Trying Brandywine... trying once again. Which strain?

[jhp]

I had given up on Brandywine as a big giant plant that was stingy on the fruit. But still I can't forget how great the taste was. I also read a few posts about others having good luck with it. I've only grown Sudduth's strain and some anonymous brandywine from a nursery.

Now I have someone asking me to start some Brandywine seedlings (for them to grow) this year and I am wondering what strain I should try this time.

Please post your best brandywine. Thanks!

Jen

[Bama mater]

I think "Cowlicks Brandywine" is a very productive Brandywine.

[mecktom]

Brandywine OTV is a good one. I like all of them.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by mecktom

Brandywine OTV is a good one. I like all of them.

That's not really a strain of Brandywine. It was the result of a natural cross in Craig Lehoullier's garden with Yellow Brandwine and???? and when he sent seeds of YB to someone they sent back a picture and seeds of a lovely large PL red. I had more space at the time than Craig so I grew it out, making selections at each F generation and went out to the F5 before it was stable.

Although not a strain, it does set fruits much better than what are called pure Brandywine ( pink)strains.

I've grown lots of different Brandywines and when I do grow one again it will be my fave which is Brandywine ( Sudduth/Quisenberry).

I've had seeds for Cowlicks for a couple of years but haven't grown it. And have seen varying reports on that one as well, which is no surprise for any variety.

Ray sent me some seeds for Croation Brandywine but I can't find them. Please don't tell Ray that. And that one didn't originate in Croatia anyway.

Jen, are you interested just in the various pink Brandwine ones or are the red and yellow ones on your radar as well.? And I didn't mention any so called black ones for a good reason.

[Gobig_or_Gohome_toms]

Sudduth/Quisenberry, Cowlicks, Terhune, and Ed's Millenium have all been good for me here all fairly productive and tasty have not grown them all in the same year to compare taste but I liked them all even if they are not all that productive I will have at least one of these growing every year.

My Ed's Millenium seeds are maybe 3 or 4 years old now will have to get them growing again for fresh seeds in the next few years. As a fairly newbie 5 or 6 years growing I will now have to think about making sure I have fresh seeds of some of the early varities I saved seeds from but I keep them in canning jars so I suspect I have at least 5-8 years to still get at least 50% germination for enough plants for fresh seeds.

Craig

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Gobig_or_Gohome_toms

Sudduth/Quisenberry, Cowlicks, Terhune, and Ed's Millenium have all been good for me here all fairly productive and tasty have not grown them all in the same year to compare taste but I liked them all even if they are not all that productive I will have at least one of these growing every year.

My Ed's Millenium seeds are maybe 3 or 4 years old now will have to get them growing again for fresh seeds in the next few years. As a fairly newbie 5 or 6 years growing I will now have to think about making sure I have fresh seeds of some of the early varities I saved seeds from but I keep them in canning jars so I suspect I have at least 5-8 years to still get at least 50% germination for enough plants for fresh seeds.

Craig

Craig, Tom K, darwinslair, was never able to contact the woman who owned the house that she left in whose garden in the back he found the plants/fruits and named the variety Terhune after the folks who were looking at the house to buy. So no way to know what those plants were.

There's lots of large fruited pink PL's, and Earl's Faux is another one that could or could not be Brandywine.

I just hope no one mentions Liam's Brandywine here, b'c it isn't a Brandywine.

My fave of the so called Brandywine strains is Brandywine (Pawers), but for an amusing reason.

It was listed by Roger Wentling of PA and his SSE code name is then PA WE R, got it? An intial typo at SSE that has lived on and on and is not a strain.

Actually I've discussed here before that I think should recognize two kinds of strains. There are some Brandywines that have a name attached and they aren't strains, rather, the person growing it jsut attached his or her name to it.

A strain is one that differs lightly from the original and having grown all the ones I have I do think that the Sudduth one is a true strain b'c for many it produces better, is much smoother and has an outstanding taste to some, as compared to the original, and who the heck even knows for sure what the original is, to be honest about it.

Some say Brandywine has a unique taste, and I'd agree but for me there are others that have a unique taste as well, and one is the variety Prue.

[jennifer28]

I second the "cowlicks brandywine" opinion. I am also growing sudduth this year.

[Willie Wharfer]

I have yet to grow Prue. I hear that it varies in shapes produced? Sounds like a good tomato from what I have heard. I think I will be adding this to my grow list soon...

This year I am growing Cowlick's, Sudduth, and Yellow Brandywine. I also believe that I have a natural cross between Pink Brandywine and Pink Oxheart that I will be growing again this year. The heart shape has just shown up in this last year of 2011...

Thanks,

Jason

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Willie Wharfer

I have yet to grow Prue. I hear that it varies in shapes produced? Sounds like a good tomato from what I have heard. I think I will be adding this to my grow list soon...

This year I am growing Cowlick's, Sudduth, and Yellow Brandywine. I also believe that I have a natural cross between Pink Brandywine and Pink Oxheart that I will be growing again this year. The heart shape has just shown up in this last year of 2011...

Thanks,

Jason

Welcome Jason, or did I miss seeing your intro post in Town Hall?

