Anyone grow copper river?

lurley · September 23, 2011

I grew copper river this year, intrigued by the description at John Scheepers. I got to finally try a few this week. They were sooooo sweet! I swear it was like eating a sunsugar cherry tomato, only giant size with more meat. I have never tasted a tomato this sweet before. I have tasted ones that had some sweetness, but no zip, kinda one dimensional and not my faves, but this was like a great sweet cherry tomato, overwhelming, powerfully sweet. I know I traded seeds to one other tomatovillian, and was just wondering if others have had the same experience with this one? I'm trying to figure if this "new to me" tomato is supposed to taste like this, or did I do something to it that caused it? Cause if I did, I'd like to do it again

Sunsi · September 23, 2011

I can see why you found these intriguing--just the color alone is fantastic! Thanks for sharing those scrumptious photos, too.

tam91 · September 23, 2011

Beautiful. It reminds me of Captain Lucky in appearance.

kygreg · September 23, 2011

Lurley,

You sent me some seeds; my plant had 3 or 4 fruits and then died -not sure why. This happened to 7 or 8 different plants of different varieties this year out of 105 plants. I have attached a pic. It died fairly early in the season so not going to comment on taste. Interesting enough that I will grow again. The red running through it does look like a river.

fortyonenorth · September 23, 2011

So, is it very late to mature? Scheepers lists it as determinate and 75-85 days. How did it produce for you?

Quote:

Originally Posted by lurley

I grew copper river this year, intrigued by the description at John Scheepers. I got to finally try a few this week. They were sooooo sweet! I swear it was like eating a sunsugar cherry tomato, only giant size with more meat. I have never tasted a tomato this sweet before. I have tasted ones that had some sweetness, but no zip, kinda one dimensional and not my faves, but this was like a great sweet cherry tomato, overwhelming, powerfully sweet. I know I traded seeds to one other tomatovillian, and was just wondering if others have had the same experience with this one? I'm trying to figure if this "new to me" tomato is supposed to taste like this, or did I do something to it that caused it? Cause if I did, I'd like to do it again

Iva · September 24, 2011

It looks very very similar to Ananas Noir, I grow it every year. And it also tastes sweet...
Hope this is not yet another renamed variety...

**carolyn137** · September 24, 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iva

It looks very very similar to Ananas Noir, I grow it every year. And it also tastes sweet...
Hope this is not yet another renamed variety...

Iva, I was just going to ask what the origin of Copper River is from those who have grown it and possibly researched the origin.

remy · September 24, 2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iva

It looks very very similar to Ananas Noir, I grow it every year. And it also tastes sweet...
Hope this is not yet another renamed variety...

I was going to say the same thing, it looks like Ananas Noire. Here's a pic of my Ananas Noire for comparison.

But the description over at Scheeper's Kitchen Garden Seeds says it a newly created determinate:
#4242 Copper River Tomatoes: 75-85 days
New! Another delicious creation by Lynne Brown of Napa Valley’s Forni Brown Welsh Gardens, this unique, thin-skinned beauty is lustrous copper with iridescent yellow stripes. Its determinant plants produce medium-size fruits that are as essence-of-tomato tasty as they are attractive (OP.)

Remy

**carolyn137** · September 24, 2011

Remy, too lazy to go look now but isn't Lynne Brown the same person who has introduced some of those strange so called metallic ones at Tomatofest and some others Gary lists there as well?

The only time I go to Tomatofest is b'c someone asks me to to check out something, so I'll let the rest of you check out if Lynne Brown was also the one who has introduced several via Tomatofest but I don't remember one called Copper River being there.

And there's also a possibility that I'm 100% wrong, that it was someone else who introduced those metallic ones.

A renamed something or other? Hard to tell I suppose without asking her directly what her breeding program is all about and what she's using as breeding material.

lurley · September 24, 2011

I can't say about late maturity, in a regular season yes, but I didn't get mine into the ground until July 1st because of all the record rain we had, so I'm just now getting tomatoes from the majority of mine. It may not show in the photo but mine didn't have yellow stripes it had "vedigris" stripes, I thought that was the origin of the name copper river, since the stripes were the green color of weathered copper. I do have ananas noire somewhere in the garden but must not have any ripe yet of that one to compare it to.

**carolyn137** · September 24, 2011

I don't want to tell you how much time I spent going through all the tomatoes at Tomatofest and not finding anything metallic so I went to Laurel's website, Gary's business partner, and was really surprised.

Not only is her list of varieties for 2012 very abbreviated but I think that's where the metallic ones were and now even they aren't there any more. And she had a comment about Purple Haze saying she wan't carrying it b'c it wasn't stable but the fact is it was the F1 Puple Haze she listed and K has probably just run out of the F1 seeds to supply her with.

Just a couple of comments.

Both Gary and Laurel offer quite a few varieties from Lisa at Amishland and Laurel even links to her site. Gary had copied the Lisa blurb about one of my varieties, I think it was Todd County Amish, and thus transferred the wrong info that was at her site. Not good at all.

It's also clear to me at least that Gary is using Amy Goldman's book for information since next to the variety Opalka he aka's it as Polish Topedo, which is very wrong and the only place that that error is found is in Amy's book.

Gary also noted in the blurb for Indian Stripe that I named it, which is also wrong b'c Mr Burson called it both Indian Stripe and Indian Zebra and when I asked Donna, the source of my seeds what to call it she said pick either one you want, so I chose Indian Stripe.

There were many varieties, as I went through, that I hadn't thought about in years, and many that were said to be heirlooms, and aren't.

