Whats more important to you when selecting a tomato variety

[seedcorn]

For me:

Dependability-if it can't be counted on regardless of weather, what good is it?
Flavor-if doesn't taste good, why grow it?
Yield-when I want to cook or can, don't want to be short
Color-prefer red
Size-large enough for sandwich but so large that one will feed a small town
Paste-meaty and not lot of juice
Juice-lot of juice

So, I grow 2 varieties, Better Boy and San Marzano.

 

[Dave2000]

I'd go with the larger 10-12oz. That way you have more that are sandwich sized slices, and inevitably not all of them will get to be that large. Pick a smaller fruiting plant and the last batch of the season may be mostly golf ball sized.

Larger fruit also means less labor if you want to blanch and peel them.

 

[journey11]

For canning, I want one that has a deep red with a nice acidity and flavor and that yields mostly over a short period of time, and in my experience that means a smaller sized tomato. For quicker processing, it needs to be round or oval, very symetrical, with a shallow core (hate it when the tough green part extends too deep--a real pain to carve around, slows me down big-time.) I found a new variety this year that I am very pleased with for canning, called 'Abe Lincoln'. And it is O/P. It meets all of the requirements above, but still makes a nice size, about baseball sized or a little bigger and perfectly round.

Larger tomatoes usually end up only coming on one or two at a time, which means I have to put in more plants to get enough if I were going to can them. This is the case with 'Delicious', which has the deep red and the flavor I like in canner, but really is better as a slicer. If I have extra I will can them. And the larger varieties tend to have more cracks, deep lobes, cat-facing and deep, tough cores which help hold their weight on the plant. So I reserve those for the tomato "connoisseur" in me, enjoying them sliced fresh on the side or on a tomato sandwich. They tend to have more variety in their colors and flavor and often a lighter or sweeter flavor that is not really potent or acidic enough for canning stuff like spaghetti sauce, although you can still use them for plain ol' canned tomatoes for stews and whatnot, and they really need the lemon juice to make them acidic enough to safely waterbath.

One exception to the canning tomatoes would be the 'Costoluto Genovese' which are characteristically fluted, but since they are a paste tomato, I cook them with the skins on, then run them through the strainer. All the other canning tomatoes (not paste tomatoes specifically), I blanch and peel first, which is why I like them round and uniform.

 

[bj taylor]

i'm no expert like many of you. I would have said I prefer the big tomatoes that cover a whole slice of bread. that great big beauty is such a sight. I don't eat bread anymore, so that's out.
celebrity has been my tomato for the last two years. they are incredibly prolific & big, but that's not really what I want anymore. i'm going to search more for op types.
I do love the gel & seeds - that's my favorite part of a tomato. I could just cut one open, slurp the good stuff out & leave the rest. my least favorite is the skin. big tomatoes are much easier to cut the skin off before cutting up.

the sweet 100s are too prolific. they take over the world. dh likes them, but i'm not a fan of little tomatoes - too much skin

 

[MontyJ]

Ridge- I usually grow Big Boy and Better Boy for canning. They do exactly what I want. But I want to save seeds that will grow true.

Hoodat- That's exactly what we do. We like to can enough for at least a year, two years if possible.

Journey- I like the sound of the Abe Lincoln. It is on my list to try next year, so it's good to know it performed well for you. I agree with you about Delicious. I usually only grow a couple of them for slicers. The funny thing about Delicious is that you always get good sized tomatoes, but sometimes you get a monster. It doesn't always happen, but when it does, whoa!

 

[digitS']

I'm all for the cherries! Some are especially early, very flavorful and sweet.

Sauce is just what happens. I don't grow tomatoes for sauce - it is just that there are tomatoes in abundance that are too nice for compost and I just can't eat another fresh one! This time period usually occurs when the bigger tomatoes start to come on strong! The cherries aren't cook for sauce altho' they may be frozen whole.

Oh yes, I like a slice of big tomato on a plate, splashed with vinegar and sprinkled with salt & herbs. However, most of my tomato consumption is made outdoors and my "fantasy" tomato might be one large enuf to be a mouthful but be eaten politely. . . It is polite to eat out of your hand while outdoors, right?

Steve

 

[seedcorn]

Polite? You ask about polite? It's only impolite if you don't share if there are on lookers. Otherwise, drool over yourself. If they don't like it, go home! Or don't watch.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i agree that it has to have taste! nothing worse than a bitter or too acidic tomato that just isn't a reliable grower. i haven't yet tried some of the few tomatoes coming out of my garden. there have been plenty of orange colored cherry toms coming but those volunteered themselves and i have been giving those to the chickens since they haven't been all that sweet. one of my young cockerels has taken a liking to my Marglobe Supreme and so far i have not been able to get one before he does. :/ the Oregon spring seem to be looking really good, lots of tomatoes, and disease free and are just about ripe for the picking! can't wait to give that one a try! i really prefer the more meat and less seed types but any tomato with taste still will beat out anything in my opinion!