My 2018 Tomatoes and Garden
 

My tomato list for 2018 is full. I'd say it's complete but it's not unheard of to make a change over the coming 3 months of remaining winter. I sow tomato seeds usually around April 1. Onion seeds will be sown tomorrow and I sowed some micro dwarves that will get an early start by the patio door.

Black Krim -- every year plant for many years now
Noire de Crimee -- had off type in 2017, wanting to do a side-by-side with Black Krim
KBX -- 3rd year in a row, love it
Garnet -- returning from 2017 a real winner
Jaune Flammee -- returning from 2017 my son and I loved the flavor
CYxJF F1 (2 plants) -- growing F1 Crnkovic Yugoslavian x Jaune Flammee -- doing 2 plants, from 2 different crossed fruits.
BW Sudduth -- First time, comparing with Cowlick's
BW Cowlick -- First time, comparing with Sudduth's
KARMA Pink -- Really excited to get to try this one!
Mbox -- Needed a GWR and been eyeing up this one for a while
Magila Rosa -- Going to try this instead of Blush this year--just want to give it whirl
Wisconsin 55 Gold -- Very productive and tasty tomato we grew in 2017
Sungold -- every year for many years
Orange Russian 117 -- last slot, our 7 year old picked this one out of the lineup
One last slot--too many to choose from!

Dwarf Metallica -- when someone says 9.9/10 on flavor I listen, plus I love the band

Excited for these dwarf developmental ones:
Emmy F3 Pink
Emmy F3 GWR
Emmy F3 Red
Teensy Choc F5
Teensy Pink F3
Teensy Orange F3
Teensy Yellow F5
Teensy GWR
19xF2 micro dwarf (4 plants)

A great list. Definitely let us know about the Jaune flamee and Crnkovic cross!!! I love both of those! Also that dwarf metallica sounds great. Hope you have a great year!

I grew out Flavor Bombs last year. They were the oddest cherry in that they never got past the pale pink rock hard stage and did not taste at all like the purchased ones. They were plentiful, though, but all went to waste. Hope you have better luck.

[QUOTE=nancyruhl;678215]I grew out Flavor Bombs last year. They were the oddest cherry in that they never got past the pale pink rock hard stage and did not taste at all like the purchased ones. They were plentiful, though, but all went to waste. Hope you have better luck.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for note about your Flavor Bomb grow out. I'm now tempted to make a change. The last thing I want is a waste of a valuable tomato plant slot with something that is inedible. A few years ago we grew out NatureSweet Sunbursts and they are OP--tasty, very productive yellow cherries on huge, healthy PL plants, I grew them for a couple seasons and saved seed.

I do wonder if that means Flavor Bombs are indeed F1. They do have very long shelf life, even at the fully ripe stage. But I like them better than the mixed Sunset's cherry tomatoes Wild Wonders. I'd consider Flavor Bombs my favorite store cherry tomato. Oh decisions, decisions, my list of things I'd like to grow is long enough maybe I swap it with something and try to squeeze the Flavor Bomb into a pot and keep it heavily pruned just to see what comes of it.

Never ran into FlavorBomb in my market.
Now dwarfMetallica, that is a flavor bomb !. Glad you have room for it.
Hoping to grow at least a dozen plants and will grow starts for friends.

Craig Lehillier, 'nctomatoman' might have a good stash of seed.
5214 is the seed #. My two plants were identical so it must be close to
stable, no hunting.

I'll be growing my Emmy and Teensy. Hoping the Emmy big pink cherry holds
that great flavor. Melon/grapefruit high brix.

In what was going be Flavor Bombs, I've got a short list for my final slot:

Matina
Little Krim
Kiss the Sky
Ambrosia Orange
Rebel Yell
Spike
Aker's WV

Let the 2018 tomatoes begin--some experimental F2 micros.

Soon good to see seedlings doing so well!! Which micros?

I refer to these as 19xF2. 19x is simply a numbered cross Dan F., another Tomatovillan made. The cross is between a multi flora micro and Ambrosia Orange UBX. I’ve grown F2 from this cross twice totaling 7 plants. I saved seed from 2 plants in th first batch. The second batch had similar things so I didn’t save more. All 7 plants gave been very tasty red cherries, some more multi flora than others and a couple exhibit antho. I’m looking for something out of this world as well as maybe different colors, hence more F2s instead of growing F3 seed.

