SETTFest 2009 Photos and Comments

feldon30 · June 14, 2009

SETTFest 2009 Best Year Ever

The 3rd annual South East Texas Tomato Festival (SETTFest) returned to the historic Washington on the Brazos state park on June 13th, 2009. We had our best turnout yet, with familiar faces, new folks, and unexpected guests. We had a great time, had everything set up early, so we could just enjoy visiting with folks.

Our mission at SETTFest is to introduce heirloom tomatoes to Central and South Texas gardeners and farmers alike, dispel the myths that only ‘heat setter’ varieties can be grown here, and offer advice and seeds wherever we can. So it was great to see folks asking lots of questions (including a few stumpers!), gathering seeds, and talking shop.

We are thrilled that more and more folks are bringing tomatoes and other items as well. There was a nice spread of breads, cheeses, pasta salads, etc. This was a tough year for tomatoes in our area due to the heatwave and torrential downpours in early May. But still most folks managed to get something and we enjoyed tasting varieties that others brought. Indeed one of the best varieties at the event was Atkinson.

Thanks all for making this a great event!

View Photos of SETTFest 2009
Note: The variety photos are available in very large size (1600 x 1000). Click the tiny Zoom button ( ) to get the large version.

feldon30 · June 14, 2009

SETTFest 2009 Master Variety List

Yellow/Orange/Bicolor
Aunt Ginny's Orange
Garden Peach
Golden Cherokee
Golden Gem F1
Green Giant x Yellow Submarine F1
Holy Land, Yellow Strain
Isis Candy
Jaune Flamme
Little Lucky
Orange Minsk
Sun Gold F1
Trees Bottom Yellow

Green
Green Doctors
Green Zebra
Grub's Mystery Green
Spear's Tennessee Green

Dark
Big Cheef F3
Black and Brown Boar
Black Cherry
Black Krim
Blue Ridge Black F4
Dice's Mystery Black
Indian Stripe
JD's Special C-Tex
Paul Robeson
Purple Haze F1
Pink Berkeley Tie Dye
Red Berkeley Tie Dye
Spudakee
Spudatula Black
Vorlon

Red
Atkinson
Bloody Butcher
BW x NAR RL Red saladette
BW x NAR RL Red F3
Danko
Christopher Columbus
Jetsonic F1
Jet Star F1
Large Red Cherry
Linnie's Oxheart
Milka's Red Bulgarian
Mobil
Moravsky Div
Not Persey Pink
Raphael Roma
Red Brandywine
Tony's Italian
Orangina

Pink
not Blue River (heart)
Brandy Boy F1
Brandy Boy F6
Brandysweet Plum
Brandywine
Brandywine, fliptx
Caspian Pink
Earl's Faux
Earl's Polish
Gregori's Altai
Hege German Pink
Momotaro F1
Not Belorusian Early - Pink "F2"
Petushinyi Grebeshok
Razzleberry F1
Redfield Beauty
Rufus Carrigan's Mexican Pink
Sungold x Mom's F3 pink cherry
Sweet Quartz F1 (cherry)
Tastiheart
Tsar-Kolokol
West Virginia Sweetmeat
Goose Creek

Blue
OSU Blue
P20 advanced selection

Dwarf
Dwarf Emerald Giant F6
Happy F6
Lime Green Salad
New Big Dwarf
Sleazy A F4
Summer Sunrise F6
Summertime Green F6
Tipsy F3 RL plant (pale fruit)

If there are any varieties you brought which are missing, please let us know.

feldon30 · June 14, 2009

Favorites from the event:

Med to lg fruited:

Atkinson from Kat (newatthiskat)
Stump of the World from Morgan (Feldon)
Christopher Columbus (paste) from Suze
Earl's Polish from Suze

(favorable mention for Pink BTD and Red BTD)

Cherry:

Sun Gold F1
Black Cherry
Sweet Quartz F1
Brandysweet Plum

(Favorable mention for Golden Gem F1)

Very lg cherry/small saladette:

Purple Haze F1
BW x NAR RL Red F3 saladette
Little Lucky

(Favorable mention for Green Giant x Yellow Submarine F1)

**nctomatoman** · June 14, 2009

Good pics and information - sounds like you all had a great day. Out of curiosity, what did people think of the dwarf varieties? In particular, Summertime Green and Emerald Giant compared with the indeterminate GWRs.

