Sungold - don't hit me!

lakelady · July 13, 2012

Okay, if we were in a classroom, I'd almost expect someone to throw something at me for saying this, BUT....

My Sungold plant is huge at about 8' now with tons of tomatoes. Looks very impressive. I've tried about a dozen so far, and I hate to say this, but I'm trying to figure out what all the hoopla is about. Yes, they're sweet, but I'm not sure, they seem like something is missing. And mine aren't really all that sweet either.

Am I missing something or are there other folks out there who aren't crazy about the taste of Sungold? Who knows, could be my soil too

Sun City Linda · July 13, 2012

Antoniette - It has been proven that 100% of all people everywhere LOVE the taste of Sungold. This unacceptable response will become part of your permanent record!

dustyrivergarden · July 13, 2012

lol make sure there really ripe but there not the sweetest of tomatoes to me they have a tomato mango flavor that I love. They wont be your sweetest. As far as getting all the flavor out of your tomatoes add lots of rock dust. Azomite is good or go to http://remineralize.org/

sprtsguy76 · July 13, 2012

Antoniette- My SG plant is on par with yours just at 8'. And I experienced the same as you early. But what I did was I started to hold back the water and the taste got so much better. Just as a general example I was watering once a week, but I cut back my watering to every 10 days and the taste of SG got much better. Maybe you could try it to see if it will help? It could also be that maybe SG is just not your type of tomato, because I think SG is sweet and fruity tasting but not tomatoey. JMO.

Damon

lakelady · July 13, 2012

Linda, lol ! I'm too old to worry about my permanent record anymore, I think I passed that worry after hitting 40! (besides, gotta have something to live and tell about when I'm in my old age. It will give me some good stories to share at the old folks home!)

Dusty, okay, maybe I didn't let them get ripe enough. They were orange, so I ate them. Besides, they're the only tomato excitement I've really had this year so far ! I'll let them sit a while longer. Kinda hard though because the plant sits on the corner of the house and every time I go around it, it's kinda hard not to just grab one and pop it into my mouth! Thanks for the link, I'll check it out!

lakelady · July 13, 2012

Damon, we haven't had any rain in forever here and the ground gets bone dry if I don't water. I'm afraid not to yikes. I'll try holding back and see what happens, thanks!

kygreg · July 14, 2012

Ditto what dustyrivergarden said; under ripe, they are not too good. When they get golden orange, pop one in your mouth and should get a tomato taste explosion.

sprtsguy76 · July 14, 2012

If your soil is running bone dry then maybe you could rule out overwatering and not try what I originally suggested.

Damon

Worth1 · July 14, 2012

They need to be this color.

Worth

feldon30 · July 14, 2012

There are absolutely some folks who don't find Sungold impressive at all. They find it too fruity, too sweet, with not enough tomato flavor. Don't feel bad.

ContainerTed · July 14, 2012

This year, I'm growing Sungold Volunteer F3's and they are no different from the Sungold F1's grown for comparison. Taste, texture, size, fruit color, and plant habit are identical so far. I've been tasting this year's crop for a couple of weeks now. If they hold this taste for a couple more years, then maybe I have stumbled into a real OP version. Maybe it'll turn sour or something next year, but until it goes the wrong way, I'm enjoying the chase.

Worth1 · July 14, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by ContainerTed

This year, I'm growing Sungold Volunteer F3's and they are no different from the Sungold F1's grown for comparison. Taste, texture, size, fruit color, and plant habit are identical so far. I've been tasting this year's crop for a couple of weeks now. If they hold this taste for a couple more years, then maybe I have stumbled into a real OP version. Maybe it'll turn sour or something next year, but until it goes the wrong way, I'm enjoying the chase.

Give it about 2 more generations and you will or should have a stable sun gold on your hands.

Worth

baileyj · July 14, 2012

I am was very late planting mine this year so I am only now harvesting One at a time...
I garden in Earthboxes so they are about 6 foot now and edging toward the top of my trelllis.
I am hopeful they live up to their reputation ...I enjoyed them last year, but that seems like so long ago....I can hardly remember their taste !

ScottinAtlanta · July 14, 2012

First year for me with Sungold Select, and I think they are delicious. Sweet but with a wonderful tang. I planted some for my mother and I don't think any ever made it to the house. She just could not keep them out of her mouth.

Mudman · July 14, 2012

Yep that is definitely the color! I never like them until a few weeks after they start getting ripe. The first ones for me are never sweet and have a bite that is not appealing, but after they grow a while I really enjoy the taste.