Nice list, I hadn't heard that the Metallica was so high on taste. May have to try that one. I grew Akers WV last year. A good tomato, taste was good, perfect looking, but my production was pretty low.

Onions are poking up!

And tomato plants I'm growing for others that I'll be get tastes of:

Wisconsin 55
Neves Azorean Red
Mat-Su Express
Dwarf Summertime Gold
Dwarf Tennessee Suited

On the dwarf (and eventually micro dwarf) hunt. Height at cotyeldon formation is a very good dwarf/indeterminate indicator. Only way to tell micro from dwarf I have found is pot them up and select short/small internode distance.

And some of which are looking like dwarfs (the center arrow is pointing to the one in the far side of the cup, not the tall one in the middle)

Thanks for posting those pics. They look great! Will you keep us updated if the ones you are thinking are the micros are in fact micros?

I will certainly do that! All I can say at this point is they are likely dwarf or micro, but it's too early to distinguish micro from regular dwarf. I'll have to pot up and look for short plants and small internode distance.

Modified my short list for my last slot. Curious to any experiences anyone has had with these. Always prefer intensely flavored tomatoes.

Matina
Waltinger's Fleisch aus Indien
Kiss the Sky
Aker's WV
Old Brooks
Bloody Butcher
Little Krim

Leaning Matina or Waltinger's Fleisch aus Indien. Matina because it is a classic tomato, early, supposed to be very productive til frost with very good flavor. Waltinger's Fleisch aus Indien because the little I've found and read it has outstanding flavor and seems to be a variety very rarely grown.

Matina produced well despite all odds. We found out later that we had planted it in about 6" of soil with a huge slab of boulder underneath. We dry farmed. Plants touching it on 2 sides died of some wilt. Matina never blinked. She produced an amazing amount, with good flavor. Tomatoes were small, though.

Nan

[QUOTE=hl2601;680432]Thanks for posting those pics. They look great! Will you keep us updated if the ones you are thinking are the micros are in fact micros?[/QUOTE]

26 indeterminate
7 probable dwarfs (hopefully a couple micros!)

That ratio is about spot on.

The 7 dwarfs have been potted up (along with another one that was sown a week prior).

I've got a couple hundred more sprouting for more micro hunting.

1 dwarf from 1st sowing, 7 from 1 week later, and 16 from 2 weeks later. Hoping 6 of these are micro and will plant those (or how many are micro) into their final pots. Since these are F2 I'm going to crowd 3 per pot as effort to screen more for flavor and/or color variability.

Below are 8 (micro) dwarfs. The tallest is a week older, nice tight internode distance. Of the remaining 7 they are the same age. You can see already some big differences. I’ll be selecting for shortest, along with the 16 others that are a week younger than those 7.

[B][SIZE=3][FONT=Garamond]Nice pictures![/FONT][/SIZE][/B]

Micro dwarf hunt continues! Shouldn’t have a problem getting 9 I don’t think, some are clearly dwarf, which unfortunately won’t be grown.

While winter continues outdoors, my micro hunt lives on by the patio door. Only thing the micro hunt part was not a success, but got all these dwarfs that will eventually move outdoors. I’ll prune them and let them all ripen fruit—should mean some June tomatoes which will be very welcomed early tomatoes!

Dwarf seeds were sown on 3/24 and potted up tonight (4/11) at first true leaf like I always do. A group of very healthy baby seedlings I'm excited to try. 9 are mine, 2 are for family.

Had to take advantage of 11% off and get ProMix for my bucket tomatoes and peppers! Snow flakes flying currently.

Potted up indeterminate at first true leaf tonight. A little later than usual, but this frigid spring, I foresee a later than usual plant out--so I'm keeping them smaller later into the spring in the basement than I typically would.

Random observation at plant up, the following at the widest plants from tip to tip of cotyledons:

KARMApink
CYxJF F1 (both plants)
KBX
Black Krim
Noire de Crimee
Brandywine Sudduth's
Brandywind Cowlick's

Interesting KARMApink is the only cherry on this list. My other cherries are smaller.

Pepper starts are doing well. Still 2 Weeks from being moved to the cold frame with the cold spring.

[QUOTE=jmsieglaff;696458]Pepper starts are doing well. Still 2 Weeks from being moved to the cold frame with the cold spring.[/QUOTE]

Gorgeous!

Your peppers are looking great!
Interesting about the big cots on the KP. You will find they grow more like a big beefsteak than other cherry plants. The true leaves on a mature plant are almost abnormally large.
KarenO