What to choose for new weather in the North East? - Page 3

camochef · March 31, 2013

As someone that has grown thousands of different varieties of tomatoes over the years, I have to point out that no two varieties will perform the same for different people in different locales. Why even in the same garden in the same year you can find differences in the same variety in different areas.
What was outstanding one year, may be unimpressive the next. Still we all have our favorites that we grow year after year. Most years they do very well, but not every year.

Last year I grew my favorites that have performed extremely well, year after year, no matter the weather conditions, dry, wet, hot or cool. Most did very well... but the most impressive was my German Johnson-Benton strain which was grafted to Maxifort rootstock. It was the very last plant put out in my gardens and just a runt compared to all the other varieties that towered above it. It not only caught up, but surpassed the others and out produced them all. Including the same variety grown from seed that was directly across the pathway from it.
It was a great producer of very large and tasty tomatoes and was without a doubt the best tomato grown last year. The same variety from seed was second best.
Purple Dog Creek, which was number one in 2011 was third in taste and size, but not quite as productive.
My usual Brandywines followed, (Cowlick's, Glick's, Sudduth's) along with Barlow Jap, Liz Birt, (which was the first to ripen last year), Earl Faux, Dana's Dusky Rose, Bear Creek, and Pink Sweet. Others like Tarasenko6, Daniels, Terhune, Amazon Chocolate, and my own DDRXBW-C did extremely well also.
The only losers last year were Delicous and Kumato both of which were pulled early.
Most years it's been the Brandywines that really out-produced and tasted best, but it changes year to year. I also think last year was one of the worst in this area for diseases, Septoria, and Early Blight were worse than I've seen other years. I can't say for sure, but I think this has to do with the invasion of stinkbugs we've seen the pass few years. They certainly ruin a lot of tomatoes with their appetites.
I'd suggest trying different varieties to see what does best for you over the years and keep a journal each year of planting info, weather, watering fertilizing...just about everything you can think of, then use your best judgement to determine what varieties are to be YOUR favorites.
Enjoy
Camo

Elliot · March 31, 2013

Thanks Camo

lakelady · March 31, 2013

Elliot, I am befuddled as to what is going on with our weather. Has this been the grayest winter ever or what? Dark and cool, not a ton of snow, not warm though, dreary. And where is Spring? I'm hoping it hits this week already I need sunshine.

I noticed your comment about the weeds, and we got a new one last year I've never seen before. little rosettes that grow low to the ground , with white flower spikes and when flowering it turns a purplish cast to the green leaves. Very odd, and prolific!! I spent weeks pulling those suckers out of everything. And they are back again as I was weeding them again yesterday. ugh.

I'm just going to keep planting away and hope my plants do well, but I'll be more vigilant against the worms this year and spray earlier as they ate a lot of tomatoes. Humidity is normal for NJ so I do the best I can to keep the plants open and airy to reduce chances of fungal infestations and no overhead watering really helps.

nnjjohn · March 31, 2013

I seen the news this am . the cherry blossoms in washing dc should have been peak by now.. still look like winter trees. Very cold March.. it snowed more more this March than it snowed all the previous winter months combined, here in nnj

clkeiper · March 31, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by lakelady

I noticed your comment about the weeds, and we got a new one last year I've never seen before. little rosettes that grow low to the ground , with white flower spikes and when flowering it turns a purplish cast to the green leaves. Very odd, and prolific!! I spent weeks pulling those suckers out of everything. And they are back again as I was weeding them again yesterday. ugh.

Sounds like bitter cress. very weedy, but only spreads via seed. Not by runners or rhizomes. But as soon as they go to seed they spew their seeds if you touch the plant once the seeds are mature. I have it in the greenhouse and a hightunnel and it drives me crazy, but I just keep pulling it. You might want to try a preemergent in the area where they are.

What fungicides do I use, Elliot?

