Favorite brandywine?

[camochef]

Originally Posted by beefyboy

I am surprised to hear the poor results for Dr. Wyches. I live in South Florida and on the Gulf side near Ft. Myers, in Pt. Charlotte. Every write up I read in catalogs states that Dr. Wyches is supposed to taste fruity and somewhat tropical and that is why I purchased seed, so I am baffled when I read people are expecting a bite out of it!. Frankly, here it always tastes fruity and mildly sweet which I like very much. I will be posting my own top twenty in the spring for it might help Florida residents who have not grown many varieties. Now thanks to Camo I have a desire to try Dana's Dusky Rose but cannot find seed to start it. As far as brandywines in my hot humid area, the brandywine OTV does very well and I grow it in my first planting in Oct. here along with my Oxhearts. Second planting it still does ok but not as well. Wapsipinicon peach does well any time I plant it along with J.D special. I like to thank Dr. Carolyn for giving us that special varriety for it has such a special flavor and never has let me down. I have now grown over 200 varieties in Florida since 1991 and am always searching for the perfect tomato like everyone else. In Florida it is hard to get the great flavors out compared to up North when I lived in Illinois. Here in Florida we get sick of Jersey people taling about that Jersey tomato and how unbeatable they are!!! lol

Beefyboy,
Last year was the only year that Dr. Wyches did poorly for me, it was so cold and so wet, that none of my early plants did well. We had nightime temps droping down into the low 40 and high 30's throughout the summer, except for August when we did dry out some and the sun came out, but by then it was to late for many.
And I never found Dr. Wyches Yellow to not have a bite to it (except last year), Your description almost sounds like Lillians Yellow Heirloom
Dana's Dusky Rose will be a little difficult to find for a while, I only had one plant and I sent seeds to about 50 other gardeners so far this year. Dana's plants succombed to late blight and were destroyed. I don't know if anybody else had any. They came from seed that was supposed to be Goldie, and somehow produced this medium sized black tomato with almost brownish shoulders although some of mine had more common greenish shoulders. You can find it's history in heirloom gardening forum over at Idig in my 2009 review. ( I'm a one finger typer so the less I have to type the better for us all).
A couple years back Cowlicks Brandywine was almost imposible to find, now they available on at least 5 continents and at least 10 countries and just about every state in the US, except Ha. and Al. I'm sure DDR will spread just as readily as I hope Lillian Maciejewski's Poland Pink, Barlow Jap, and Shannon's South African Mystery Black do. Tarasenko6 and Preacher Joe should be on that list too. Amazon Chocolate and Brandywine Glicks used to be a hard find also but have begun spreading across the country this past year or so.
I don't know how difficult Gary O'Sena and Dora are to find or Wessel's Purple Pride for that matter, They are just a few of the many trades I've received from other growers wanting to try Cowlicks in the past.
It's taken me years to accumulate the many varieties of seed that I've grown the past few years, and with patience I'm sure you'll come up with many of the more difficult ones to find as more and more people grow them. Good Luck in your search! May your seasons improve every year!
Camo

[beefyboy]

Thanks Camo! lol
I must tell you that my lead girl at my restaurant likes your articles and so do I, You are very interesting!! I am starting a few plants for her now and I am sure she is going to join this site and write you. And so you know, she is a Jersey girl.

[beefyboy]

Actually the lol was for the Garden state response, I did not know you sent me this reply until after I sent you my short reply above. Thanks for the insight, I appreciate the advice . I am a two finger typer too!! so understand the time it takes!!

[beefyboy]

actually the Dr. Wyches write up came from the bakerscreek site and Tomato Growers in Ft. myers Fl. Totally Tomatoes has the same one as well. Now I am curious to see what other companies have written.

[camochef]

Originally Posted by beefyboy

Thanks Camo! lol
I must tell you that my lead girl at my restaurant likes your articles and so do I, You are very interesting!! I am starting a few plants for her now and I am sure she is going to join this site and write you. And so you know, she is a Jersey girl.

