Let's Talk About Heirloom Tomatoes

[digitS']

I've gotta get back in here!

Those Italian varieties @aftermidnight , Tatiana's information on them doesn't indicate that they are especially early, yet you had them on marine cool, Vancouver Island! ..? With Thessaloniki and Rainy's Maltese doing well in my garden, I'm on the lookout for other Mediterraneans. .. of an early nature.

Last year, @barefootgardener provided a good suggestion - Pantano Romanesco. What a concentration of flavor! Still, it just barely made it in with a couple of ripe tomatoes. I'm happy to have 1 plant in the garden this year just for that wonderful flavor but it can't be displacing any beefsteak that gives me a 3+ week season each year.

Steve

 

[aftermidnight]

digitS', here the saying is don't plant tomatoes out until the snow is off Mt. Benson, sometime after May 24th or June 1st. If we have a good summer, planted out from either starts from the garden center or from seed one has started oneself in March and, we have a good summer we'll be eating tomatoes in August, in an especially good year late July. I like to push the envelope, start my seed in February under lights in the basement, move to the greenhouse (minimal heat) in March. I keep potting up a size until in gal. pots. Here they stay until warm enough to go outside under reemay cloth. Then they're planted into 3-4? gallon white buckets, most of them are flowering with maybe one or two tomatoes forming. I have small tomatoes on about half the varieties I'm growing this year. I bought most of my heirloom tomato seed from The Sample Seed Shop (I am no way connected with them).
Educate me, how did you get @aftermidnight, just drag it over and plunk it in, I'm not very computer savy, you know the saying about teaching an old dog new tricks LOL.

Annette

 

[BeanieMan]

I'm growing some tomato varieties this year which include Rutgers, Malachite Box, Gail, Flathead Monster Orange, Not Purple Strawberry, Indian Stripe Burson Strain, Berkley Tie Dye Pink, Gold Medal, Cherry Brandywine, Earl's Faux, Mckinley, Barlow Jap and a few others.

 

[NwMtGardener]

FLATHEAD MONSTER ORANGE?! I've never heard of that and i live in Flathead Co., MT, in the Flathead valley near Flathead lake. Where the heck did you find that?!

 

[BeanieMan]

I think the name was actually changed to Orange Orangutan
They can be purchased from here(I'm not affiliated with them) https://www.mariannasheirloomseeds....-tomatoes/flathead-monster-orange-detail.html

 

[digitS']

Resist that name change, Heather! Recruit others to resist.

Seems like I remember that there is an heirloom tomato aficionado in your neighborhood - a lady tomato grower. You might do a little Google searching ...

@aftermidnight , if you look at your post you will see that you have "tagged" yourself just by typing out your handle with that @ sign. It is now a link and you get an alert .

Steve

 

[thistlebloom]

FLATHEAD MONSTER ORANGE?! I've never heard of that and i live in Flathead Co., MT, in the Flathead valley near Flathead lake. Where the heck did you find that?!

It could be a reference to a flathead engine, rather than a location. The Orangutan bit is a little strange though...

 

[NwMtGardener]

Oh yes, the tiny bit of goggling i did on that tomato told me that it is either: regular OR potato leaved, not quite sure, orange, pink OR yellow, not quite sure...and variously called Flathead Monster, Flathead Indian 53, OR Orange Orangutan. Very confusing, but i'm pretty sure it wasnt originated around here.

 

[Carol Dee]

@solucky I agree that the heirlooms may not have the looks but boy do they have the flavor. We grew Black Krim and 3 other heirlooms last summer. The Krims split awful and we lost a lot due to bad weather conditions. But they sure tasted good. We decided that the Mortgage Lifers where or favorites.

 

[Carol Dee]

@BeanieMan are those scarlet runner beans in you avatar?