Almost a Wrap

Well, that just about does it for another year, the majority of the plants are done and vines now await garden trash pick up - never put pulled vines in your compost - a great disease source.

Anyhoo, I will go through my pics over the fall and winter and may post a few more, but for now, here's the final word for Black Prince x Cherokee Purple -these are 2nd generation fruit - saved seed will be F3. Much later than I had hoped, but a nice productive plant once it got going and fairly healthy too. My taste test notes indicate smooth pleasant flavour on the sweet side with not a lot of juice. Didn't use my ruler, but squares on table cover are 3/4 inch. Not a truly fair taste evaulation, as these were picked green and ripened indoors.

I did not save seed from the catfaced fruit from plant 2, as I did not want to continue this line - Tom Wagner advised the catfacing would continue into future generations. Notice this is a red/black fruit - so yellow skin dominates over the pink/black of Cherokee Purple.

Plant 4: red, another nice one - more on the acid side, juicy, nice depth, skins a bit tough

Plant3: red, my least favourtie - little flavour, skins somewhat tough - latest of all

Plant 2: pink, very nice, on the sweet side, juicy, smooth, worth growing again

Plant 1: gold, mellow, not as juicy as the others; on the sweet side - earliest of the four plants

TOMATO

A little water colour tribute the my 2008 tomato year - Enjoy!

thanks to Ehma, Creative Commoms License, for the music .........

The Haul is Starting

Mid-September and the tomatoes are finally starting to come in ...... Unfortunately a good portion of my larger tomatoes have suffered gray mold this year; a most devasting disease that I have only encountered one other year. I'll post a few pics shortly, just to show the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Anyhoo, the good for now - here are fruits from the four plants of the Sungold x Mom's F1 - a nice diverse selection - from left to right: Plant 2, Plant 1, Plant 3, Plant 4. So it appears we have gold, pink and red from this cross. Taste test results to follow. I'm hoping the large pink cherry will be up there in taste - if yes I think we have something worth growing out next year!! All are decent croppers for cherry types - but as you can see Plant 3 is somewhat later in ripening.

Yum .....

Finally, taste test time, and I must say I'm most impressed with the first of the season.

First (from bottom up), was have the Galina x Grub's Mystery Green F1 (canary yellow) - a lovely burst of flavour with much more depth than Galina; rich, deep nice "acid"/sweet balance. Only down side - skin slightly tough and a wee bit small.

Next up is Grushovka (pink) - smooth, light, tasty, on the sweet side - yum. Plant health and production make this one a keeper.

Then we have Persey (red) - have grown this one a few times - rich (but not the depth of others tasted today), sweet, nice "acid", "crispy".

Finally, in top pic, Shtambovy Kartofelnolistny 164 (pink), wow! - a real surprise standout, nice "acid" bite, rich, deep taste and colour - with sweet notes - PL dwarf and pink (clear skin) - a rather rare combination I believe.

Lots of green tomatoes starting to lighten up - now if they all taste as good as these four I will be more than pleased - even if they are late .......

Almost Ripe

Everything is so late this year - at least two weeks behind I would think. Here are a few of my "earlies", and what with the downpours the last few days and reduced temperatures, taste tests should prove interesting.

First (bottom pic) we have ripe fruit from the Sungold x Mom's F2 Plant 1 - while this cherry was juicy, with nice 'acid' it was rather one dimensional, and skins were tough. But just look at the colour change from previous pic! Thought this one would be light yellow, but ended up almost apricot.

Next (middle pic) is Shtambovy Kartofelnolistny 164, a PL dwarf, with early ripening - now if it just tastes good, it will be a winner.

And finally, another cross, Galina x Grub's Mystery Green F1, and in this instance it appears yellow is dominate over green. Both my plants should be similar as this is first generation. The fun starts in F2 ......
Taste test results any day now ..........

Check These Out!!

Tomatoes are really starting to size up now.

Here are two of the more unusual beauties, below we have a no name red, received from a co-worker whose neighbour was kind enough to share a seedling - from Italy. First time for me growing one like this - very ruffled shoulders, with pear shape.

Also, a most beautiful ripening sequence, above we have the heart-shaped Sylvan Guame, which I have read is one fabulous tomato. Plant purchased at VanDusen Plant sale; these took their time setting fruit, but are now taking off, although a bit late for here in the PNW.

Finally Some Colour!!

Well, today is August 17th, and I have picked one very small New Yorker which I will taste taste today, and will shortly enjoy these cherry-sized Sungold x Mom's F2 - only problem is I don't know what colour to expect, so will wait until they feel ripe. These are the first of my four F2s to ripen.

Papageno

Just because I love dahlias almost as much as tomatoes ...... a nice sturdy plant only about a metre in height - with lovely large blooms. This one is just starting to open!!

PPP x PP "D"

Craig H. kindly sent me seeds I requested from one of his grow outs from 1994 (94-64). Grew three plants "A", "B" and "C" a few years back - taste was there, and because the seed was reaching end of it likely germination - thought I'd sow the remaining seed this year. A cross of Pale Perfect Purple x Purple Price. Well I suppose more of a back-cross, as Pale Perfect Purple is a cross between Ozark Pink and Purple Price!!

Here is a pic of the one I call "D". Just look at the fruit set and flowers on this PL beauty!!

