2012 Maters

[kath]

Originally Posted by dustdevil

Hi Kath.

I am enjoying this thread immensely! You have so much work to do with your zillions of plants and you still find time to post all these lovely pictures...amazing.

I will be reviewing this in the winter...good for beating down the cabin-fever blues. Of course, I'll be wearing my bib

Thanks for taking the time to share with us.

Dust

Hi, Dust!

So happy you're liking the thread. Don't have as much to do now because I pulled 2/3s of them out already and I'm not spraying or pruning anymore. I know how much I like looking at tomato pictures, too, so it's one way to give back.

kath

[kath]

Originally Posted by fortyonenorth

I'm not a plant pathologist, but I assume it to be fusarium. I've had verticillium in the past and this is different - preceded by the yellowing foliage.

That's too bad. I only had a tomato plant wilt once- it was purchased at a local nursery. It scared me so much that I just yanked it out and put it in a sealed bag in the trash without analyzing what it was.

[kath]

This is a regrow from last year but seems to have produced fruits with a more pointed shape than last year. Last year's fruits were more beefsteaky, ruffled and really shiny and beautiful. These fruits were larger (from 14-30 oz.) and more consistent in size. I still liked the taste a lot but some had a bit of puffiness and empty locule thing happening. There was a thread earlier this season that was discussing the possibility that non-heart types were showing heart shapes due to weather and I almost posted about this one. I'd really like to know what this one really should look like- there was only one photo at Tatiana's Tomatobase.

[kath]

The taste of this tomato might be my favorite- after Sungold, of course. I grew them last year and they were at the top of the heap and this year everything else has been compared to them. They're meaty and solid, yet juicy enough that I can eat them whole- plain. I've dried them and used them in sauce along with everything else, but never alone. They have sweetness but amazing flavor. The sizes have ranged from 7 oz. to 2 lbs., 6.6 oz. and it's crazy productive. They come in lots of different shapes and don't look to me like a typical paste tomato.

[kath]

This one was really late but the plant was really slow taking off and I wasn't sure it was going to ripen any fruit. These fruits were really big but there weren't many of them and they weren't a taste favorite.

[kath]

Well, I never got to taste this one or even to see a fruit. This was an extremely weak and spindly seedling and it hadn't reached 3' when it's neighbors were towering over it. This was its only blossom- freakish! I watched it for a couple of weeks and didn't think a tomato was going to form so I lost patience and just figured I could try again next year. DH held up a quarter so you could see how huge this thing was. I wanted to post a photo at the time but wasn't able to get anything to load- so better late than never.

[kath]

This was nearly the latest variety I grew. It produced 10-14 oz. fruits that were thick walled and nearly hollow. Environmental? I think so because other fruits have been showing this tendency of late and they were perfectly 'normal' earlier in the season.

[greyghost]

Kath, I wrote 2 replies about Zeke Dishman and I aborted them both.
If I don't write, though, I know I'll feel guilty about it. I grew it this year.
Had absolutely huge (looked like small red pumpkins) dark red toms-very light weight for their size although they didn't have hollow locules. Some of them
must have been 6" wide. They had about the weakest taste of any tomato
I've ever grown. Pulled the plant today-it had 3 almost perfect red giants on it. I couldn't bring myself to give them away so gave them to Chance the
horse who usually loves tomatoes. He took one bite out of the most beautiful
and then walked out to the pasture. I hope others will weigh in on the taste.
Loved your blossom, though, I'd grow it again if I could have blossoms like those!!

[kath]

Originally Posted by greyghost

Kath, I wrote 2 replies about Zeke Dishman and I aborted them both.
If I don't write, though, I know I'll feel guilty about it. I grew it this year.
Had absolutely huge (looked like small red pumpkins) dark red toms-very light weight for their size although they didn't have hollow locules. Some of them
must have been 6" wide. They had about the weakest taste of any tomato
I've ever grown. Pulled the plant today-it had 3 almost perfect red giants on it. I couldn't bring myself to give them away so gave them to Chance the
horse who usually loves tomatoes. He took one bite out of the most beautiful
and then walked out to the pasture. I hope others will weigh in on the taste.
Loved your blossom, though, I'd grow it again if I could have blossoms like those!!

Thanks for deciding to share your honest opinion, Darlene. You know I'm going to try to reduce my numbers drastically next year. It's not a good sign that neither you nor your tomato-loving pal wanted to eat these.

kath

[sprtsguy76]

Kath- On the Orange Strawberry they should have that very distinct long pointy end, mine always do and I have been growing them for like 4 years running. If that is OS in your picture it was pick/sliced way to early. and yes they can be a more firm than dry in my experience if that makes sense. But if you let them get a deep glowing orange they soften up inside and are just wonderfully sweet n rich. Whats your seed source on the OS?? I know your cutting way down next year but I will gladly send you some of my OS seed if your interested.

Damon

[kath]

Damon, I discussed the sources of my OS seeds on page 5 in post 124. Thanks for offering to share yours. PM on the way-

Kath

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by kath

This is a regrow from last year but seems to have produced fruits with a more pointed shape than last year. Last year's fruits were more beefsteaky, ruffled and really shiny and beautiful. These fruits were larger (from 14-30 oz.) and more consistent in size. I still liked the taste a lot but some had a bit of puffiness and empty locule thing happening. There was a thread earlier this season that was discussing the possibility that non-heart types were showing heart shapes due to weather and I almost posted about this one. I'd really like to know what this one really should look like- there was only one photo at Tatiana's Tomatobase.