Suze · June 14, 2009

Craig, out of the eight dwarfs I brought, the ones I recall folks liking the taste of the best were Dwarf Emerald Giant, Summertime Green, Summer Sunrise, the unnamed Sleazy A F4, and NBD.

The dwarf GWRs were easily the best tasting greens available to taste (imo), However, I did not have a ripe Green Giant to bring to the tasting - the comparison would have been interesting.

They were also some of the very best tasting tomatoes at the event. Dwarf Emerald Giant and Summertime Green were two of my overall favorites.

Edit/add - I will post some of my overall favs later today - gotta go water the garden (yet again), and pick - it's blazing hot here, stuff is ripening now almost faster than I have time to keep up with the picking!

**nctomatoman** · June 14, 2009

Thanks, Suze. Good reinforcement that there will be some interest in these once we can get them "out there"!

Barbee · June 14, 2009

How fun to finally see you all! Some of you look like I thought and some don't look a thing like you type

Now I am all the more anxious for our tasting.
The rest of you feel free to reveal yourself LoL

duajones · June 14, 2009

It is nice to put names to Faces and it appears that you guys had a nice turnout. And Kat, Morgan is a tall fella, tall enough to make many people feel short. Congrats to all on the event, maybe I can make it some day

Suze · June 14, 2009

I did not have a chance to taste everything, but got to several.

Here are some of my personal favorites from the event:

Atkinson
Big Cheef F4
Black Cherry
BW x NAR RL Red F3 "saladette"
Christopher Columbus
Danko
Dwarf Emerald Giant
Earl's Faux
Earl's Polish
Indian Stripe
Jet Star F1
Little Lucky
Pink Berkeley Tie Dye
Purple Haze F1
Red Berkeley Tie Dye
Spears Tennessee Green
Stump of the World
Summertime Green
Sun Gold F1
Sweet Quartz F1
Tony's Italian
Tsar-Kolokol

I would be hard pressed to name just one as my top favorite from the above list. But I guess I can narrow it down to a handful, lol.

Stump and Earl's Polish had that sweet, yet incredibly rich, complex taste and smooth creamy texture one would expect from the best pinks. Atkinson (red) hit a similar note on the tastebuds, some definite sweetness to it, rich and flavorful. Purple Haze F1 - superb. Christopher Columbus is one of the best paste types I've grown, rich and meaty. Big Cheef - terrific dark slicer. Dwarf Emerald Giant had fruity-melon notes and just a touch of lime zing - the GG parentage is apparent with this one.

feldon30 · June 14, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by duajones

maybe I can make it some day

I really hope you do. I think anything is possible.

I never ever thought that Shelly & Roy would make an appearance at one of our events but then out of the blue, there they were. It was so much fun to talk shop with them and of course I had to thank them for their website and putting me on to Gregori's Altai.

Really I was thrilled that so many folks showed up. I can't express enough how thankful I am at folks sticking around to help tear down (snappybob, I think we're going to have to give you an official title one of these days

).

bigbubbacain · June 16, 2009

Morgan,

It was great to meet you and Suze, and to put faces with the names of so many folks I've chatted with here. You all did a terriffic job! It's so nice to see which tomatoes are working so well for others and to have a chance to talk shop.

Sure wish my life wasn't so complicated this year. I would have liked to stay longer, but time wouldn't allow it because of my out of town work and my dogs sitting in the truck under the A/C. while I was at the tables oohing and ahhing over tomatoes. I'm definitely locking in next year's date so I can enjoy the event more. Hopefully next year my fruits ripe in time and ready for public scrutiny.

Mojo · June 16, 2009

The gentleman on my left in the group photo is my friend Terry, who is on my backside now to get some Tony's Italian (I forgot, d'oh!) for next year. He's in an apartment but I think he wants to do containers next year.

I've known Roy for over 20 years, he was my brother's roommate in college. It was purely by accident that we discovered that we both grew maters. Shelly actually called me Friday night and asked if we were going; as my usual conflict this year had rescheduled itself, we said yes and the rest is history. We should all nag Roy and Shelly to put up more recent photos of their bed.