Beefyboy,
I've been called many things over the years, not sure if interesting was one of them. Would love to hear from a Jersey Girl, even though I left the state way back when...'78, I spent the first 30 years of my life there, it sort of makes an impression on one!

Look up the original review that I did of Dr. Wyches Yellow from 2008 over on that other forum, and you'll see the story I related about the good Doctor, if nothing else there's some chuckles to be had out of some of the original reviews. It's a Jersey thing!

Good Luck with all that you grow, and have a great Christmas Season and a very happy and safe New Year.
Camo

[camochef]

Originally Posted by beefyboy

actually the Dr. Wyches write up came from the bakerscreek site and Tomato Growers in Ft. myers Fl. Totally Tomatoes has the same one as well. Now I am curious to see what other companies have written.

Seems that too many seed companies simply copy descriptions from one anothers catalogs, often the photo's too. I doubt that many have ever tasted the tomatoes that they sell seed for, after all they all claim how great different varieties are and we both know that just isn't true. There are quite a few spitters out there, and I do my best to let people know which ones they are. Although, the year can play quite a difference on taste, there are those that have been spitters year after year here.
Yellow pear is one that comes to mind right away, cute little tomato, quite productive too, but taste...Bland and tasteless. I would have to consult my journals but there are many that I've eliminated over the years. Mr. Brown was probably one of the worst ever, bordering on inedible!
Have a good one and don't believe all that you read in the seed catalogs, after all how many would they sell if they were really honest!
Camo

[b54red]

Originally Posted by mensplace

I remember well the time quite a few years ago when I first actually saw a Brandywine at a small farmers market. My great anticipation upon picking it up was that I was in for a real treat, as this was, from all I had read, supposed to be THE tomato that would take us back to years of long ago back in the early to mid-sixties.

Even back then, tomato fanciers were a unique breed. I was first introduced to them when I worked at one of Atlanta's most successful family nurseries. I digress. In those days times were a changin and the tomato fanciers were split between those older folks who worshiped names like Rutgers and the somewhat younger generation of those who loved the new kid on the block, the Big Boy. I'm almost sixty now, but I relished many a great tomato sandwich with rich acid bite that was the perfect contrast to Hellmans mayo. Times were simpler then.

I studied that Brandywine, bought it, took it home, cut into it and took my first bite. Like much that has changed since the mid sixties, this new tomato being the example of the most delicious tomato in America left me wondering...."This is it?" YUCK! But, some years later I found some seed for a Brandywine and planted it. After some struggle, I got these "heirlooms" going and actually got a few fruit, but mostly blights that withered the vines to all manner of yellows and dead browns. For many years thereafter, I swore off heirlooms as a class with my notions, reaffirmed by occasional sample of odd yellow and striped fruits and there it was again..that same mealy, sweet, bland, oddly shaped fruit that ever entrenched my prejudices.

This year, my efforts supported by several of you wonderful folks, I will try again. Perhaps by now "old time flavor" has actually become something other than a marketing term...rather like "organic"!

I have had similar poor results with the Brandywine varieties over the years. Starting seed, setting out, tying up, watering, and spraying, only to have them die from one disease or another before producing any edible fruit. This changed when I was able to get two fruit from Brandy Boy two years ago followed by around a dozen from two good plants last year. The flavor was phenomenal. The seed is an exclusive hybrid of Burpees and if they are not sold out, I highly recommend you try them. You should probably plant several in different places in your garden and at different times. Try to get a couple in really early and then a couple more a few weeks later. That way you will usually get one or two that do okay and if you get more than that, consider yourself lucky. I have never been able to keep one alive past mid July but that is usually long enough to give me some great tomatoes. Brandy Boy is so good it will have a place in my garden every year from now on. I am going to try Cowlick's this year with high hopes. I would love to find a OP version that can survive our heat and humidity with it's accompanying diseases and pests.

