Semi OT...anyone want to help me pick out some heirloom tomato plants? I'm overwhelmed

M

mariadnoca

Moderator
I pretty much kept to standards like Early Girl I could get at the garden center, but this...well I don't know where to start. Any experience and/or some favorites maybe you bought? I never remember names at the FM.

Want to start a plant list?

Note: I'd like to can some this year and I'm not fond of cherry style tomatoes for some reason, oh and of course - it's just me to feed (not that I won't share...)

http://www.growbetterveggies.com/growbetterveggies/love-apple-farms-2008-tom.html

 
I'm not all that experienced either with alternative varieties, but Cherokee Purple

is a favorite of my gardeners So is Green Zebra. Sungold is a favorite cherry size--orange and very sweet. We had great luck with yellow pears last season--very prolific.

 
Also, taste in tomatoes is a personal thing. I dislike the newer sweeter varieties.

I love old-fashioned tart tomatoes. And the sweet ones aren't lower acid if you think it helps with digestion - they are just higher sugar content.

 
I agree with Joe on the Sungold cherry, and the Yellow Pear, Outstanding tomatoes

Some tomatoes I grow for the color and shape to put into salads, and yellow pear is one of them. Get a variety, read up on them first. Keep a garden diary so you know what does well for your soil and area. Early Girl is always a winner for an early tomato. Green Zebra is a looker in salad and I love the tang.
I like planting a plum type for roasting along with other tomatoes, to make tomato sauce to have in the freezer.

 
Cherokee Purple are great for fresh eating, not so much for canning

I loved them so naturally I thought they would be great canned. WRONG. At least for me. They turned out way way too sweet when canned and overall just didn't taste right. Nothing I did to them worked to make it where I could eat them after canning them.

 
I agree with these suggestions

The yellow plum grew great for me. The Bradywine were huge and very nice in salad. Cher. Purple and Gr Zebra good all around. If you get into Petaluma Baker Creek has a "Seed Bank" smack in the middle of downtown in a beautiful old bank building. They sent me a free pack of heirloom San Marzano recently to help promote GMO labeling.

 
I love the yellow tomatoes; large, medium and small, but not the yellow pear.

I found that it grows great, but it has a mealy texture. I have heard it is great for marmalade and such. I love planning my garden! I will have to try the Cherokee Purple.

 
Another vote for Brandywine and Sungold!

I roasted, pureed and strained my excess Brandywines, then froze in pint and quart quantities. To make soup, just thaw and heat, add seasonings and a little cream.

One nice thing about Sungolds is that they keep in the fridge for more than a week.

 
Good article. Tomatoes are hard to grow here since they stop setting fruit

when it gets hot and some years it gets hot so early.

 
I've been told never to keep garden tomatoes in the refrigerator

I keep them on my counter, out of the sun and they last a long time. Something about the sugar in the tomato.

 
Melissa...try planting them where they'll get late afternoon shade...

or filtered sun if you possibly can. It will help them cool off some at night. I also water at night when I can because it's hot and dry here as well.

 
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