I now know what next year's crop is going to be, Lord wiling: Black and Brown Boar, Bloody Butcher, Black Krim, Cherokee Purple, Persimmon (one last chance) and... ATKINSON!!! (Also if I can lay hands on some "true" Golden Gems like Suze had, them too.) Oh, and Jetsonic, since I already have the seeds and the ones Suze brought actually didn't taste horrible.

I will try very hard to have something to bring for next year. If Feldon can do pasta salad, I might try a fresh spaghetti sauce...

EDIT/ADD: Feldon, Black Krim was left off the master variety list, it was on the main table to the left of Suze's (forgot who brought it)

Suze · June 17, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigbubbacain

It was great to meet you and Suze, and to put faces with the names of so many folks I've chatted with here.

Thrilled you were able to make it! Enjoyed talking to you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo

The gentleman on my left in the group photo is my friend Terry, who is on my backside now to get some Tony's Italian (I forgot, d'oh!) for next year. He's in an apartment but I think he wants to do containers next year[...] (Also if I can lay hands on some "true" Golden Gems like Suze had, them too.)

It was great meeting you and Terry, and Shelly and Roy too.

PM me w/address, I can send you some seeds for Tony's Italian and Golden Gem F1. I got my Golden Gem plant from Bloomers, but have since ordered a pack from TGS. Refresh my memory - what was it you said about the taste of Sun Gold vs. Golden Gem? I recall you liked them both, but can't remember anything more specific than that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo

Black Krim was left off the master variety list, it was on the main table to the left of Suze's (forgot who brought it)

Added.

Mojo · June 17, 2009

Will PM address later.

My comment on Golden Gem vs. SunGold was that GG had more of a "malty" taste to it that I found quite delightful. I hesitate to say "darker" because that's not quite it, not in the same way a Cherokee Purple is "darker" than a Brandywine.

snappybob · June 22, 2009

Wow! Where did all of these posts come from? Things have been too hectic here for me last week to do anything other than open Tomatoville and check for new posts without actually opening the thread. I always saw Feldons name and assumed there were no new posts.

Feldon & Suze: No problem with the tear down help. Glad to do it and we weren't in any hurry. Official title!?! Cool! Does that come with a 20% raise too?

Thanks for all of your efforts to make this happen. You and Suze work hard all year so that we all can have this. Great job. Your hard work is paying off. Let me know if there is any way I can help.

Big Bubbacain:
I didn't know you were there. Sorry I missed you. Obviously we were there at the same time. We were both in the group photo. I got there over an hour late and apparently you had to leave early. Well there's always next year.

Mojo: I brought the Black Krim. In a not so great Tomato season they were my saving grace. They really produced well in my area. Too bad I only grew one Black Krim plant. They will definitely have a place in next years garden. I may even try to root a cutting and try another one in the fall. We have been having a string of 100+ days here so who knows how much longer any of my plants will survive.

It was great seeing and meeting all of you. It was particularly great seeing such a nice turnout. We needed that. It's a great confidence builder. Hope to see all of you and then some next year.

June 14, 2009	#1
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	SETTFest 2009 Photos and Comments SETTFest 2009 Best Year Ever The 3rd annual South East Texas Tomato Festival (SETTFest) returned to the historic Washington on the Brazos state park on June 13th, 2009. We had our best turnout yet, with familiar faces, new folks, and unexpected guests. We had a great time, had everything set up early, so we could just enjoy visiting with folks. Our mission at SETTFest is to introduce heirloom tomatoes to Central and South Texas gardeners and farmers alike, dispel the myths that only ‘heat setter’ varieties can be grown here, and offer advice and seeds wherever we can. So it was great to see folks asking lots of questions (including a few stumpers!), gathering seeds, and talking shop. We are thrilled that more and more folks are bringing tomatoes and other items as well. There was a nice spread of breads, cheeses, pasta salads, etc. This was a tough year for tomatoes in our area due to the heatwave and torrential downpours in early May. But still most folks managed to get something and we enjoyed tasting varieties that others brought. Indeed one of the best varieties at the event was Atkinson. Thanks all for making this a great event! View Photos of SETTFest 2009 Note: The variety photos are available in very large size (1600 x 1000). Click the tiny Zoom button ( ) to get the large version. __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