[Blueaussi]

I found that if we had a really hot summer around here, with lots of days in the 100's and nights that stayed pretty warm too, Brandywine did nothing for me. If we had a coolish summer, with mostly days in the mid to low 90's and nights in the low 70's, Brandywine would give me some beautiful luscious tomatoes. With so many other varieties that produce wonderful tomatoes even in hot summers, I gave up the struggle with Brandywine.

[ruet]

Thanks Blueaussi!

Given the reading I've been doing lately, I think Big Beef F1 might be a better candidate for at least a couple of my spare spaces.

Sometimes I consider filling all available space with Black Cherry / Sungold and just drowning in cherries. I'd do it, too, except cherries invariably go flying out of sandwiches at the first bite.

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by ruet

...Sometimes I consider filling all available space with Black Cherry / Sungold and just drowning in cherries. I'd do it, too, except cherries invariably go flying out of sandwiches at the first bite.

Ha! I've made sandwiches with cherries. The secret is to cut them in half, place them cut side down, and then smoosh them into the other ingredients. Usually my sandwiches are open face (without a piece of bread on top), with avocado and garlic and sometimes some red onion under the tomatoes, so my hands get all tomatoey, too.

But cherry tomatoes make good tomato sauce (raw or cooked) and salsa/salad, too. When I have a lot of cherries sitting around, especially in different colors, those are some of my favorite things to do with them.

[mensplace]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Ha! I've made sandwiches with cherries. The secret is to cut them in half, place them cut side down, and then smoosh them into the other ingredients. Usually my sandwiches are open face (without a piece of bread on top), with avocado and garlic and sometimes some red onion under the tomatoes, so my hands get all tomatoey, too.

But cherry tomatoes make good tomato sauce (raw or cooked) and salsa/salad, too. When I have a lot of cherries sitting around, especially in different colors, those are some of my favorite things to do with them.

In following the thread and reading the verbiage of this, everything in me screamed NO!!!!!!!!!!! I'm just too old for change

[yotetrapper]

When using cherries for sauce, how do you peel them?

[mensplace]

Originally Posted by yotetrapper

When using cherries for sauce, how do you peel them?

A few seconds in boiling water and then a quick icy bath. The skins should slip right off

[habitat_gardener]

Originally Posted by yotetrapper

When using cherries for sauce, how do you peel them?

I don't. The secret is to use (that is, grow) thin-skinned tomatoes. And usually I don't cook them, come to think of it. I quarter them, add basil (or thyme, oregano, parsley -- whatever herbs I've picked that day) and garlic, and add to hot pasta.

The only time I've removed the skins was when making tomato juice, and it was tedious to get all the cherry tomato skins out the one time I had some cherries in the mix. Probably won't do that again.

I've also tried baking/dehydrating them in the oven at 200 or 250F, but I never got them to dry completely because I didn't want to keep the oven on long enough. Someday I'll make a solar dehydrator.

Oh, what was the topic? Favorite brandywine? I thought my garden didn't get warm enough to grow Brandywines, but I'm looking forward to trying Cowlick's. I also collected seeds from the Yellow B Platfoot strain from a local tomato tasting. It was a yellow tomato (without a hint of orange) and had a great flavor. My Dr. Wyche's this year was also yellow.

[yotetrapper]

LOL, ok, cos the thought of peeling all those cherries even with the skins slipped seemed like wayyy more work than this canner wanted. Now juice.....hmmmm....I never peel tomatoes when I make juice, no matter their size. Cut them, core them, quarter them, toss em in a pot, simmer till soft then dump em into my old fashioned food mill thing (strainer cone thing in a metal frame with a wood mashing thingamajigger that sorta looks like a rolling pin, lol) then mash the juice out, skins and most seeds stay in the strainer. Cherries would work for that I bet. I never grow many cherries cos only my husband eats them and so many go to waste. HMMMM.