Forum area for discussing hybridizing tomatoes in technical terms and information pertinent to trait/variety specific long-term (1+ years) growout projects.
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May 5, 2015 | #1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Oakland MS
Posts: 231
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Advice to a newbie
I have a project in mind. Some of you might think it's silly, while others I might even offend although I hope not. I'd been a regular on this forum in the past but have been gone for several years dealing with life.
I know many of you here are VERY serious about your tomatoes and I hope what I am wanting to do doesn't make any of you think that I consider the work, improvements, and advancements you make to tomatoes to be in any way unimportant. I LOVE all the work y'all do and time you put into creating new and improved varieties. That said, what I am wanting to do is a bit more simple. I don't want to make a tomato with award winning flavor, one resistant to this blight or that mildew, a dwarf variety or one not prone to BER. I just want to make a tomato, because, well, I want to. Granted, both of the varieties I have in mind are good for the heat of the south so maybe I can make a heat resistant one? I want to make a tomato, in short, so I can one day name it after someone very special to me. I hope ya'll don't consider that a frivolous reason for wanting to do so. Flavor, size, color, leaf type and heat resistance will all be factors I take into account when making my selections. I finally have the time and space to do a project like this, so would like to. I have an understanding of the basics. I know how to hand pollinate, etc., to get my F1 seed. I know to grow out as many as possible to search for the qualities I seek. I know a little about genetics from breeding poultry, but not alot. I have no idea which traits in tomatoes are dominant versus recessive. I'm wanting to cross two OP varieties, at this point I'd rather not yet say which two, one is a RL bi-color, the other a PL pink. I guess I've wrote this whole post and not yet asked a question.... I guess right now I really don't have any yet. But am open to any free advice anyone might have for someone just starting down this road. Thanks Angela |
May 6, 2015 | #2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10
Posts: 9,283
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Well, your start is very good for crossing. If you use the PL parent as the mother, and the RL as the pollen donor father, it will be easy to see if your cross "took" because the F1 fruit will be RL as that trait is dominant.
I'm guessing you already knew that much, right? |
May 6, 2015 | #3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: New Mexico
Posts: 2,051
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May 8, 2015 | #4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Newfoundland, Canada
Posts: 6,793
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Why not make a tomato because you want to ? Go for it, and enjoy.
One advice, start making your crosses early in the season before it gets too hot. It can be very disappointing to have your crosses fail because of the heat (in my greenhouse it happens too!), so take advantage of early season and mild weather opportunity. Best of luck, let us know how it goes. |
May 11, 2015 | #5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Oakland MS
Posts: 231
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Thanks everyone. Yeah, I wish I would have gotten my plants started earlier, for sure. But the past few days they've really been taking off and looking really well.
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