Let's talk about Brandywines

[Sun City Linda]

Oh good catch on my misspelled variety Pruden's Purple, thanks, and since its early it may work well for OP who I think is in Canada.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Sun City Linda

Oh good catch on my misspelled variety Pruden's Purple, thanks, and since its early it may work well for OP who I think is in Canada.

There was one man who listed it as Prudence Purple in his yearly SSE listings and said that was the correct spelling and there was lots of contrversey about that.

Also, Pine Tree seeds first listed Prudens Purple as an early Brandywine so many assumed it WAS a Brandywine, which it wasn't. They then changed it as noted above.

Carolyn

[kath]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

P.S. The takeaway for me from this thread is that I ordered a packet of Indian Zebra!

kath

$$$$$$

And you are convinced Kath that IZ and IS are different after the post I did earlier in this thread explaining the unknown facts of seed from Victory seeds and elsewhere?

I'm not convinced after Burson Sr told Donna Nelson that he called it BOTH IS and IZ.

Carolyn

Sorry, LindyAdele, to take any part in the hijacking...but, to answer your question, Carolyn, no, but I'm hopeful enough that they are different to have spent the price of a packet of seed + shipping in order to find out. Travis' description and the pictures I've see of IZ definitely don't match my IS experiences- although I have tried seed from several different sources and multiple plants grown in multiple years. They've all resulted in similar plants and fruits which didn't make the cut. The bottom line is that I'm all about finding the tomatoes we like the best, regardless of parentage, history, strain, ethnicity, name, etc. and that's really all I have to say about it, especially in this thread, until after I've grown it out.

kath

[VC Scott]

Originally Posted by AKmark

I suggest that anyone who cares, grow the different named Brandywine's side by side this year, and lets talk Brandywine's this fall.
I have a bunch of Cowlick's seeds that I will share, and the mother was superior, so much so, that I rooted many cuttings from it and got bumper fall harvests.

I did this last year: Cowlicks vs. Sudduth. I grew them from seed in the same seed starter. They were hardened off side by side. They were planted side by side in five different locations in my tomato field. They were planted with the same mulch. Watering was done by drip on the same irrigation line, so they got equal water. They also got equal doses of Texas Tomato Food throughout the summer.

In each of the five cases, Cowlicks was earlier, more vigorous and more productive. Taste was equal. The biggest fruit of the year came off of a Sudduth, but that may be because it carried a lower fruit load that the Cowlicks.

I grow Red Brandywine every year. It is always reliable and a great producer for me.

This year I am trying Brandywine OTV and Yellow Brandywine Platfoot Strain. I am looking forward to both.

[Sun City Linda]

Great info Scott. I should really regrow Red Brandywine one of these years. The only time I grew it I thought it was productive but bland. If you grow it yearly you must like it, how would you describe the taste?

[travis]

How do we know Pruden's Purple is not originally a Brandywine tomato?

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by travis

How do we know Pruden's Purple is not originally a Brandywine tomato?

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/P...b=General_Info

All that Tania says is that it's from the 19th century. We know that RB (Red Brandywine) was first discovered, allegedly, in Chester CO, PA, in 1885 by Steve Miller at the Landis Museum.

In order to try and answer your question I'd have go back to my SSE Yearbooks which I have back to 1975 when SSE started to see if Brandywine ( pink) was even known at that time and in circulation.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Brandywine

Above is from Tania and the one she quotes is the Johnson and Stokes one, which is a line drawing, which I've mentioned before and it's hard to discern the leaf form and no mention of fruit color. I've also mentioned that I have a picture of that but right now it would be hard to find it.

There have been several claiments to possibly the first Brandywine and here's another one, as Tania mentions.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Mikado

So best I can do right now.

Carolyn

[parah]

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Brandywine
"it completely eclipsed, in great size and beauty, all other varieties we were testing, several specimens when ripe weighing over three pounds each, as smooth as an apple and remarkably solid."

[parah]

Wow! 3 pound brandywine tomatos.
Has anybody had that kind of success recently?

That was 100 years ago right? After 100 years of seed selection and perfect fertilizers and
growth hormones, and Fungus-mold-bacteria-pest sprays... I managed to grow some 5 oz Brandywines.

I miss the good old days.

[aclum]

AARG!!

I've been following this thread with great interest and now I feel compelled to plant the Mikado Pink seeds I got from Double Helix Farms last year. I'm hopeless!! I've been trying to cut down on the number of plants I'm growing this year - but not having much luck so far LOL!

FWIW, here's the description of Mikado Pink from the Double Helix website:
-------------------------------------
Put this one on the top of your list. No kidding. Not only is this a super tasting tomato, it is also one of the prettiest. Beautiful big pink tomatoes load up on Potato leaf plants. It is so prolific you will get tired of picking them. Mikado Pink wins the top spot for production and is in my top 10 on taste. If this tomato can produce such great flavored tomatoes in abundance in a summer like we had last year then I can’t wait to see what it will do in a normal year. If you can’t decide on what tomatoes to grow next year then let me pick it for you: Mikado Pink. Seriously, Mikado Pink needs to be on everyone’s list and I just can’t praise it enough.
--------------------------------------

There's no mention of Brandywine in the description and the high production doesn't sound like the typical Brandywine - but I'll grow it alongside the Cowlick's Brandywine and see how they might compare . Wonder what the story is behind the naming of this tomato?

Anne

[aclum]

Hi Again,

Nevermind - just saw Tania's listing for Mikado PInk with the Russian name. Guess it's no relation to the American Mikado of old ..... . I'm still planning to grow it though

Anne

[b54red]

Any way you want to pronounce Pruden's Purple is okay with me. It is one of the most dependable producers in my garden year in and year out. It is also one that sets fruit in high heat which separates it from most of the other beefsteaks. I rarely get any really big fruit from them but I get a lot of medium sized slicers that are always good.

Bill

[MrBig46]

Originally Posted by aclum

Hi Again,

Nevermind - just saw Tania's listing for Mikado PInk with the Russian name. Guess it's no relation to the American Mikado of old ..... . I'm still planning to grow it though

Anne

I do not understand why the US tomato Mikado could not grow in Russia, when in Bohemia were cultivated as early as 1901. Perhaps that Russian tomato is the only truly original Mikado, which has been preserved.
Vladimír

[VC Scott]

Originally Posted by Sun City Linda

Great info Scott. I should really regrow Red Brandywine one of these years. The only time I grew it I thought it was productive but bland. If you grow it yearly you must like it, how would you describe the taste?

The taste of Red Brandywine is no match for the Cowlicks, Sudduth, Stump of the World, etc. In my experience the flavor varies a bit. Early in the season they can by a bit bland, but when the heat increases, so does the flavor.

[Sun City Linda]

Thanks Scott. Our climates should be pretty similar. The one time I tried Red Brandywine I pulled it early, cant remember why, maybe mites.