Little Lucky / LL Heart

[fortyonenorth]

Is it at all common to get small hearts from Little Lucky? I'm familiar with the distinction between Little Lucky and Little Lucky Heart and confident that what I'm growing is Little Lucky - seeds from Tania who, if my memory serves me, did not offer LL Heart when I ordered LL. There are a few fruit on the plant that could be called oblate, but 80% or better are definitely hearts in the 3-6 oz. range.

Just curious.

[swamper]

yes it is very common. color is also not stable. i had some last year that ripened red.

[ddsack]

Forty - sounds like you have the correct Little Lucky. Mine were small hearts, or roundish tomatoes.


I'll have to see about getting some new seed. I have not grown them for a few years because I ran out of the original trade seed, and my saved seed threw a nearly white version that was very sweet but hard as a rock! It was kind of funny because I kept thinking they were very late in ripening, and only at the very end of the season did I realize that there had been a color change.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by swamper

yes it is very common. color is also not stable. i had some last year that ripened red.

Were they heart shaped?

I participate at several message sites when I have the time and I have yet to see somone post about an all red LLHeart. And I just reviewed the listings for it in the current SSE YEarbook as well.

Almost everyone says they do get a few oblate fruits on a plant along with the small hearts.

However it is a gold/red bicolor and some of those can ripen up to almost red, such as the one called Mary Robinson.

LLHeart was found by Reinhard Kraft in Germany from LLucky seed sent to him by Craig LeHoullier and I'm sure Craig will post when he sees this thread title since he's the one who worked with the accidental cross Between Brandywine and Tad that has led to both LL as well as Lucky Cross and some others from that same cross. And Lee and others are still working with that cross as well.

Someone helping Craig with growouts of that cross got a large pink beefsteak and named in Liam's Brandywine (RL , not PL), which has caused some confusion b'c it isn't a true Brandywine b'c it no doubt still has some Tad genes in it.

[fortyonenorth]

OK. I'm confused now. My assumption is that Little Lucky should be small and oblate whereas LL Heart should be small hearts. I'm growing Little Lucky and getting small hearts.

I know that is how Reinhard initially discovered LL Heart but from the other posts here it seems like it's not uncommon. Colorwise, I'm getting the gold/red bi-color - beautiful tomato - nothing approaching a solid red, though.

[nctomatoman]

Little Lucky should be a nearly round yellow/red bicolor in the 3-6 oz range. Little Lucky Heart should be the same but are heart shaped.