July 13, 2012	#1
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Sungold - don't hit me! Okay, if we were in a classroom, I'd almost expect someone to throw something at me for saying this, BUT.... My Sungold plant is huge at about 8' now with tons of tomatoes. Looks very impressive. I've tried about a dozen so far, and I hate to say this, but I'm trying to figure out what all the hoopla is about. Yes, they're sweet, but I'm not sure, they seem like something is missing. And mine aren't really all that sweet either. Am I missing something or are there other folks out there who aren't crazy about the taste of Sungold? Who knows, could be my soil too __________________ Antoniette

July 13, 2012	#3
dustyrivergarden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Holbrook, Az zone 5 Posts: 157	lol make sure there really ripe but there not the sweetest of tomatoes to me they have a tomato mango flavor that I love. They wont be your sweetest. As far as getting all the flavor out of your tomatoes add lots of rock dust. Azomite is good or go to http://remineralize.org/ __________________ “The yield of a crop is LIMITED by the deficiency of any one element even though all of the other necessary elements are present in adequate amounts”. J. Von Liebig's law of the minimum.

July 13, 2012	#5
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Linda, lol ! I'm too old to worry about my permanent record anymore, I think I passed that worry after hitting 40! (besides, gotta have something to live and tell about when I'm in my old age. It will give me some good stories to share at the old folks home!) Dusty, okay, maybe I didn't let them get ripe enough. They were orange, so I ate them. Besides, they're the only tomato excitement I've really had this year so far ! I'll let them sit a while longer. Kinda hard though because the plant sits on the corner of the house and every time I go around it, it's kinda hard not to just grab one and pop it into my mouth! Thanks for the link, I'll check it out! __________________ Antoniette

July 13, 2012	#6
lakelady Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: northern NJ zone 6b Posts: 1,862	Damon, we haven't had any rain in forever here and the ground gets bone dry if I don't water. I'm afraid not to yikes. I'll try holding back and see what happens, thanks! __________________ Antoniette

July 14, 2012	#10
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	There are absolutely some folks who don't find Sungold impressive at all. They find it too fruity, too sweet, with not enough tomato flavor. Don't feel bad. __________________ [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]

July 13, 2012	#2
Sun City Linda Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SoCal Inland Posts: 2,705	Antoniette - It has been proven that 100% of all people everywhere LOVE the taste of Sungold. This unacceptable response will become part of your permanent record!

July 13, 2012	#4
sprtsguy76 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2007 Location: Santa Clara CA Posts: 1,125	Antoniette- My SG plant is on par with yours just at 8'. And I experienced the same as you early. But what I did was I started to hold back the water and the taste got so much better. Just as a general example I was watering once a week, but I cut back my watering to every 10 days and the taste of SG got much better. Maybe you could try it to see if it will help? It could also be that maybe SG is just not your type of tomato, because I think SG is sweet and fruity tasting but not tomatoey. JMO. Damon

July 14, 2012	#7
kygreg Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: kentucky Posts: 1,019	Ditto what dustyrivergarden said; under ripe, they are not too good. When they get golden orange, pop one in your mouth and should get a tomato taste explosion.

July 14, 2012	#9
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	They need to be this color. Worth

July 14, 2012	#11
ContainerTed Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: 6a - NE Tennessee Posts: 4,538	This year, I'm growing Sungold Volunteer F3's and they are no different from the Sungold F1's grown for comparison. Taste, texture, size, fruit color, and plant habit are identical so far. I've been tasting this year's crop for a couple of weeks now. If they hold this taste for a couple more years, then maybe I have stumbled into a real OP version. Maybe it'll turn sour or something next year, but until it goes the wrong way, I'm enjoying the chase. __________________ Ted ________________________ Owner & Sole Operator Of The Muddy Bucket Farm and Tomato Ranch Last edited by ContainerTed; July 14, 2012 at 11:30 AM.

July 14, 2012	#13
baileyj Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Annapolis Maryland Zone 7 Posts: 120	I am was very late planting mine this year so I am only now harvesting One at a time... I garden in Earthboxes so they are about 6 foot now and edging toward the top of my trelllis. I am hopeful they live up to their reputation ...I enjoyed them last year, but that seems like so long ago....I can hardly remember their taste !

July 14, 2012	#14
ScottinAtlanta Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 2,593	First year for me with Sungold Select, and I think they are delicious. Sweet but with a wonderful tang. I planted some for my mother and I don't think any ever made it to the house. She just could not keep them out of her mouth.

July 14, 2012	#15
Mudman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: NW Wisconsin Posts: 910	Yep that is definitely the color! I never like them until a few weeks after they start getting ripe. The first ones for me are never sweet and have a bite that is not appealing, but after they grow a while I really enjoy the taste. __________________ Mike