Anyway, I know from whence you cometh and who you are, and I thought the following link might be of interest to you since a Brandywine Heart is out there but good luck on that natural cross.

http://www.vintageveggies.com/inform...randywine.html

A couple of years ago someone sent me seeds for an Orange Minsk heart and I never thought it would come true, but it did, and I would have listed in this year's seed offer but didn't have enough seeds.

[Willie Wharfer]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Welcome Jason, or did I miss seeing your intro post in Town Hall?

Anyway, I know from whence you cometh and who you are, and I thought the following link might be of interest to you since a Brandywine Heart is out there but good luck on that natural cross.

http://www.vintageveggies.com/inform...randywine.html

A couple of years ago someone sent me seeds for an Orange Minsk heart and I never thought it would come true, but it did, and I would have listed in this year's seed offer but didn't have enough seeds.

Yep, I made a post in town hall saying hello and that some people know me as Summerhawk and some people know me as Hawk from whence I have cometh You might know some of my friends but you don't know me really well. Perhaps I made the mistake of a bad first impression somehow? I try to like all people and live by the golden rule. I know a lot of really nice people. Keep in mind that there are many types of people. I am my own person much as you are your own person. I have no issue with anyone. I come in peace and I come with a smile. Thank you for the link Carolyn. I will post pictures this year of the heart shape if it shows up again this year. I have pictures from this past year. I have a feeling that we will see some neat things with heart tomatoes in the future!

Orange Minsk Heart sounds great. I grew Orange Minsk this year and liked it. It was a healthy plant with nice tomatoes.

This year I plan on trying to make a cross between Pink Livingston x Yellow Brandywine. I have a friend that likes these two tomatoes. I want to surprise him with some seeds.

Everyone has some good input here.

Thanks,

Jason

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Willie Wharfer

Yep, I made a post in town hall saying hello and that some people know me as Summerhawk and some people know me as Hawk from whence I have cometh You might know some of my friends but you don't know me really well. Perhaps I made the mistake of a bad first impression somehow? I try to like all people and live by the golden rule. I know a lot of really nice people. Keep in mind that there are many types of people. I am my own person much as you are your own person. I have no issue with anyone. I come in peace and I come with a smile. Thank you for the link Carolyn. I will post pictures this year of the heart shape if it shows up again this year. I have pictures from this past year. I have a feeling that we will see some neat things with heart tomatoes in the future!

Orange Minsk Heart sounds great. I grew Orange Minsk this year and liked it. It was a healthy plant with nice tomatoes.

This year I plan on trying to make a cross between Pink Livingston x Yellow Brandywine. I have a friend that likes these two tomatoes. I want to surprise him with some seeds.

Everyone has some good input here.

Thanks,

Jason

Well I did miss you in the Town Hall intro area so a warm welcome to you.

I wasn't really trying to imply anthing, really, for we all have our own opinions about almost everything to do with tomatoes as I see it.

That would be Livingston's Pink Oxheart you're talking about crossed with Yellow Brandywine?

I'm sure you know of Mike Dunton's interest in the Livingstons and Craig ( nctomatoman) is right up there with Mike on that and has contributed several of them to Mike.

Way back when it was possible to do so Craig and I got a lot of varieties out of the USDA and I think most of the Livingstons Craig got.

But an amusing story about Magnus, which was on the 1900 cover of the Livingston catalog.

Craig couldn't get any of those seeds from the USDA to germinate so he sent what was left over to me. After about a month and a half I got ONE up and it was PL, thank heavens, but of course I was late getting it out.

At the time my mother was still living in the old farmhouse and I was living in an apt about 20 min away. All my tomato gardens, actually a field, and so much more were at the farm. So Fall approached and I was getting worried about that Magnus plant b'c it had blossoms and had set some fruit, but, there wasn't much time left before first Fall frost. So every AM on the way to work I'd stop at the farm and take the covering off it that I'd put there on the way home from work the previous day.

So finally I saw two fruits starting to color up. I took them inside and put them on the counter and told my mother I'd be by on the weekend to get them.

The weekend came. No fruits. I asked her where they were and she said they ripened up and she put them in a salad. I almost wanted to cry.

But frost was late and several more turned color and I was able to get them ripe and set up a fermentation.

All to say that all the Magnus seeds now available came from my tomato field and that one plant.

[amideutch]

Terhune is not Brandywine as discussed in previous threads. For me, Cowlicks is the best of the bunch. Ami

[darwinslair]

Originally Posted by amideutch

Terhune is not Brandywine as discussed in previous threads. Ami

<smile> but it is soooo good.

Tom

[Iva]

I've tried growing a few Brandywines: Pink, Yellow, Sudduth's,...
They just don't grow that well in my climate. For a rough climate that Brandywines don't like, grow Cowlick's, that one did extremely well here. The fruits are a bit smaller, but the taste is there. And let's not forget that it is both early and productive!

[paprika]

Another vote for Cowlick's (either PL or Bama's RL) as it has been the most productive of the brandywines for me and has very good flavor. The year I grew one in the 15 gallon container it only gave me 23 ripe fruit, but 3 years worth in the garden each plant has provided 37, 51, and 43 ripe fruit picked avering 11oz-18oz, largest so far was 39 oz.

TimothyT