June 14, 2009	#2
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	SETTFest 2009 Master Variety List Yellow/Orange/Bicolor Aunt Ginny's Orange Garden Peach Golden Cherokee Golden Gem F1 Green Giant x Yellow Submarine F1 Holy Land, Yellow Strain Isis Candy Jaune Flamme Little Lucky Orange Minsk Sun Gold F1 Trees Bottom Yellow Green Green Doctors Green Zebra Grub's Mystery Green Spear's Tennessee Green Dark Big Cheef F3 Black and Brown Boar Black Cherry Black Krim Blue Ridge Black F4 Dice's Mystery Black Indian Stripe JD's Special C-Tex Paul Robeson Purple Haze F1 Pink Berkeley Tie Dye Red Berkeley Tie Dye Spudakee Spudatula Black Vorlon Red Atkinson Bloody Butcher BW x NAR RL Red saladette BW x NAR RL Red F3 Danko Christopher Columbus Jetsonic F1 Jet Star F1 Large Red Cherry Linnie's Oxheart Milka's Red Bulgarian Mobil Moravsky Div Not Persey Pink Raphael Roma Red Brandywine Tony's Italian Orangina Pink not Blue River (heart) Brandy Boy F1 Brandy Boy F6 Brandysweet Plum Brandywine Brandywine, fliptx Caspian Pink Earl's Faux Earl's Polish Gregori's Altai Hege German Pink Momotaro F1 Not Belorusian Early - Pink "F2" Petushinyi Grebeshok Razzleberry F1 Redfield Beauty Rufus Carrigan's Mexican Pink Sungold x Mom's F3 pink cherry Sweet Quartz F1 (cherry) Tastiheart Tsar-Kolokol West Virginia Sweetmeat Goose Creek Blue OSU Blue P20 advanced selection Dwarf Dwarf Emerald Giant F6 Happy F6 Lime Green Salad New Big Dwarf Sleazy A F4 Summer Sunrise F6 Summertime Green F6 Tipsy F3 RL plant (pale fruit) If there are any varieties you brought which are missing, please let us know. __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

June 14, 2009	#3
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	Favorites from the event: Med to lg fruited: Atkinson from Kat (newatthiskat) Stump of the World from Morgan (Feldon) Christopher Columbus (paste) from Suze Earl's Polish from Suze (favorable mention for Pink BTD and Red BTD) Cherry: Sun Gold F1 Black Cherry Sweet Quartz F1 Brandysweet Plum (Favorable mention for Golden Gem F1) Very lg cherry/small saladette: Purple Haze F1 BW x NAR RL Red F3 saladette Little Lucky (Favorable mention for Green Giant x Yellow Submarine F1) __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

June 14, 2009	#4
nctomatoman Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Hendersonville, NC zone 7 Posts: 10,385	Good pics and information - sounds like you all had a great day. Out of curiosity, what did people think of the dwarf varieties? In particular, Summertime Green and Emerald Giant compared with the indeterminate GWRs. __________________ Craig

June 14, 2009	#6
nctomatoman Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Hendersonville, NC zone 7 Posts: 10,385	Thanks, Suze. Good reinforcement that there will be some interest in these once we can get them "out there"! __________________ Craig

June 14, 2009	#5
Suze Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 3,027	Craig, out of the eight dwarfs I brought, the ones I recall folks liking the taste of the best were Dwarf Emerald Giant, Summertime Green, Summer Sunrise, the unnamed Sleazy A F4, and NBD. The dwarf GWRs were easily the best tasting greens available to taste (imo), However, I did not have a ripe Green Giant to bring to the tasting - the comparison would have been interesting. They were also some of the very best tasting tomatoes at the event. Dwarf Emerald Giant and Summertime Green were two of my overall favorites. Edit/add - I will post some of my overall favs later today - gotta go water the garden (yet again), and pick - it's blazing hot here, stuff is ripening now almost faster than I have time to keep up with the picking!

