Growing early varieties in the fall!

I've always attempted to grow a few "early" varieties of tomato in the spring. While they usually do not have the full flavor or size of most mid and late season varieties, they do provide some nice tomatoes before the full heat of summer arrives. A few of the early varieties like Fourth Of July are indeterminate hybrids which survive the summer heat and produce again in the early cool fall. Most are determinate open pollinated or hybrid varieties which simply die after producing a crop of tomatoes.

I have always considered "early" varieties as niche varieties filling my early spring needs for some fresh garden tomatoes before the warm weather tomatoes start producing. I never really thought of them as having the ability to fill a similar niche between late summer and first frost. Most of the other varieties are simply a coin toss as a fall tomato. Some years I get a good crop of ripe fall tomatoes if the first frost is late. Other years, I get to watch a good crop of green tomatoes freeze on the vines due to an early frost.

I'm curious if many or any folks plant early varieties in late summer for a quick crop of tomatoes before an early frost.

Ted

[heirloomtomaguy]

I live in southern california and planted 6 glacier determinate plants in october. Due to the lack of any type of winter this year i had tomatoes up until february when i left town on vacation and my drip system failed on me. However glacier was really early and actually was a good balanced sweet acidic tangy tomato and i was impressed with how prolific it was. We had a couple days of frost in january and the plants were not even phased. Its not the best tomato i have ever had but given the situation it worked out great. I will be planting this variety again for my winter tomatoes.

[b54red]

I have found a very funny thing with a lot of the "early" varieties when they are planted out in the fall. Frequently they are slower to produce than mid season varieties; but I have had really good luck with Stupice in the fall even though they tend to be even smaller then. I have experimented with a lot of varieties in the fall and have found a few that excel and more that usually do well. Hands down for reliability in the fall is a hybrid called Big Beef. It has the toughness to survive plant out in the hot dry late summer and it sets better in those conditions than most others so it has more fruit on it when the cooler weather arrives.

The best black tomatoes I have found in the fall are Carbon and BTDP because they ripen better in the fall than the other blacks I have tried. Others that I have had success with are IS, Spudakee, Dana's Dusky Rose, and CP.

Of the large pink beefsteaks I have had the best luck with Limbaugh's Legacy. Others that have been successful are Red Siberian, Rose, Cowlick's Brandywine. Eva Purple Ball is anther smaller pink that usually does well in the fall.

Kosovo, Anna Russian, and Fish Lake Oxheart are my favorite hearts for the fall but many others are productive in the fall.

Of the heirloom reds I have had the most success in the fall with Druzba, Neves Azorean Red, Andrew Rahart's Jumbo Red, Zogola and Lumpy Red.

I have found only one gold tomato that consistently does well in the fall and that is Dr. Wyches Yellow. My favorite gold is KBX but I just haven't had much luck with it in the fall.

Fall can be a very disappointing time for tomato growing. Either the bugs get you, drought plagues you, too much heat or it gets cold too soon. Of course worst of all is Late Blight which can wipe out your tomatoes very quickly. Even when things go great and you have a large crop and most of them actually ripen on the vine, many will lack the rich bold flavor of the summer tomatoes. In the fall I see far more cases of tomatoes just rotting for no reason or refusing to ripen even when the temps seem ideal. Despite all that I still love having a nice mess of vine ripened tomatoes way into the fall.

[creister]

I have had some success with cherry varieties. One year I had a momomahks hat that made some really good tomatoes. Hanky Red, super Sioux, and Thessoliniki did well.

[Dewayne mater]

Ted - to the excellent suggestions you've received, I would second any cherry type and add black and brown boar. The typical trouble I have is the cold saps the flavor and texture of most varieties even if you get them fully ripened before a freeze gets you. BBB for me has held up well flavor wise and texture wise in the cool fall nights.

Dewayne mater

[KarenO]

I can't imagine having two seasons in one year. That would be awesome and you guys are fortunate. I almost have one season here
KarenO

[Cole_Robbie]

I like Northern Delight from Territorial as an ultra-early saladette. It is ridiculously productive. Taxi is my favorite early yellow.

I am saving a pack of Burpee's Long-Keeper to try this fall. My high tunnel is planted in Big Beef, and I am hoping to keep them producing until they freeze.

Like Bill, I have noticed some moderate size reduction in my fall tomatoes. I also noticed a few varieties change their appearance considerably between summer and fall crops. A few don't have stripes or nipples on the blossom end in the spring crop, but may have one or both in the fall crop. Unlike Dwaynemater's observation, I've found the fall crop to have more intense flavors quite unlike the summer flavors. I also have a totally different group of destructive insects in the fall than in the summer. Aphids are much worse for me in the fall and squash bugs ruin a lot of tomatoes by puncturing them and sucking some juice from the tomato. The tomato is still usable but very unattractive.

KarenO, While I am waiting for the first frost to arrive, you are probably already dealing with a foot of snow. I used to have a friend in Saskatchewan who always told me when she saw the first snow flake of winter. It usually meant I would have an overnight frost one month later.

Ted