And now, back to tomatoes ......... update on my Galina x Grub's Mystery Green F1 - Plants 1 and 2

Change of Pace

For those of you who might tire of looking at baby tomatoes, here's a pic I created from one taken at the Blodell Conservatory last winter

Sungold x Mom's F2 Update

Here's an update on one of the crosses I'm growing out - Sungold x Mom's F2 - four plants all now have baby fruit. Pics from the top down: Plant 4, Plant 3, Plant 2, Plant 1. I expected a little more variation in the F2, however Plant 3 looks like it might be bigger than a cherry.

Rusty Rooster

Yes, this is my tomato blog, but just couldn't resist adding a pic of one of my dahlias - Rusty Rooster; a new introduction by Gordon Stach - purchased tuber at VanDusen Dahlia tuber sale in March .......

Trench Tomatoes

Update pic - 27 days later - these tomatoes are somewhat protected from the elements by a roof overhang - not sure if this makes a difference - but this location seems to produce my healthiest plants over the summer.

Tomato Machines

Another week into summer, and the tomatoes are really starting to take off re fruit load. A few of note, pics taken this a.m.

At the bottom we have Gold Dust, just look at all the tomatoes set (click on pic for a closeup)!!

And a few more of interest - Tom Wagner's Black Prince X Cherokee Purple F2 - look at the size of those tomatoes on plant 1 - lots of catfacing unfortunately. All seem to be setting at the top of the plant. The top pic shows plant 2 from the same cross - notice how much smoother these fruit are - should be interesting to see (and taste) final results.

Finally! Tomatoes Setting

In checking around the garden today I noticed a few more varieties have started to set - Grushovka pictured at bottom, is looking like it will be a good producer - most set to date

And here is the first set on Shtambovy Kartofelnolistny 164, and a picture of the plant - most unusal potato leaf dwarf - unfortunately this one is starting to show yellow bottom leaves

Wee Baby Toms!!

Well, here we are almost mid-July - and where are the tomatoes? I found these wee babies on my inspection tour this a.m. The weather here on the coast has been amazing the last week or so - I expect to see a lot more like this within the next couple of days. I have had to remove a few yellowed leaves, but on the whole, most plants are looking really good. I'm growing four plants from this cross - curious to see if I get anything larger than a cherry - as Mom's (a bi-colour) is a larger tomato - but the cherry gene does often dominate it appears.

Sungold x Mom's F2 Plant 1

Happy Canada Day!!

Thought I'd post a few pics in celebration - first a pic of my trench tomatoes - coming along nicely, and the heat hopefully will make for a really good tomato set - lots of blossoms happening now.

Thought I'd also show one of Tom Wagner's crosses I'm growing out - Black Prince x Cherokee Purple - first the two plants and then some pics of their blossoms. Notice the one on the right has a slight blue tinge compared to its companion.

We have Buds

A few close up pics, on top we have Galina x Grub's Mystery Green F1, followed by Grub's Mystery Green and then Galina. So what will the cross results be? Good question, but for now, Galina is a potato leaf (PL) yellow large cherry, and GMG is a green when ripe, half pound beefsteak with fabulous taste (also PL). To date F1 (PL) seems more related to GMG re bud shape - time will tell :-)

First Day of Summer

Well, summer is officially here - and not a bad day at that - I think we topped out at 21 degrees or so - that 69 F for US readers.

And, time to update the pics - the plants grow so fast this time of year. Tried something different re support, and time will tell how this works out - came across a big pile of thin bamboo, and thought I'd try making flexible teepees, here's the result.

A Little Back Tracking

Thought I should include a picture of the babies first day of hardening off. This was taken on May 11th. Notice the various leaf shapes - the potato leaf ones really stand out.

Boy, with this winter weather, hard to believe we are well into June. Thank goodness for the few days of good tomtoes growing weather a while back, it seems to have jump started my tomatoes - all of which were transplanted into five gallon pots in mid-May.

Some pictures - Sylvan Guame (bottom pic) - these two I purchased at our local Van Dusen plant sale - like I really needed more tomatoes, but just couldn't resist, as they are supposed to be some of the best tasting out there - blooms already started on these two. Note the droopy plant appearance - commom with heart shaped varieties.

Also there is Grub's Mystery Green (top pic), a fairly new introduction, discovered by Grub - a tomato grower in Australia - some variations still - but I'm hoping this is the early large green with outstanding taste. Potato leaf greens are still fairly rare.

Time to start providing some support for these babies. I am rather surprised how advanced my plants are, what with this winter weather, but I do know growing in pots does advance my season by a few weeks.

Shtambovy Kartofelnolistny 164

Here's a pic of my favourite seedling - got this one from USDA - potato leaf plant - should be bush type

Some to Watch

Could be some interesting results with this cross. Notice the different leaf forms in the F2 plants. These are the Sungold x Mom's seedlings.

Mom's is a regular leaf plant with a high yield of 6-12 oz, yellow fruit with red marbling, outstanding flavor, and Sungold is an early indet. regular leaf cherry; a favourite of many with its golden fruit clusters.

Spring 2008 Seedlings

Well, here we are back at the start - start of the growing season that is. And another round of tomatoes to trial this year.

Majority of seedlings started mid-March, transplanted into 8 oz. cups mid-April.

GREEN
Grub’s Mystery Green (PL)
Galina x Grub's Mystery Green F1 (PL)

GOLD/ETC
Gold Dust
Aunt Gertie’s Gold (PL)
Sungold X Mom’s F2
Galina (PL)

PINK
Hunt Family Favorite
Grushovka
Shtambovy Kartofelnolistny 164 (PL)

BLACK
Not Berkeley Tie Dye Heart
PP x PPP F2 94-64 (PL)
Black Prince X Cherokee Purple F2

RED
New Yorker
Persey
Levino
Kits Find