June 14, 2009	#7
Barbee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: SW Ohio Posts: 1,818	How fun to finally see you all! Some of you look like I thought and some don't look a thing like you type Now I am all the more anxious for our tasting. The rest of you feel free to reveal yourself LoL __________________ *Barbee*

June 14, 2009	#8
duajones Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Corpus Christi,Texas Z9 Posts: 1,996	It is nice to put names to Faces and it appears that you guys had a nice turnout. And Kat, Morgan is a tall fella, tall enough to make many people feel short. Congrats to all on the event, maybe I can make it some day __________________ Duane Jones

June 16, 2009	#11
bigbubbacain Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Zone 9 Texas, Fort Bend County Posts: 436	Morgan, It was great to meet you and Suze, and to put faces with the names of so many folks I've chatted with here. You all did a terriffic job! It's so nice to see which tomatoes are working so well for others and to have a chance to talk shop. Sure wish my life wasn't so complicated this year. I would have liked to stay longer, but time wouldn't allow it because of my out of town work and my dogs sitting in the truck under the A/C. while I was at the tables oohing and ahhing over tomatoes. I'm definitely locking in next year's date so I can enjoy the event more. Hopefully next year my fruits ripe in time and ready for public scrutiny.

June 16, 2009	#12
Mojo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 317	The gentleman on my left in the group photo is my friend Terry, who is on my backside now to get some Tony's Italian (I forgot, d'oh!) for next year. He's in an apartment but I think he wants to do containers next year. I've known Roy for over 20 years, he was my brother's roommate in college. It was purely by accident that we discovered that we both grew maters. Shelly actually called me Friday night and asked if we were going; as my usual conflict this year had rescheduled itself, we said yes and the rest is history. We should all nag Roy and Shelly to put up more recent photos of their bed. I now know what next year's crop is going to be, Lord wiling: Black and Brown Boar, Bloody Butcher, Black Krim, Cherokee Purple, Persimmon (one last chance) and... ATKINSON!!! (Also if I can lay hands on some "true" Golden Gems like Suze had, them too.) Oh, and Jetsonic, since I already have the seeds and the ones Suze brought actually didn't taste horrible. I will try very hard to have something to bring for next year. If Feldon can do pasta salad, I might try a fresh spaghetti sauce... EDIT/ADD: Feldon, Black Krim was left off the master variety list, it was on the main table to the left of Suze's (forgot who brought it) __________________ There is no logical response to the question, "Why won't you let me plant more tomatoes?" Last edited by Mojo; June 16, 2009 at 10:16 PM. Reason: left out stuff

June 17, 2009	#14
Mojo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 317	Will PM address later. My comment on Golden Gem vs. SunGold was that GG had more of a "malty" taste to it that I found quite delightful. I hesitate to say "darker" because that's not quite it, not in the same way a Cherokee Purple is "darker" than a Brandywine. __________________ There is no logical response to the question, "Why won't you let me plant more tomatoes?"

June 22, 2009	#15
snappybob SETTFest™ Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 214	Wow! Where did all of these posts come from? Things have been too hectic here for me last week to do anything other than open Tomatoville and check for new posts without actually opening the thread. I always saw Feldons name and assumed there were no new posts. Feldon & Suze: No problem with the tear down help. Glad to do it and we weren't in any hurry. Official title!?! Cool! Does that come with a 20% raise too? Thanks for all of your efforts to make this happen. You and Suze work hard all year so that we all can have this. Great job. Your hard work is paying off. Let me know if there is any way I can help. Big Bubbacain: I didn't know you were there. Sorry I missed you. Obviously we were there at the same time. We were both in the group photo. I got there over an hour late and apparently you had to leave early. Well there's always next year. Mojo: I brought the Black Krim. In a not so great Tomato season they were my saving grace. They really produced well in my area. Too bad I only grew one Black Krim plant. They will definitely have a place in next years garden. I may even try to root a cutting and try another one in the fall. We have been having a string of 100+ days here so who knows how much longer any of my plants will survive. It was great seeing and meeting all of you. It was particularly great seeing such a nice turnout. We needed that. It's a great confidence builder. Hope to see all of you and then some next year.