Best hybrid this year goes to................?

Deer Park · June 21, 2006

Many of you know I plant over a hundred new to me OP varieties each year along with my can't be without favorites, but what you don't know is that I also trial hybrids.

This year the best over all hybrid was Johnny's 361. Tremendous production of very large beautiful blemish free red fruit that keep very well.

Despite the horrible weather we are now having the plant just keeps rock'in along while most are in decline.

Michael

Tomstrees · June 21, 2006

I only grew 1 hybrid this season -
BrandyBoy ~
Funny thing is, is its
half the size of my other
plants, and doesn't seem
to want to be as vigorous
as I expected from a hybrid ~

Tom

FlipTX · June 21, 2006

A reviewer on PlantFiles says that this variety (Johnny's 361) is no longer available. That's a bummer. I'm in the same area as you, Michael, so I'm interested in what does well for you. How did other hybrids do?

JerryL · June 21, 2006

Hey Michael

While hybrids aren’t my thing, except for Sungold, I don’t hold it against anyone who grows/likes them. My main objection to hybrids is I haven’t found any with taste as good as my 'must grow' open pollinated varieties. That being said, I found it interesting that you mentioned all those good qualities about Johnny's 361 but didn’t mention taste.

**nctomatoman** · June 21, 2006

Interesting - a blast from the past! I first (and only time) tried JSS 361 as a trial variety back in 1988 - along side JSS 8737 (which they released as Valley Girl). While VG had more and bigger fruit, 361 had far better flavor - certainly not large fruited indeterminate great, but for a very productive determinate, really very good.

When I was doing my hybrid vs heirloom testing, I found a few really good tasting F1s - the best of which was Gurney Girl.

travis · June 21, 2006

So, is Gurney Girl still available?

PV

feldon30 · June 21, 2006

http://gurneys.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_15128

travis · June 21, 2006

Oh oh ... it's listed as "Improved Gurney Girl."

You know what that may mean vis a vis "Improved Parks Whopper," "Improved Early Girl," "New Coke," etc.

I wonder if it's the same Gurney Girl that Craig grew and enjoyed the flavor of???

PV

feldon30 · June 21, 2006

Now with new Insufferably Inedible Flavor!

I'm one of those people that e-mails websites. Sometimes I get a response.

My e-mail to Parks:

Quote:

Originally Posted by feldon30

> Greetings,

Park's Whopper has been a very popular tomato over the years and a
staple in many people's gardens. However this tomato was "improved" a
few years back. I have to tell you, I have never seen a tomato so
summarily trounced in online forums. The new variety produces much
fewer, much smaller tomatoes with much less taste. The absolute
consensus of every review and opinion is that the original Park's
Whopper was infinitely better. Are you considering bringing it back?

Also, it is great to see all the cucumber varieties, but might I
suggest putting in big red letters "This is a FEMALE-only variety and
you will need to order seeds for another variety to get any
pollenation" on Diva and other female-only varieties? It has to be
frustrating for naive first-time gardeners to order these seeds and
get nothing. I've noted that most other vendors include a small
packet of 5 seeds of a non-gender specific variety. I don't know if
Park's is willing to do this, but a warning on the website would go a long way.

Kindest Regards,

-Morgan

The response:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parks

HI Morgan,

I will forward your email concerning the Whopper CR Improved tomato on to the folks in research.

In the print catalog, we do advise our customers that a pollinator variety is needed for gynoecious cukes and do include a small number of pollinators in each package. I sent this part of your email to our Director of Seed and I'm sure she will add this same information to the web site and hopefully clear up any confusion on these female only varieties.

Thanks for taking the time to give us your feedback and observations on both the tomato and the cucumber varieties.

Park Seed Horticulture Team Member

travis · June 21, 2006

Why that there Team Member shoulda tooken up a career as a daggone politician or diplomat

PV

Deer Park · June 21, 2006

Following Johnny's 361 a close second place goes to Amelia .

