What Are Your Giant Varieties For This Season? ?

[PA_Julia]

Big Zac 5.32 from 2011
Brutus Magnum 6.25 Meisner from 2011

Church 3.208 DT from 2012

Delicious 6.51 Meisner from 2011
Mega Marv 5.51 Meisner from 2011

And of course...MINE Julia's 2.86 LB Big Zac from 2012.

What's your giant lineup for this season?

[efisakov]

Wow, Julia, you have quiet a collection. My biggest was 2 lb Black Pineapple last year, though I never grew tomatoes on purpose to be a giant. Can you post pictures?
Would like to see.

[PA_Julia]

Originally Posted by efisakov

Wow, Julia, you have quiet a collection. My biggest was 2 lb Black Pineapple last year, though I never grew tomatoes on purpose to be a giant. Can you post pictures?
Would like to see.

Well my friend these are the pedigreed seeds I've purchased to grow this year to the exception of my 2.86 pound Big Zac from last season pictured here;

[efisakov]

Julia, the tomato looks mighty big and still green, if it was to ripen a bit more... may be much bigger.
btw nice scale, where did you purchase it?

[b54red]

I am going to try Omar's Lebanese and Delicious this year. Omar's has made some 2 lbs but it always dies from fusarium before I get more than 2 or 3 tomatoes. Delicious has never made it long enough to set fruit. I have also gotten 2 lb toms from Donskoi, Gildo Pietroboni, and KBX. I'm hoping my grafting will work out so the more resistant rootstock will give some of these large tomatoes a chance to stay alive long enough to make some big ones.

[PA_Julia]

Originally Posted by efisakov

Julia, the tomato looks mighty big and still green, if it was to ripen a bit more... may be much bigger.
btw nice scale, where did you purchase it?

Actually the time to pick a tomato for it's weight is when it's just turning.
When you see the tomato in the very beginning stages of ripening you must remove it and store it in the refrigerator to retard the ripening process.

Once the tomato is ripe it actually weighs less than when it's in it's denser green stage.

The scale I purchased at Target for 30.00 on sale last year.
It goes up to 11 LBS. Can you imagine a tomato of that caliber??!?

[PA_Julia]

Originally Posted by b54red

I am going to try Omar's Lebanese and Delicious this year. Omar's has made some 2 lbs but it always dies from fusarium before I get more than 2 or 3 tomatoes. Delicious has never made it long enough to set fruit. I have also gotten 2 lb toms from Donskoi, Gildo Pietroboni, and KBX. I'm hoping my grafting will work out so the more resistant rootstock will give some of these large tomatoes a chance to stay alive long enough to make some big ones.

Omar's and Delicious are excellent choices!!!

[efisakov]

Originally Posted by PA_Julia

The scale I purchased at Target for 30.00 on sale last year.
It goes up to 11 LBS. Can you imagine a tomato of that caliber??!?

thanks, Julia
I am planning to grow Omar’s Lebanese as well and Red Barn.
Delicious died to fast last year. May be if i graft it... not sure, not this year...

[Douglas14]

Athough I don't grow for size, last season I took the biggest tomato I could find, from my garden, to a GPC event, where I also took my giant pumpkin. Mine took first place at 2.02 lbs. and I thought that was big LOL. Don't ask me what variety it was, as I mislabed it when I put it the garden.

[Deborah]

Oh, am I ever dreaming about one of these giants thickly sliced, on a plate and eaten with a knife and fork like a steak.

[jwr6404]

Red
You might want to consider Rostova aka Sunset Red Horizon. It has produced well for me. Besides being productive I've gottn several 3lb+ and a few 4lb+ with no special effort on my part.

[WVTomatoMan]

@PA_Julia:
Big Zak and Aker's WV. Both are consistent producers of 2+ pound tomatoes. Aker's WV would not have been in the rotation this year, but I have to grow it for another reason.

Actually, now that I think about it I'm growing another variety that might produce a big one. It doesn't have a name yet and is still under development. I've inlcuded a couple of pictures. I'm holding one and his little brother is on the scales.

Good luck.

@b54red: I too have gotten 2+ lb. tomatoes from Omar's, but it isn't consistent. Some years it throws out some big ones, other years they are only decent sized (1.75 lbs.).

@Deborah: I too would like to have a big tomato right now. BTW, it's like I always say, it isn't that the tomato is too big, it's that the bread is too small. Seriously, I don't usually use the big ones for sandwiches. I try to match the tomato to the sandwich - big enough to cover the bread with just a little overhang. Like in one of the attached pictures.


Randy

[Deborah]

Oh, that looks good ! Truly, it does !!!

[kygreg]

Although I live in KY, I am probably too far South to have much luck with 3 plus pounders. But I am going to try the following:

Big Zac
Brutus Magnum
Buoydo
Clementz
Delicious
Goose Rock
Italo
Johnston/Butler
Kilo Della Garfagnana
Leadbetter’s Lunker
Lorson
Maston
Mega Tom
Megamarv
Myra’s Giant
Wahl
Watson

[tomatoguy]

Mong is my giant tomato for this year. Averages over two pounds, with a great taste. If I were to grow for size only, I would grow Ashleigh. They are huge but too bland for my taste. I have had some very large tomatoes from Delicious, Granny Cantrell's German Red and Mortgage Lifter Red, too.

mater