Thanks to SETTFest 2008 organizers!

JohnnyRock · June 23, 2008

I just wanted to thank Morgan (aka Feldon) and Suze for organizing the excellent SETTFest this year! Our family had a great time both socializing with fellow growers and tomato afficianados, as well as tasting the many interesting varieties of tomatoes. The selection of tomatoes this year was awesome (I counted >150 varieties)!!! I had planned on cutting back some next year, but it looks like I may have to expand just to grow many of the superb 'new-to-me' varieties that we found. We're already looking forward to next year's festival. Also, special thanks to Michael (aka DeerPark) for contributing so many of his varieties.

JR

snappybob · June 23, 2008

Ditto. Thanks a lot Morgan and Suze. Another great tomato fest. All of the people who couldn't make it missed a really good time. Lots of great tomatoes and a good time had by all. I like the switch to the new venue it is a really pretty park. I also liked the switch to a week later. The nearby town of Brenham has their anniversary that weekend (150 yrs this year) and the Roundtop area does their summer antique show that weekend also. Since we have a way to drive we decided to just make a weekend out of it. I was a little worried that we would run out of things to do after the tomato fest but we had a great time the whole weekend. Again, thanks to the SETTFest organizers. Another job well done.

bigbubbacain · June 25, 2008

Glad to hear it went well. Once again (sigh) I was out of town and couldn't make it. Something always seems to happen with family or whoever else. I don't think I'll get over missing this any time soon. I've already put everyone in my life on notice that I will not be available for them during next year's SETTFEST. I can handle not being able to taste the tomatoes, but I really regret missing the chance to network, meet some of these folks in my area, and have a chance to obtain some seeds from a trusted source. I'm glad it went well.

foolcontrol · June 25, 2008

I had a great time. Thanks to Morgan and Suze.

Suze · June 25, 2008

Thanks for the kind words, and it was just great getting to see folks again and talk tomato.

We'll try to get the pics up in an album in a couple of days.

I've already mentioned that the favorite seemed to be Mountaineer Mystery, and for cherry types, Brandysweet Plum and Purple Haze F2.

Any other favorites or honorable mentions?

JohnnyRock · June 30, 2008

There were a lot of excellent varieties (I'm saving seeds for ~40 of them). The most memorable (in terms of taste) for me were:
Catwell (a large yellow, brought by Michael)
Golden Cherokee (mostly red with yellow shoulders, I'm not sure who brought this one)
Pot Iron (Suze's 3lb monster red)
Blue River (a large red from Michael)
George Washington (another large red from Michael)

Michael's Black Cherries deserve honorable mention. Those were incredibly sweet (more than any other Black Cherries I've ever tried)!

JR

feldon30 · June 30, 2008

Just FYI, Blue River and George Washington are pinks.

Blue River is a must-grow for me next year. Similar or better flavor to Gregori's Altai, and I saw 50 fruit on 2 plants. Large pink beefsteak.

Pictures of SETTFest 2008 will be posted later tomorrow.

Suze · July 1, 2008

John, I brought Golden Cherokee, and it was one of my favorites this yr - intensely rich and sweet. Note: many of my bicolors were almost entirely red this year - strange! In any case, I'm fairly confident GC is true to type. I had my doubts for a while. It is usually more yellow, see link below for a pic from another grower:
http://t-garden.homeip.net/mwiki/ind...olden_Cherokee

I also had Catwell on my table, and agree that it is an excellent tasting variety.

As with last year, I found the differences in taste of the same varieties as grown in different gardens to be interesting.

Loved Michael's Black Cherry, as well as the taste of his other tomatoes. He's definitely doing something right! My understanding is that Michael grows in straight leaf mold that is mounded up to make his raised beds, and does not fertilize.

Edit - I know little about Potiron, other than it is supposedly of French origin and might also be known as Potiron Ecarlate. Either I requested it from WI MI B in 07 from the SSE Yearbook or he sent it to me as a gift - cannot recall. I don't grow for size per se and don't have a particular interest in requesting vars just because they are large. I likely looked through my seed inventory spreadsheet and decided to grow it out as there was only one lister for it in the 07 Yearbook. In any case, the plant gave me around 8 fruit, all over 1.5 pound, with the first 3 to 4 fruits easily in the 2 - 2lb 14oz size range with no special effort on my part.