75 days. Amelia produces a vigorous plant, strong determinate. Fruit are large, uniform, red, firm, and aromatic. Ideal for green and vine ripe harvest. This tomato was bred especially for southeastern US with its multiple disease tolerance to Fasarium 3 and tomato spotted wilt virus.

elkwc36 · June 21, 2006

PaPa I have five Gurney's planted so should be able to update on flavor and productivity before long. Seemed to take them awhile to take off. Not nearly as vigorous early as some others. I think the going from real cool to real hot has had an effect on all of them and some varieties have seemed to take longer taking off. We had a severe freeze the 27th of April and close to 100 by May 15th. So no spring here. And drought and constant wind. But most have done well the last ten days and we are supposed to have four days in the 80's starting tomorrow. So maybe more fruit set. JD

valereee · June 21, 2006

Michael, what's it taste like?

kimpossible · June 21, 2006

Feldon ... funny thing about Parks - they love to send me e-mail ads with all their "specials", etc. but won't ship seeds to Canada (

) Every other seed co. in the U.S. that I have dealt with - small, med. or large, ships to Canada. They have not told me why, only that they don't.

barkeater · June 21, 2006

feldon, why did you say that about Diva? Diva does not need a pollinator. I'm surprised they didn't tell you.

June 21, 2006	#1
Deer Park Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Pasadena, Texas Posts: 199	Best hybrid this year goes to................? Many of you know I plant over a hundred new to me OP varieties each year along with my can't be without favorites, but what you don't know is that I also trial hybrids. This year the best over all hybrid was Johnny's 361. Tremendous production of very large beautiful blemish free red fruit that keep very well. Despite the horrible weather we are now having the plant just keeps rock'in along while most are in decline. Michael

June 21, 2006	#2
Tomstrees Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NJ Bayshore Posts: 3,848	I only grew 1 hybrid this season - BrandyBoy ~ Funny thing is, is its half the size of my other plants, and doesn't seem to want to be as vigorous as I expected from a hybrid ~ Tom __________________ My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~ H. Fred Ale

June 21, 2006	#4
JerryL Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: S.W. Ohio z6a Posts: 736	Hey Michael While hybrids aren’t my thing, except for Sungold, I don’t hold it against anyone who grows/likes them. My main objection to hybrids is I haven’t found any with taste as good as my 'must grow' open pollinated varieties. That being said, I found it interesting that you mentioned all those good qualities about Johnny's 361 but didn’t mention taste. __________________ Jerry

June 21, 2006	#5
nctomatoman Tomatoville® Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Hendersonville, NC zone 7 Posts: 10,385	Interesting - a blast from the past! I first (and only time) tried JSS 361 as a trial variety back in 1988 - along side JSS 8737 (which they released as Valley Girl). While VG had more and bigger fruit, 361 had far better flavor - certainly not large fruited indeterminate great, but for a very productive determinate, really very good. When I was doing my hybrid vs heirloom testing, I found a few really good tasting F1s - the best of which was Gurney Girl. __________________ Craig

June 21, 2006	#14
kimpossible Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Z5b SW Ont Canada Posts: 767	Feldon ... funny thing about Parks - they love to send me e-mail ads with all their "specials", etc. but won't ship seeds to Canada ( ) Every other seed co. in the U.S. that I have dealt with - small, med. or large, ships to Canada. They have not told me why, only that they don't. __________________ *So Many Tomatoes ... So Little Time*

June 21, 2006	#3
FlipTX Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 271	A reviewer on PlantFiles says that this variety (Johnny's 361) is no longer available. That's a bummer. I'm in the same area as you, Michael, so I'm interested in what does well for you. How did other hybrids do?

June 21, 2006	#6
travis Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Evansville, IN Posts: 2,984	So, is Gurney Girl still available? PV

June 21, 2006	#7
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	http://gurneys.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_15128

June 21, 2006	#12
elkwc36 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: SW Kansas Posts: 339	PaPa I have five Gurney's planted so should be able to update on flavor and productivity before long. Seemed to take them awhile to take off. Not nearly as vigorous early as some others. I think the going from real cool to real hot has had an effect on all of them and some varieties have seemed to take longer taking off. We had a severe freeze the 27th of April and close to 100 by May 15th. So no spring here. And drought and constant wind. But most have done well the last ten days and we are supposed to have four days in the 80's starting tomorrow. So maybe more fruit set. JD

June 21, 2006	#13
valereee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: 6a SW Ohio Posts: 135	Michael, what's it taste like?

June 21, 2006	#15
barkeater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NE Kingdom, VT - Zone 3b Posts: 1,439	feldon, why did you say that about Diva? Diva does not need a pollinator. I'm surprised they didn't tell you.