Kath, that variety originated with Patty B in Ohio who posts here. Quite a few years ago she sent me seeds for it and I put out a couple of plants here at home and farmed out several others to the local folks I was giving plants to at the time and checked all of them to see what I got. I got some large pinks, some gold/red bicolors and I can't remember what else.

I told Patty and she said she would try to clean it up, and that's the last I knew. So I don't know if there is one stable variety that represents what you have as West Virginia Sweet Meat..

What was your seed source?

http://t.tatianastomatobase.com/wiki...nia_Sweet_Meat

When looking at Tania's page I see that almost everyone got their seeds in 2007 and I know I was sent the seeds and grew it out before Dec of 2004 b'c that's when I fell and started having to use a walker. My point being I was not using a walker when I grew out this variety and was able to check plants up close and bring home fruits from my vet's place from her friend Dody's place and from the home of my local MD.

Problem was, in general, that as long as I was supplying plants of many different varieties it was a go situation but no one wanted to save seeds and so that was that as far as I was concerned.

Right now I'm living my tomato life vicariously through the efforts of a young local fellow who is really into it and who I supplied seeds for maybe about 40 varieties last Spring. He's currently selling at Farmer's Markets and is expanding his efforts greatly since he does a good business with mixed greens, eggplants, peppers, carrots and lots more and has a large hoop house so gets crops before others do.

But what also endears me to Rob and that when he's at a Chinese place he'll call me and ask if I want anything and also hauls into my home those sleeves of Diet Pepsi that I'm somewhat addicted to, I mean the cans with liquid in them, not the sleeves.

And yes he's registered here but is so busy he has little time to read/post here.

[kath]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Kath, that variety originated with Patty B in Ohio who posts here. Quite a few years ago she sent me seeds for it and I put out a couple of plants here at home and farmed out several others to the local folks I was giving plants to at the time and checked all of them to see what I got. I got some large pinks, some gold/red bicolors and I can't remember what else.

I told Patty and she said she would try to clean it up, and that's the last I knew. So I don't know if there is one stable variety that represents what you have as West Virginia Sweet Meat..

What was your seed source?

http://t.tatianastomatobase.com/wiki...nia_Sweet_Meat

When looking at Tania's page I see that almost everyone got their seeds in 2007 and I know I was sent the seeds and grew it out before Dec of 2004 b'c that's when I fell and started having to use a walker. My point being I was not using a walker when I grew out this variety and was able to check plants up close and bring home fruits from my vet's place from her friend Dody's place and from the home of my local MD.

Problem was, in general, that as long as I was supplying plants of many different varieties it was a go situation but no one wanted to save seeds and so that was that as far as I was concerned.

Right now I'm living my tomato life vicariously through the efforts of a young local fellow who is really into it and who I supplied seeds for maybe about 40 varieties last Spring. He's currently selling at Farmer's Markets and is expanding his efforts greatly since he does a good business with mixed greens, eggplants, peppers, carrots and lots more and has a large hoop house so gets crops before others do.

But what also endears me to Rob and that when he's at a Chinese place he'll call me and ask if I want anything and also hauls into my home those sleeves of Diet Pepsi that I'm somewhat addicted to, I mean the cans with liquid in them, not the sleeves.

And yes he's registered here but is so busy he has little time to read/post here.

.

Carolyn,

Thanks for taking the time to help me figure out the mysteries in this year's garden! I guess that might explain what I'm seeing- maybe still some instability. The packet my seeds were in indicates that the seeds came from "retiree" in 2007 (IL LO N 07), correct? (EDIT- INCORRECT! Different Neil, different location.)

kath

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by kath

.

Carolyn,

Thanks for taking the time to help me figure out the mysteries in this year's garden! I guess that might explain what I'm seeing- maybe still some instability. The packet my seeds were in indicates that the seeds came from "retiree" in 2007 (IL LO N 07), correct?

kath

Nope, not correct. Retiree is Neil G from Canada and IL LO N is Neil L from Illinois who posts here seldom but his user name is Neil as I recall.

I doubt I would have sent seeds to Neil G in Canada but when I first got the seeds from patty I could well have sent some to Neil L. I don't think I ever SSE listed it b'c by that time I would have seen the problems, but since Neil L and I have exchanged seeds, almost forever it seems, he may have gotten a large pink and felt it was stable. And he usually puts out two plants of each variety where as with the WV one I had many plants growing at several different locations as I said above, so could see the various kinds of fruits on different plants that indicated it wasn't stable.

[kath]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Nope, not correct. Retiree is Neil G from Canada and IL LO N is Neil L from Illinois who posts here seldom but his user name is Neil as I recall.

I doubt I would have sent seeds to Neil G in Canada but when I first got the seeds from patty I could well have sent some to Neil L. I don't think I ever SSE listed it b'c by that time I would have seen the problems, but since Neil L and I have exchanged seeds, almost forever it seems, he may have gotten a large pink and felt it was stable. And he usually puts out two plants of each variety where as with the WV one I had many plants growing at several different locations as I said above, so could see the various kinds of fruits on different plants that indicated it wasn't stable.

Duh- of course!That's what I get for posting so much after my bedtime.I really don't mean to keep adding to the confusion.