We use daconil, copper and mancozeb. we alternate every time we spray with a different one. We try not to spray any of them consecutively. Although copper is organic we use it very sparingly. It is a heavy metal and you can get poisoning from it and if you over use it you can poison your soil with it, too. I know of others who use baking soda, diluted milk, neem, etc. I haven't used any of those.
We spray if it rains, for sure or if we see any sign of a fungus starting. We don't want to spray everything for no reason at all, but we don't want to let something get started, either.

edweather · April 1, 2013

Snowing again now, with storm warnings for tonight and tomorrow.

TightenUp · April 1, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by edweather

Snowing again now, with storm warnings for tonight and tomorrow.

looks like 2 cold fronts on top of each other moving through which could produce a little wind and precipitation. i was just looking at the 10 day forecast and by the wknd the lows should start creeping out of the 30s and hopefully not go back.

JamesL · April 1, 2013

Yes, looks like spring is finally arriving!

Elliot,
How many plants do you typically grow? I am all of 10 to 15 minutes west of you and I will definitely have extras. Might even have some grafted plants for you, presuming some survive my butchery.
Will have Camo to thank for that, as he is the one that got me interested in grafting last summer.

camochef · April 1, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesL

Yes, looks like spring is finally arriving!

Elliot,
How many plants do you typically grow? I am all of 10 to 15 minutes west of you and I will definitely have extras. Might even have some grafted plants for you, presuming some survive my butchery.
Will have Camo to thank for that, as he is the one that got me interested in grafting last summer.

JamesL,
All thanks should really go to Dana, (of Dana's Dusky Rose fame), who gifted me my German Johnson-Benton Strain grafted to maxifort root stock. I really had little interest in grafted plants until I grew the grafted plant next to the same variety from seed.
The difference between the two was nothing short of phenomenal. I always thought grafting to other rootstocks was primarily for those with disease problems or other growing problems which I didn't face.
Now my mindset is changed as that grafted plant, (which was a real runt compared to others in the garden), quickly surpassed everything else including the same variety which had been started from seed. Not only did it produce much larger tomatoes...it produced much more and they tasted much better than anything else in the gardens last year.
The German Johnson-Benton strain from seed had some larger fruits that tasted almost as good, but the per centage of really large tomatoes overall was certainly less as was total production.
Must mention that 2011's number one tomato, Purple Dog Creek was number 3 in 2012 behind the two different German Johnson's- Benton Strain and their taste was up there with the Benton's but production didn't come close.
This year I plan to try seed from both the grafted plant and the grown from seed to see if there's any difference, also hope to pick up another grafted plant from Dana, hopefully of a few different of my favorite Brandywine's also.
Good luck with yours and Enjoy!
Camo

efisakov · April 1, 2013

Camo, happy to see you posting again.
I am growing 39 varieties this year, wishing to downsize to 6 or 8 by next year. Your recommendations are highly appreciated. Always open to your suggestions.
thanks

camochef · April 1, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by efisakov

Camo, happy to see you posting again.
I am growing 39 varieties this year, wishing to downsize to 6 or 8 by next year. Your recommendations are highly appreciated. Always open to your suggestions.
thanks

Ella,
Thanks for the kind words!
I find it easier to spend my time on cooking and baking sites during the winter. Although the calendar says it's Spring...it's still Winter here. The only thing showing signs of life are the snow crocuses, and they might have made a mistake.

I went from hundreds of varieties of tomatoes in the past to 23 plants last year. It certainly made things easier. This year I'm aiming for 10 (maybe twelve, depending on what grafted plants Dana might have available).
I'm sure that lesser number will still give us enough tomatoes for eating and canning and will certainly be quite a bit easier on my aging body. The only thing that will suffer should be my ability to share seeds, but I've distributed enough over the years that others should be able to carry on.
I hope you get down to your desired goal and that you have a great growing season this year and years to come.
Enjoy!
Camo

efisakov · April 1, 2013

Thank you, Camo,
I have read many of your postings, they are very helpful to many growers including me. I follow the names of tomatoes that you consider to be worthy of growing again. Keep on sharing. Many of us looking into grafting. I have only grafted trees. It is very limited experience for me. My grandma did many things I have only had a chance to look at and never attempted. She even used to have few bee hives.
Good luck with all your plans.

camochef · April 2, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by efisakov

Thank you, Camo,
I have read many of your postings, they are very helpful to many growers including me. I follow the names of tomatoes that you consider to be worthy of growing again. Keep on sharing. Many of us looking into grafting. I have only grafted trees. It is very limited experience for me. My grandma did many things I have only had a chance to look at and never attempted. She even used to have few bee hives.
Good luck with all your plans.

