PNW, when do you guys start?

[janezee]

Ok, Taryn, I've shuffled the deck, and I see your

Black Cherry
Jaune Flammee
Kimberley
Moravsky Div
Stupice

and I'm raising

Alpieteva 905A
Frühe Liebe
Ida Gold
New Yorker
Red Robin
Siberian
Skorospelka
Sophie's Choice
Yamal

and, since I know you've started them already, I'll also put in my

Sleeping Lady and Wild Fred dwarfs.

Be still, my heart! The game is afoot!

j

[pdxwindjammer]

I started the majority of my tomatoes in the last couple of days. I will start my peppers tomorrow. I use the dense method of planting and grow them under lights for a couple of weeks. I also started Genovese basil and Lettuce Leaf Basil.

Onion starts coming soon. I have already seeded lettuce and plan on getting my root veggies started this week.

I know I am doing a no no but I leave for vacation in about a week. Hopefully everythign will have sprouted before I leave and they will be happily thriving under grow lights while I am away.

[janezee]

Ok, Tamara, do you want in on this, too? We'll just jump ahead of you while you're away.

It's been killing me, reading that thread about fastest germination ever. Are you in that category, too? Are you ready to rumble?

What have you planted? Curious minds need to know!
j

[tgplp]

Originally Posted by JoeP

Taryn,

Have you grown Orange Russion 117 before? If so I'd love to know how it performed for you. My better half requires me to plant Pineapple. It is good but late and not terribly productive so I am on the lookout for a substitute. This year I plan to grow several bicolors to trial to see if any will be earlier, more productive, comparable in flavor.

I grew Northern Lights last year and it produced a ripe tomato 2 or maybe 3 weeks before the Pineapple and it was good. But that was the only ripe tomato from NL the entire season. There were several more greenies that wouldn't ripen and Pineapple ended up being more productive (but still low). I am trying NL again since last year was a horrible year.

I plan to try Gold Medal, Golden Cherokee, Little Lucky, Northern Lights (again) and Rhodes Heirloom. I won't get my hopes up but I am hoping that they will all be as good as Pineapple and maybe a little earlier and more productive.

No, I haven't, and I was really looking forward to trying Orange Russian 117. Funny you should ask about that, because it was the only variety that I didn't have seeds of! I must have misplaced my packet of Orange Russian 117... sigh, I was looking forward to that. I replaced it with Pork Chop, because I'd love to try as many Wild Boar Farms varieties as possible! I actually haven't really grown many bicolors (except for Green Zebra, which is more of a striped variety, but is very productive and has some pretty big tomatoes!). This year I'm trying lots of Wild Boar Farm's bicolors- the reason I don't grow many bicolors is we've got a terrible climate and bicolors don't do so great in cooler weather. But... there's always the hoophouse.

The bicolors I'm growing this year are:

Isis Candy (cherry, so I don't know if it counts or not)
Large Barred Boar
Old German (have you tried Old German? I heard from someone in Seattle that it grows well here, so I assume it is an earlier bicolor. You might want to try it!)
Pink Berkely Tie Dye
Virginia Sweets


Taryn

[tgplp]

Originally Posted by pdxwindjammer

I started the majority of my tomatoes in the last couple of days. I will start my peppers tomorrow. I use the dense method of planting and grow them under lights for a couple of weeks. I also started Genovese basil and Lettuce Leaf Basil.

Onion starts coming soon. I have already seeded lettuce and plan on getting my root veggies started this week.

I know I am doing a no no but I leave for vacation in about a week. Hopefully everythign will have sprouted before I leave and they will be happily thriving under grow lights while I am away.

I'm actually leaving for vacation tomorrow to go skiing in Idaho! So it looks like Jane will get a leg up on both of us! Luckily my family hires a friend to come take care of our cats, guinea pigs, fish, and plants, so my little seeds will be taken care of and maybe even germinated when we get back on sunday.

I also have some mixed basil varieites growing, hoping for a fresh from the garden caprese salad this summer! Yum that sounds good... purple basil and green tomatoes would look so cool!

Taryn

[tgplp]

Originally Posted by janezee

Ok, Taryn, I've shuffled the deck, and I see your

Black Cherry
Jaune Flammee
Kimberley
Moravsky Div
Stupice

and I'm raising

Alpieteva 905A
Frühe Liebe
Ida Gold
New Yorker
Red Robin
Siberian
Skorospelka
Sophie's Choice
Yamal

and, since I know you've started them already, I'll also put in my

Sleeping Lady and Wild Fred dwarfs.

Be still, my heart! The game is afoot!

j

Exciting!

I've never heard of Alpieteva 905A, Frühe Liebe, and Skorospelka before. Got any background info on them?

Taryn

[ed50]

Taryn,

Frühe Liebe or Quedlinburger Frühe Liebe is a determinate tomato which is pretty early (as in the name: Frühe is the german word for early). The fruits are red and round and pretty small and they have a sweet taste. It's about 3 ft high (1 m) and has potato leaf. He is originating from the former East-Germany in the year 1951.
I've got seeds of it from Helmut Pummer in Austria and I'm gonna try it also for the first time this year.

Eddy

[janezee]

I'm actually leaving for vacation tomorrow to go skiing in Idaho! So it looks like Jane will get a leg up on both of us!

Well, I'm leaving on Sunday for 3 days, too.
No one home keeping an eye on anything. Hope those seeds can do their thing without us!

j

[janezee]

Sorry about the spelling.

