Big Beef Hybrid

[bigpinks]

I have 12 BB out in company with Bearclaw, Hillbilly, Orange Slice and Cherokee Purple. Its a wonderful tomato. I do prefer the sweet tasting ones but very few roll out the fruit like Big Beef.

[PhilaGardener]

So beautiful!

[MrBig46]

Originally Posted by Gardeneer

Hudson, done it again.

My Big Beef is almost 3 ft tall with flowers that should set soon.

For comparison, I am also growing Better Boy and Big Boy. The Better Boy is as vigorous as Big Beef. All three varieties look almost identical at this stage. But the real winner will come known when they fruits. The envelope is empty right now.

Gardeneer

I also have tomatoes Big Beef, Burple´s Big Boy, Better Big Boy, Best Boy, Steak Sandwitch and Park´s Whooper.Their plants already have been planted in a bed, but they are still small about 1 foot. I look forward to comparing their fertility and taste.
Vladimír

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by MrBig46

I also have tomatoes Big Beef, Burple´s Big Boy, Better Big Boy, Best Boy, Steak Sandwitch and Park´s Whooper.Their plants already have been planted in a bed, but they are still small about 1 foot. I look forward to comparing their fertility and taste.
Vladimír

Vlado,
You are growing one more of "The Boys", ie "Best Boy". That is great.
So, let us share notes on them as the plants grow.
I will start a new thread called "Big Beef And The Boys", so that this thread is not taken off the track.

Gardeneer

[isuhunter]

I took the advice from some other threads and have over 5 big beefs in my garden. The Bonnie plants look good the ones I got from Menards are much more yellow and stunted. I'm anxious to see how it compares to brandy boy.

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by isuhunter

I took the advice from some other threads and have over 5 big beefs in my garden. The Bonnie plants look good the ones I got from Menards are much more yellow and stunted. I'm anxious to see how it compares to brandy boy.

Hudson is growing Brandy Boy too.
I think BrBy is superior in production and taste in his controlled GH conditions, both in taste and production. Hudson can verify this.
Last year I grew 3 BrBy . they did not do well in my garden. Big Beef did much better.

Gardeneer
OTOH, Brandy boy produces much bigger tomatoes than Big Beef.

[Hudson_WY]

I agree Gardeneer! I guess that's one of the factors that makes growing tomatoes so challenging, unpredictable, interesting and fun - our environment and growing methods are so different that we can never know the success of a variety until we actually grow the variety in our own environment!

Brandy Boy is by far the most successful, largest fruit (10-24 oz), best tasting, productive Hybrid we have ever grown! However, Big Beef Hybrid has good taste, almost as productive as Brandy Boy and near perfect fruit (although only 10-13 oz). We grow more Brandy Boy plants but will still grow a couple of Big Beef or other hybrids if we find one we like better. We think we like the tomato soup and juice we bottle better with a mixture of varieties. Most of our slicing tomatoes are Brandy Boy and the Heirlooms.

Glad you are trying Big Beef - isuhunter! Big Beef seems to do well almost everywhere!

[isuhunter]

[Gardeneer]

isu, that one is a very nice stocky plant and looks promising.
Mine is fine too but taller. Because of cool weather and not enough direct sun.

Gardeneer

[jmsieglaff]

I'll play the Big Beef F1 game. After all the hype here I just had to work it in this year. It's really growing now that we've had a stretch of weather more like mid July. You can see recent growth is nice and dark green, the older leaves are still recovering from their shivering stretch a week and a half-two weeks ago. I'll update in a few weeks, looks like I should have flowers in the next 4-7 days.

[Gardeneer]

I think the consensus on Big Beef is pretty much established. I have been researching into it for at least 3 years. Maybe less than one out of ten reviews have been neutral or negative.
As a hybrid, it has better than average taste and it is far better tan average producer. And for those with soil borne diseases it is known to be a good VFN+ resistant.
Gard-

[NarnianGarden]

I'll have to try it - if the production is so great and the taste so good as alleged, it's worth it.

[Hudson_WY]

Narnian - yes - you should try it - one the best hybrids we have grown for production and when compared to hybrids - it has great taste too! IMO

Here is our largest Big Beef tomatoes this year - almost a pound!

[NarnianGarden]

Looks beautiful - and not at all like thos boring supermarket hybrids, lol.

Perhaps I have to reconsider my position that a red tomato can't be sexy, only the other colors...

[Hudson_WY]

I had to throw in a little color! This is probably a good comparison for production - I harvested one yellow tomato and 18 Big Beef - haha. I like to have a few yellow around to have a variety of color and keep things interesting!