Ella,
Your too kind.
Like I've said in the past, what works here, may not work for others elsewhere. One of the exceptions to that rule has been Cowlick's Brandywine...it seems to do well everywhere for the most part. From South Africa to the Philippines, Germany to Canada to the deep south, they have produced for thousands.
They are still among my favorites as are Brandywine-Glicks and Brandywine-Sudduths. Although last year I was most impressed by Dana's German Johnson - Benton strain which was grafted to maxifort rootstock. The year before, (2011), it was Purple Dog Creek that was simply outstanding.
It changes year to year depending on weather conditions along with other variables. Other favorites include the Brandywine crosses like Liz Birt (which has been the first slicer to ripen for a couple years now) and Bear Creek which joins Dana's Dusky Rose as my favorite black tomato. Amazon Chocolate is in that category also.
Barlow Jap and Earl's Faux are two other varieties that are very similar to my favorite Brandywines and DDRXBW-C is a cross between Dana's Dusky Rose and Brandywine-Cowlicks that I've been growing for a few years now.
There have been hundreds, if not thousands over the years that are right up there with the best of my favorites, but have to be eliminated as I reduce the number of plants each year. Last year I brought back Pink Sweet from a few years back and was glad I did. It Produced some huge tasty tomatoes.
While I've never grafted any tomatoes myself, I have done a lot of tree grafts in the past, until I discovered how much easier it was to bud fruit trees. I had pears and apples with 5-7 different varieties on each tree. Did this for some friends and neighbors and they loved them.
Don't be afraid to try new and different projects, it's the best way to learn, and can often be quite successful.
Above all...Enjoy!
Camo

efisakov · April 2, 2013

Thank you, Camo.
I have purchased seeds from Maria (blueribbontomatoes) of COWLICK BRANDYWINE, Purple Dog Creek, and BARLOW JAP. I got seeds of Dana's Dusky Rose from Heritage. I am trying them this year. Looking forward tasting them.
I loved the taste of Amazon Chocolate, CP and Carbon last year.
Good luck to you and thank you.
P.S. do not forget to share cooking and baking recipes.

Elliot · April 2, 2013

Lately I plant about 15 tomato plants in large pots

March 31, 2013	#33
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Elliot, I am befuddled as to what is going on with our weather. Has this been the grayest winter ever or what? Dark and cool, not a ton of snow, not warm though, dreary. And where is Spring? I'm hoping it hits this week already I need sunshine. I noticed your comment about the weeds, and we got a new one last year I've never seen before. little rosettes that grow low to the ground , with white flower spikes and when flowering it turns a purplish cast to the green leaves. Very odd, and prolific!! I spent weeks pulling those suckers out of everything. And they are back again as I was weeding them again yesterday. ugh. I'm just going to keep planting away and hope my plants do well, but I'll be more vigilant against the worms this year and spray earlier as they ate a lot of tomatoes. Humidity is normal for NJ so I do the best I can to keep the plants open and airy to reduce chances of fungal infestations and no overhead watering really helps. __________________ Antoniette

March 31, 2013	#34
nnjjohn Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: northern new jersey Posts: 683	I seen the news this am . the cherry blossoms in washing dc should have been peak by now.. still look like winter trees. Very cold March.. it snowed more more this March than it snowed all the previous winter months combined, here in nnj __________________ john

April 1, 2013	#36
edweather Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southeast GA, USDA 9a, HZ9, Sunset Z28 Posts: 396	Snowing again now, with storm warnings for tonight and tomorrow. __________________ You'll be surprised what you'll never have to do, if you put it off long enough.

