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Nan_PA_6b · January 4, 2017

Hi,
I've been entrusted with seeds of an heirloom currant tomato which has never been available. I need help & advice on getting it out there & known. Here's the story behind its discovery:

Currant Tomato "Post Office Spoonful"
When she was a girl, Pittsburgh folk singer Cathasaigh encountered a very old man planting tomato plants in front of a post office. The man explained that seeds of these tomatoes had been brought over by his grandmother from Italy. He was getting too old to garden, so he planted his last seedlings in front of the post office. It was his hope that people would taste the tomatoes, like them, and plant the seeds so this wonderful tomato could continue. His term for the currant tomatoes was "spoonfuls." Cathasaigh tasted, liked, and planted the tomato for years, naming it "Post Office Spoonful".
-----------------------------------------
When she moved, Cathasaigh (that's her full, legal name) gave her seeds to me to grow & pass on. I just received the seeds, but they were harvested in 2008. I have about 220 seeds that I can give away, reserving the rest for myself. I have never seen, tasted or grown this plant before. It's indeterminate, productive, with fruit the size of a pea, produced in clusters. It self-sows. Cathasaigh & her mother at first wondered why anyone would grow such a small-fruited tomato --until the moment they tasted them!

Is anybody interested in getting some seeds, growing these, and distributing seeds to others? Is there anyone in particular on this forum to whom I should be offering seeds? I suppose I'd also like to receive production data back from anyone who grows the seeds: days from plant-out to first ripe tomato, taste description, productivity, and any anecdotal evidence of disease resistance/susceptibility. (e.g., if you have any disease show up in your plot, which disease, and were these POS's the first plants to contract the disease? Or were they the last plants standing? etc.)

Carolyn137's technique for germinating older seeds can be found here:
http://www.tomatoville.com/showpost....79&postcount=6

PM me with seed requests. I'll need your address to mail seeds. If I get extra seedlings, I can deliver them to anywhere in a 50 mile radius of Pittsburgh PA. I can also get seedlings to a particular spot near Albany NY, and if CHOPTAG has a plant swap this year, I would be willing to bring some to the Cincinnati area.

If you receive seeds or plants from me, please promise to pass along seeds from your harvest to others. Let's get this heirloom out there.

Nan

January 4, 2017	#1
Nan_PA_6b Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 3,194	Newly Discovered Heirloom Currant Tomato Hi, I've been entrusted with seeds of an heirloom currant tomato which has never been available. I need help & advice on getting it out there & known. Here's the story behind its discovery: Currant Tomato "Post Office Spoonful" When she was a girl, Pittsburgh folk singer Cathasaigh encountered a very old man planting tomato plants in front of a post office. The man explained that seeds of these tomatoes had been brought over by his grandmother from Italy. He was getting too old to garden, so he planted his last seedlings in front of the post office. It was his hope that people would taste the tomatoes, like them, and plant the seeds so this wonderful tomato could continue. His term for the currant tomatoes was "spoonfuls." Cathasaigh tasted, liked, and planted the tomato for years, naming it "Post Office Spoonful". ----------------------------------------- When she moved, Cathasaigh (that's her full, legal name) gave her seeds to me to grow & pass on. I just received the seeds, but they were harvested in 2008. I have about 220 seeds that I can give away, reserving the rest for myself. I have never seen, tasted or grown this plant before. It's indeterminate, productive, with fruit the size of a pea, produced in clusters. It self-sows. Cathasaigh & her mother at first wondered why anyone would grow such a small-fruited tomato --until the moment they tasted them! Is anybody interested in getting some seeds, growing these, and distributing seeds to others? Is there anyone in particular on this forum to whom I should be offering seeds? I suppose I'd also like to receive production data back from anyone who grows the seeds: days from plant-out to first ripe tomato, taste description, productivity, and any anecdotal evidence of disease resistance/susceptibility. (e.g., if you have any disease show up in your plot, which disease, and were these POS's the first plants to contract the disease? Or were they the last plants standing? etc.) Carolyn137's technique for germinating older seeds can be found here: http://www.tomatoville.com/showpost....79&postcount=6 PM me with seed requests. I'll need your address to mail seeds. If I get extra seedlings, I can deliver them to anywhere in a 50 mile radius of Pittsburgh PA. I can also get seedlings to a particular spot near Albany NY, and if CHOPTAG has a plant swap this year, I would be willing to bring some to the Cincinnati area. If you receive seeds or plants from me, please promise to pass along seeds from your harvest to others. Let's get this heirloom out there. Nan Last edited by Nan_PA_6b; January 4, 2017 at 04:15 PM.