Member discussion regarding the methods, varieties and merits of growing tomatoes.
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February 9, 2018 | #196 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Metro Denver
Posts: 771
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Great colors Dan!!
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February 10, 2018 | #197 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Utah
Posts: 693
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February 10, 2018 | #198 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Russia
Posts: 176
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Those look ideal, Dan! And they're pretty big for a micro.
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February 10, 2018 | #199 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Newfoundland, Canada
Posts: 6,794
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Gorgeous!!
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February 10, 2018 | #200 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Anchorage, AK zone 3/4
Posts: 1,410
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What line did they come from Dan? They aren't plain!
Sue |
February 10, 2018 | #201 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Utah
Posts: 693
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They came from my 35X line. They are the first to mature from an F2 that looks like it will top out at under 15" in height. That is a cross of the micro multiflora (MMF) and a 'stripey' cross I received from PaddyMc. The full lineage is:
(Red Robin X Rose Quartz multiflora F4) X ((Beauty King X Indigo) X Green When Ripe Wild Thyme F3). Needless to say, there is a lot of potential for variety in that cross. That's also why I say I hope it stabilizes. I plan to have a lot of F3 and F4 micro seed from that cross in time for summer if others want to explore its possibilities. I also hope to have a bunch of F3 seed for anyone wanting to help look for a "Teeny Weeny Weird Thing" - MMF X GGWT. For some reason, that cross produced more than its share of micros in the F2s... which are maturing now. |
February 11, 2018 | #202 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Anchorage, AK zone 3/4
Posts: 1,410
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I'm having fun with the micro/dwarf lines you sent. They are producing a handful of cherries per week. I am growing out a few not so micro and not multi-flora just because. I'm sure I haven't discovered anything new that you haven't already grown. The 53-F4-2 line is the same as what I grew out in 2017...a very tasty micro multi flora yellow. I would be interested in your F3 and F4 mentioned above. I may have to buy another light set up!
Sue |
February 11, 2018 | #203 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Utah
Posts: 693
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Quote:
You may well be wrong when you say you “haven't discovered anything new that (I) haven't already grown”. If you have some F6s of the 53X line you think are worthy, stabilize it and name it. I haven’t grown any past what I sent to you. I don’t think I have any seed beyond F4 in the 53X line. I’ve sent some F3 and F4 to others recently but am not aware of anyone else growing it. I’ve focused more on trying to find micros from as many lines as I could and looking for something really unique, rather than looking for the ideal one in any particular line. I’ve said before, I have a very poor sense of taste. Two sinus surgeries six years ago left me unable to detect subtle differences in taste. I can tell sweet from sour, strong flavor from bland, but I miss the subtleties that separate the good from the really good and the really good from the great. If you find something worthy, that's what I'm hoping for. I'm also hoping to find a micro that produces a real full-size tomato some day. Right now the 35X line shows the most promise for that. One group of F4s I'm currently growing has changed my thinking about megablooms. I always thought megablooms were aberrations - often brought on by cold weather or something out of the norm. Some might be. However, I've learned that some are genetic. I have around 30 sibling F4s growing. So far, the first bloom on every blossom cluster has been a megabloom of anywhere from 4 to 10 blossoms. As they send out a second blossom cluster, the first blossom in that is also a megabloom. So far, there have been no exceptions. That has to be genetic. I've plucked the megabloom off most. It seems to me a micro won't have the ability to support a large misshapen fruit and still do justice to what remains. Has anyone ever encountered a variety that always leads with a megabloom? These things keep surprising me. Last edited by dfollett; February 11, 2018 at 02:55 AM. |
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February 11, 2018 | #204 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Anchorage, AK zone 3/4
Posts: 1,410
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I'll email you an updated report and photos on what I've got going on here. I can wait until you have the other seeds available. I will start planting my main season tomatoes here the end of February so I will be busy with those.
Thanks, Sue |
February 16, 2018 | #205 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: NewYork 5a
Posts: 2,303
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For those considering the micro hunt game...I planted a 1010, (10x10inch), 36 cell
tray. 3 seeds per cell. Two varieties I'm advancing. Good gemination so aprox 50 of each variety sprouted. I culled the weak deciding on one per cell. It gets easier recognizing what to save forward. Plant 5-7 per cell or more if lacking space. That's the 'hunt' game. Potted up 9 of each in small 4" pots week before last. I plan on growing at least 6 of each. Remember they stay very compact. One or two may jump out of the 9 and I will cull again. For me, that usually happens later at about 8-10 weeks. Very easy to take care of being so small. Here is a pick from last weekend of one tray... |
February 16, 2018 | #206 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Vernon, BC
Posts: 720
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Cherokee Purple tends to megabloom...
I've personally had many megablooms with it's first bloom but I don't know if it always makes them with it's first bloom... Dan, have you found/grown any black micro's yet? Al Last edited by Al@NC; February 16, 2018 at 07:03 PM. |
February 18, 2018 | #207 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Russia
Posts: 176
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I am advancing this "black" micro to an F5 right now. It's from the 13X-F3-6 line. My seeds are F4.
Last edited by MarinaRussian; February 18, 2018 at 03:15 PM. |
February 18, 2018 | #208 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 307
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Dan, I'll be sending you a PM. These winters in Wisconsin are long cold and boring and I would love a winter project. I have two very large south facing windows where I can set these up.
__________________
Desire' Mother of 3, homesteader, canner, gardener, dwarf tomato participant. |
February 18, 2018 | #209 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Vernon, BC
Posts: 720
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MarinaRussian, those micro's look good! What would you grade the flavor as? It looks like you have plenty of blooms. It's not a multiflora is it?
You don't see many black/purple's in new micro dwarf field available, for instance Heritage Seed market is one of the few vendors with a "micro" section and they don't have a black/purple tomato seed available... Thanks Marina for posting that again, I just looked back through the thread and saw your original post about these micros! Al Last edited by Al@NC; February 18, 2018 at 05:58 PM. |
February 19, 2018 | #210 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Russia
Posts: 176
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Al, they were super tasty, that's why I kept this line. It wasn't a multiflora, but the trusses were amazing
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