz, two 13 oz, and more on the smaller size. That was from one plant. They are great in fresh salsa. Enjoy. Very sweet tomato.:cute:

Your tomatoes look great this year! and your son is such a cutie.
Remy

Robin, I love this thread. You and Kath are awesome! Great photography and I love using your hand as a size perspective. Thanks for doing this, I know I will be referring back to this come winter when our tomatoes start to come in. I can't wait till August so I can start seeds!

Marsha

Ananas Noir cut
 

OMG! I have never grown this, but it is now on my "must grow every year" list. The taste was at least a 9/10. I've got a new favorite this year. Malachite Box is now been bumped down to #2. Not only was it tolerant of cold Spring temps inside a Wall O'Water, but it is now putting on lots of fruit. I've got it growing against an 8' tall piece of concrete wire mesh and I've been weaving it in and out of the squares. Since I picked the two large fruit, it is now putting all its energy into blossoming and fruiting. Oh my!

Here's a photo of the largest fruit cut. Beauty combined with amazing taste! :yes:

[QUOTE=RobinB;365813]OMG! I have never grown this, but it is now on my "must grow every year" list. The taste was at least a 9/10. I've got a new favorite this year. Malachite Box is now been bumped down to #2. Not only was it tolerant of cold Spring temps inside a Wall O'Water, but it is now putting on lots of fruit. I've got it growing against an 8' tall piece of concrete wire mesh and I've been weaving it in and out of the squares. Since I picked the two large fruit, it is now putting all its energy into blossoming and fruiting. Oh my!

Here's a photo of the largest fruit cut. Beauty combined with amazing taste! :yes:[/QUOTE]

O, I miss it. Last year just one plant overwhelmed me. I did not know what to do with so many huge toms. I did not plant it this year. I am sorry, I did not. Should have.
RobinB, enjoy. It looks soooo good.

Fish Lake Oxheart
 

This one didn't ripen evenly, but I had to pick it early because it was splitting. It ripened almost completely on the counter. The taste was really rich and full! I look forward to the next one. This particular one weighed 14.3 oz. and was picked on July 23.