North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Michael Glassford" <glassfordm@hotmail.com>]

If you want to try a tomato that tastes like a fruit, try Isis Candy (I got
mine from Territorial Seed Company, but others have them). It's a large,
beautiful bi-colored cherry (mottled red & orange with a "star" on the
bottom). The Territorial catalog correctly describes it as "a complex blend
of richness, sweetness, and fruitiness". I've tried other so-called "fruity"
tomatoes before that weren't, but this one really is (or at least was for me
this year, the first year I grew it).

If you prefer a cherry that tastes like a tomato, not a fruit, try
Riesentraube. It's a small to medium sized red cherry with a point on the
bottom. I describe its taste as "like a beefsteak--only more so". The
aftertaste is great too: a good tomato flavor that lasts a long time. They
also seem to store pretty well. I had a container of late-picked ones
sitting on my desk for about three weeks before they started softening up;
if you took care, I bet they would store much longer.

These two, along with Sungold, are my favorite cherries (my "specialty"). My
best larger tomato so far has been one that was supposed to be Omar's
Lebanese, but I have my doubts if it really is. I'm going to grow it
side-by-side with an Omar's Lebanese from another source next year to see if
it really is.


Mike

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ginda Kaplan Fisher" <list@ginda.us>
To: "NAFEX" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Thursday, December 19, 2002 11:47 PM
Subject: [NAFEX] Off Topic - But tomatoes are fruit


> Well, it's that time of year, and I'm debating which tomato seeds to
> buy.  I know this isn't what this list is for, but I know most of you
> grow tomatoes, and I beg your forgiveness.  Please reply off-list.
>
> I really like a meaty tomato, but I'm the only tomato-eater in the
> family, and the giant beefsteak tomatoes are just too big.  I grew
> Jetstar for a couple of years, and I liked the tomatoes, but despite
> what the catalogs say, it isn't really indeterminate - all the fruit
> ripens at about the same time.  I seem to get better yields with
> hybrids that claim resistance to everything than with heirlooms.  Some
> combination of soil viruses and less than a full day of sun (6-8 hours)
> is probably the culprit.  I have inoculated these with various
> beneficial fungi, although I suspect my soil already has ample fungal
> colonies.  Most of my seed has come from Fedco, but I'm willing to buy
> a packet fo tomato seeds from almost anyone.  Here's my experience to
> date:
>
> Big Beef - years ago, in a giant pot in very full sun.  These were
> great if I remembered to water them every single day.  The damn things
> needed more than a gallon of water on every sunny day or they wilted.
> I liked the tomatoes, but they are bigger than what I hope to grow this
> year.
>
> Jetstar - tasty and a good size, but the season is short and there's
> too much at its peak.  (Too much is not a serious problem, as I can
> give them away.)
>
> Brandywine - One large delicious fruit and one tiny one.
>
> Early Girl - lots of dry flavorless (but pretty) fruit.
>
> Rutgers - Perfect fruit, but only two of them.
>
> Cosmonaut Volkov - Not a single ripe fruit.
>
> I usually grow one cherry tomato plant, too, and I've had good luck
> with both Sweet 100s and Peacevine Cherry.  I have a lot of Peavevine
> Cherry seeds left from last year, so I'll probably grow that again.
> I'm not looking for cooking tomatoes, as I find some of the canned ones
> are very good, and my sunny space is very limited.
>
> Thanks,
> Ginda Fisher
> eastern MA, zone 6
>
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