I also saw Tadesse listed and I think that's one that someone looking for in the seed exchange so will look, but it was described as pink/red and that's not right but maybe the epidermis wasn't checked.

But I do think that the description Remy gave about the copper sheen, verdigis stripes might well have referred to those metallic ones that I did see at Laurel's that she no longer lists.

Well, I tried.

delltraveller · September 26, 2011

Everett's Rusty Oxheart has that red center coloring, too.

Iva · September 27, 2011

Lurley, how about the height of the plant? Is Copper River really a determinate as it said in the description?

Captain Lucky is very similar in appearance but the parentage is different from Ananas Noir, so those two are definitely different, but I'm still wondering about Copper River. If it really IS a determinate, I'd call it a legit variety that is in that way different then the similar ones.

Everett's Rusty Oxheart is similar but pointy shape (it's a heart) and has paler sweeter flesh and gel and longer storage ability due to thicker skin - I was able to compare it with Ananas Noir this year as I grew them both.

lurley · September 27, 2011

Going out to look at it again, I'd say yes it is determinate (which I forgot about, and pruned and staked it since I grow mostly indeterminates, despite marking the name tag with a D to remind myself.) It is about 3 1/2-4 feet high and doesn't have all the suckers the others near it do, going in all crazy directions, definitely a more compact plant. Was it determinate for KY? He probably has more experience in determining that for sure than I do, maybe he can chime in.

fortyonenorth · September 27, 2011

There isn't anything to suggest that Copper River is NOT legit, is there? I assume it's simply a case of it being similar in appearance to several other tomatoes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iva

...but I'm still wondering about Copper River. If it really IS a determinate, I'd call it a legit variety that is in that way different then the similar ones.

September 23, 2011	#3
tam91 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Crystal Lake IL Posts: 2,484	Beautiful. It reminds me of Captain Lucky in appearance. __________________ Tracy

September 24, 2011	#9
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	Remy, too lazy to go look now but isn't Lynne Brown the same person who has introduced some of those strange so called metallic ones at Tomatofest and some others Gary lists there as well? The only time I go to Tomatofest is b'c someone asks me to to check out something, so I'll let the rest of you check out if Lynne Brown was also the one who has introduced several via Tomatofest but I don't remember one called Copper River being there. And there's also a possibility that I'm 100% wrong, that it was someone else who introduced those metallic ones. A renamed something or other? Hard to tell I suppose without asking her directly what her breeding program is all about and what she's using as breeding material. __________________ Carolyn

September 24, 2011	#11
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	I don't want to tell you how much time I spent going through all the tomatoes at Tomatofest and not finding anything metallic so I went to Laurel's website, Gary's business partner, and was really surprised. Not only is her list of varieties for 2012 very abbreviated but I think that's where the metallic ones were and now even they aren't there any more. And she had a comment about Purple Haze saying she wan't carrying it b'c it wasn't stable but the fact is it was the F1 Puple Haze she listed and K has probably just run out of the F1 seeds to supply her with. Just a couple of comments. Both Gary and Laurel offer quite a few varieties from Lisa at Amishland and Laurel even links to her site. Gary had copied the Lisa blurb about one of my varieties, I think it was Todd County Amish, and thus transferred the wrong info that was at her site. Not good at all. It's also clear to me at least that Gary is using Amy Goldman's book for information since next to the variety Opalka he aka's it as Polish Topedo, which is very wrong and the only place that that error is found is in Amy's book. Gary also noted in the blurb for Indian Stripe that I named it, which is also wrong b'c Mr Burson called it both Indian Stripe and Indian Zebra and when I asked Donna, the source of my seeds what to call it she said pick either one you want, so I chose Indian Stripe. There were many varieties, as I went through, that I hadn't thought about in years, and many that were said to be heirlooms, and aren't. I also saw Tadesse listed and I think that's one that someone looking for in the seed exchange so will look, but it was described as pink/red and that's not right but maybe the epidermis wasn't checked. But I do think that the description Remy gave about the copper sheen, verdigis stripes might well have referred to those metallic ones that I did see at Laurel's that she no longer lists. Well, I tried. __________________ Carolyn

September 23, 2011	#2
Sunsi Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: New York Outback 5b Posts: 107	I can see why you found these intriguing--just the color alone is fantastic! Thanks for sharing those scrumptious photos, too.

September 24, 2011	#6
Iva Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Slovenia, EU Posts: 249	It looks very very similar to Ananas Noir, I grow it every year. And it also tastes sweet... Hope this is not yet another renamed variety...

September 24, 2011	#10
lurley Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Central Ohio Posts: 741	I can't say about late maturity, in a regular season yes, but I didn't get mine into the ground until July 1st because of all the record rain we had, so I'm just now getting tomatoes from the majority of mine. It may not show in the photo but mine didn't have yellow stripes it had "vedigris" stripes, I thought that was the origin of the name copper river, since the stripes were the green color of weathered copper. I do have ananas noire somewhere in the garden but must not have any ripe yet of that one to compare it to.

September 26, 2011	#12
delltraveller Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Iowa Posts: 481	Everett's Rusty Oxheart has that red center coloring, too.

September 27, 2011	#13
Iva Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Slovenia, EU Posts: 249	Lurley, how about the height of the plant? Is Copper River really a determinate as it said in the description? Captain Lucky is very similar in appearance but the parentage is different from Ananas Noir, so those two are definitely different, but I'm still wondering about Copper River. If it really IS a determinate, I'd call it a legit variety that is in that way different then the similar ones. Everett's Rusty Oxheart is similar but pointy shape (it's a heart) and has paler sweeter flesh and gel and longer storage ability due to thicker skin - I was able to compare it with Ananas Noir this year as I grew them both.