April 1, 2013	#40
efisakov Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: NJ, zone 7 Posts: 3,162	Camo, happy to see you posting again. I am growing 39 varieties this year, wishing to downsize to 6 or 8 by next year. Your recommendations are highly appreciated. Always open to your suggestions. thanks __________________ Ella God comes along and says, "I think I'm going to create THE tomato!”

April 1, 2013	#42
efisakov Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: NJ, zone 7 Posts: 3,162	Thank you, Camo, I have read many of your postings, they are very helpful to many growers including me. I follow the names of tomatoes that you consider to be worthy of growing again. Keep on sharing. Many of us looking into grafting. I have only grafted trees. It is very limited experience for me. My grandma did many things I have only had a chance to look at and never attempted. She even used to have few bee hives. Good luck with all your plans. __________________ Ella God comes along and says, "I think I'm going to create THE tomato!”

March 31, 2013	#31
camochef Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Posts: 707	As someone that has grown thousands of different varieties of tomatoes over the years, I have to point out that no two varieties will perform the same for different people in different locales. Why even in the same garden in the same year you can find differences in the same variety in different areas. What was outstanding one year, may be unimpressive the next. Still we all have our favorites that we grow year after year. Most years they do very well, but not every year. Last year I grew my favorites that have performed extremely well, year after year, no matter the weather conditions, dry, wet, hot or cool. Most did very well... but the most impressive was my German Johnson-Benton strain which was grafted to Maxifort rootstock. It was the very last plant put out in my gardens and just a runt compared to all the other varieties that towered above it. It not only caught up, but surpassed the others and out produced them all. Including the same variety grown from seed that was directly across the pathway from it. It was a great producer of very large and tasty tomatoes and was without a doubt the best tomato grown last year. The same variety from seed was second best. Purple Dog Creek, which was number one in 2011 was third in taste and size, but not quite as productive. My usual Brandywines followed, (Cowlick's, Glick's, Sudduth's) along with Barlow Jap, Liz Birt, (which was the first to ripen last year), Earl Faux, Dana's Dusky Rose, Bear Creek, and Pink Sweet. Others like Tarasenko6, Daniels, Terhune, Amazon Chocolate, and my own DDRXBW-C did extremely well also. The only losers last year were Delicous and Kumato both of which were pulled early. Most years it's been the Brandywines that really out-produced and tasted best, but it changes year to year. I also think last year was one of the worst in this area for diseases, Septoria, and Early Blight were worse than I've seen other years. I can't say for sure, but I think this has to do with the invasion of stinkbugs we've seen the pass few years. They certainly ruin a lot of tomatoes with their appetites. I'd suggest trying different varieties to see what does best for you over the years and keep a journal each year of planting info, weather, watering fertilizing...just about everything you can think of, then use your best judgement to determine what varieties are to be YOUR favorites. Enjoy Camo

March 31, 2013	#32
Elliot Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Hicksville, New York Posts: 503	Thanks Camo

April 1, 2013	#38
JamesL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 1,992	Yes, looks like spring is finally arriving! Elliot, How many plants do you typically grow? I am all of 10 to 15 minutes west of you and I will definitely have extras. Might even have some grafted plants for you, presuming some survive my butchery. Will have Camo to thank for that, as he is the one that got me interested in grafting last summer.

April 2, 2013	#44
efisakov Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: NJ, zone 7 Posts: 3,162	Thank you, Camo. I have purchased seeds from Maria (blueribbontomatoes) of COWLICK BRANDYWINE, Purple Dog Creek, and BARLOW JAP. I got seeds of Dana's Dusky Rose from Heritage. I am trying them this year. Looking forward tasting them. I loved the taste of Amazon Chocolate, CP and Carbon last year. Good luck to you and thank you. P.S. do not forget to share cooking and baking recipes. __________________ Ella God comes along and says, "I think I'm going to create THE tomato!”