Alpatieva 905A, from Tania's site translated by the Google:
"Variety Research Institute of selection and seed crops, obtained by crossing varieties Shtambovji Alpatieva 905 x 639 bison. Early maturing variety. Variety zoned in 1950.
Pannespely grade, the beginning of fruit ripening observed after 100-105 days after germination. From transplanting to first harvest 50-60 days. Tomato Alpatieva 905 plant height 32-44 cm plant is compact, standard, determinant. Fruits ploskookruglye and rounded, smooth, red mass of 55-75 (110) grams, fruits dozarivayutsya well, the number of slots 4-6. Taste quality grade Alpatieva satisfactory and good. This variety of tomato is valued for its high yield, early maturity, resistance to cold. It is used for fresh consumption, a grade is recommended for pickling. Seedlings can be grown in greenhouses poluteplyh and ridges. In all regions of the cultivar grown without pasynkovaniya.
Tomato Alpatieva recommended for non-chernozem zone, Western and Eastern Siberia and the Urals "

but I bought it anyway. I wanted 'ploskookruglye'

http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/lycop...korospelka.htm

http://www.redwoodseeds.net/product/skorospelka-tomato

This Russian heirloom tomato bears prolific amounts of small to medium sized red fruits. An early producer that will continue to offer tomatoes through to the frost, this variety is ideal for canning and fresh eating. Listed on other sites as a 'wild tomato' some folks classify it as a different sub species than the common tomato. Its habit is fairly compact and would do well as a container tomato. We were truly impressed by the amount of fruits harvested from this variety.

I'm curious about its blight tolerance. And taste, of course.

[tgplp]

Originally Posted by janezee

I'm actually leaving for vacation tomorrow to go skiing in Idaho! So it looks like Jane will get a leg up on both of us!

Well, I'm leaving on Sunday for 3 days, too.
No one home keeping an eye on anything. Hope those seeds can do their thing without us!

j

Well, as long as the soil stays moist, I think that the seeds will do great! Probably even better, because a watched seed tray never germinates...


Thanks guys for filling me in on those varieties (I'm not even going to attempt to spell them again!) sounds cool! Tell us how they are, Jane!

Taryn

[JoeP]

Originally Posted by tgplp

Old German (have you tried Old German? I heard from someone in Seattle that it grows well here, so I assume it is an earlier bicolor. You might want to try it!)

Taryn

I grew Old German two years ago. It did not perform well for me that particular year. It was another cool spring and summer. It was later than Pineapple and may have been more productive if the season had been longer. It wasn't bad, just not quite as sweet as Pineapple. I am not trying to sing the praises of Pineapple but the last two years have been nasty growing seasons and it seemed to defy the notion that bicolors are bland in a bad year.

I have also grown Yellow Brimmer the last two years. I purchase starts at the Farmer's Market. The lady that sells them just loves them but both years I have yet to get a ripe tomato. Last year she even gave me the plant for free. Maybe that was a sign. It may be a wonderful variety but not in my garden the past two years.

Another grower at the Farmer's Market sells the Old German starts. (Where I got mine). They must do fairly well around here. He had alot of them and sold them all.

I think Territorial Seed sells Old German seeds/plants so it must do fairly well in the PNW. I certainly hope Old German performs well for you this year.

[tgplp]

I hope so too, Joe. Sorry it didn't work for you! I'll tell you how it goes.


I'm so anxious to get home and check on my tomato seeds! I hope they are being kept well watered... I hope they are starting to sprout when I get home.

Taryn

[Jeannine Anne]

OK Taryn and janezee, I'me in.. running two days behind you but we will catch up LOL

All I have planted so far is the six from Craig for the Dwarf Project, ones for me will follow probably tomorrow as I am still undecided as to what to grow.

I have ones for me to do

I have to do large amount of assorted heirlooms for transplants for the community garden folks .

I also have to grow a few special ones for a large tomato thing I have planned,still unsure about that too.

Anyone in the PNW want to have a go at a biggie? Go on I dare you!!

XX Jeannine

[troad]

Jeannine,
Your dare sounds interesting. I might be up for the challenge but I have already started too many seeds. If you are okay with a year delay in the challenge I have a possible dare/trade for you.
I bought one (yes one only) giant pumpkin seed at last years Puyallup Fair. If I read it correctly the seed is from an 815 pound fruit from 2009. It is from a 936 pound cross with a 1467 pound pumpkin in 2008. I do not know how long pumpkin seeds are viable. I also have no place to grow regular winter squash let alone a giant pumpkin. Interested??
Len

[tgplp]

Originally Posted by Jeannine Anne

OK Taryn and janezee, I'me in.. running two days behind you but we will catch up LOL

All I have planted so far is the six from Craig for the Dwarf Project, ones for me will follow probably tomorrow as I am still undecided as to what to grow.

I have ones for me to do

I have to do large amount of assorted heirlooms for transplants for the community garden folks .

I also have to grow a few special ones for a large tomato thing I have planned,still unsure about that too.

Anyone in the PNW want to have a go at a biggie? Go on I dare you!!

XX Jeannine

Woohoo! Glad you're on board, Jeannine. Hmmm a biggie, huh? I may take you up on your dare.

Do any of these get big? These are all the beefsteaks I'm growing.
Amazon Chocolate
Aunt Ruby’s German Green
Azoychka
Brandywine Sudduth’s
Cherokee Purple
Earls Faux
Green Zebra
Grub’s Mystery Green
KBX
Kosovo
Large Barred Boar
Marianna’s Peace
Old German
Orange Strawberry
Pink Berkely Tie Dye
Prue
Virginia Sweets
Yellow Brandywine


Taryn