June 23, 2008	#1
JohnnyRock Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Aurora, CO Posts: 71	Thanks to SETTFest 2008 organizers! I just wanted to thank Morgan (aka Feldon) and Suze for organizing the excellent SETTFest this year! Our family had a great time both socializing with fellow growers and tomato afficianados, as well as tasting the many interesting varieties of tomatoes. The selection of tomatoes this year was awesome (I counted >150 varieties)!!! I had planned on cutting back some next year, but it looks like I may have to expand just to grow many of the superb 'new-to-me' varieties that we found. We're already looking forward to next year's festival. Also, special thanks to Michael (aka DeerPark) for contributing so many of his varieties. JR

June 30, 2008	#7
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	Just FYI, Blue River and George Washington are pinks. Blue River is a must-grow for me next year. Similar or better flavor to Gregori's Altai, and I saw 50 fruit on 2 plants. Large pink beefsteak. Pictures of SETTFest 2008 will be posted later tomorrow. __________________ [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 23, 2008	#2
snappybob SETTFest™ Coordinator Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: San Antonio, Texas Posts: 214	Ditto. Thanks a lot Morgan and Suze. Another great tomato fest. All of the people who couldn't make it missed a really good time. Lots of great tomatoes and a good time had by all. I like the switch to the new venue it is a really pretty park. I also liked the switch to a week later. The nearby town of Brenham has their anniversary that weekend (150 yrs this year) and the Roundtop area does their summer antique show that weekend also. Since we have a way to drive we decided to just make a weekend out of it. I was a little worried that we would run out of things to do after the tomato fest but we had a great time the whole weekend. Again, thanks to the SETTFest organizers. Another job well done.

June 25, 2008	#3
bigbubbacain Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Zone 9 Texas, Fort Bend County Posts: 436	Glad to hear it went well. Once again (sigh) I was out of town and couldn't make it. Something always seems to happen with family or whoever else. I don't think I'll get over missing this any time soon. I've already put everyone in my life on notice that I will not be available for them during next year's SETTFEST. I can handle not being able to taste the tomatoes, but I really regret missing the chance to network, meet some of these folks in my area, and have a chance to obtain some seeds from a trusted source. I'm glad it went well.

June 25, 2008	#4
foolcontrol Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Cypress, Texas Posts: 53	I had a great time. Thanks to Morgan and Suze.

June 25, 2008	#5
Suze Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 3,027	Thanks for the kind words, and it was just great getting to see folks again and talk tomato. We'll try to get the pics up in an album in a couple of days. I've already mentioned that the favorite seemed to be Mountaineer Mystery, and for cherry types, Brandysweet Plum and Purple Haze F2. Any other favorites or honorable mentions?

July 1, 2008	#8
Suze Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 3,027	John, I brought Golden Cherokee, and it was one of my favorites this yr - intensely rich and sweet. Note: many of my bicolors were almost entirely red this year - strange! In any case, I'm fairly confident GC is true to type. I had my doubts for a while. It is usually more yellow, see link below for a pic from another grower: http://t-garden.homeip.net/mwiki/ind...olden_Cherokee I also had Catwell on my table, and agree that it is an excellent tasting variety. As with last year, I found the differences in taste of the same varieties as grown in different gardens to be interesting. Loved Michael's Black Cherry, as well as the taste of his other tomatoes. He's definitely doing something right! My understanding is that Michael grows in straight leaf mold that is mounded up to make his raised beds, and does not fertilize. Edit - I know little about Potiron, other than it is supposedly of French origin and might also be known as Potiron Ecarlate. Either I requested it from WI MI B in 07 from the SSE Yearbook or he sent it to me as a gift - cannot recall. I don't grow for size per se and don't have a particular interest in requesting vars just because they are large. I likely looked through my seed inventory spreadsheet and decided to grow it out as there was only one lister for it in the 07 Yearbook. In any case, the plant gave me around 8 fruit, all over 1.5 pound, with the first 3 to 4 fruits easily in the 2 - 2lb 14oz size range with no special effort on my part.