Mystery beefsteak

KathyDC · October 24, 2014

Hello tomato friends!

I received as part of a swap a tomato that I thought was going to be Pink Berkeley Tie Dye. It definitely was not! But I have no idea what it actually is. So for now I'm calling it Rainier Red.

Whatever it is, the tomato has done very well for me the past two years. It's definitely not a cross, because it came up true this year as well. It's a fairly prolific red beefsteak, averaging around 12oz (but which can get over 1 lb) that has green shoulders until it's almost overripe. Delicious, meaty, relatively more resistant to fungus issues than some of my other plants.

Someone compared it to Marianna's Peace, but I've never grown that before.

I'd welcome anyone who might like to give it a try, and tell me what they think it could be or compares to. I've attached a few pictures here. Anyone who's interested in growing it out, let me know and I'll send you some seeds, with a request that you keep me updated next year!

PS, sorry these are sideways!

habitat_gardener · October 24, 2014

Photo of sliced tomato?

Marianna's is pink.

The fluting is reminiscent of Cuostralee, but mine don't have green shoulders or a bellybutton. Doesn't look like anything else I've grown.

KathyDC · October 24, 2014

Sadly I didn't label any pictures of slices, so even though I'm quite sure I have some, I don't know which are which. That'll have to wait until next year!

Despite my Type A-ness about wanting to know what variety it is, it's been tasty and productive enough that it has earned a spot in my garden again next year... even though I have no idea what else will be joining it, at this point.

green_go · October 24, 2014

Sometimes we get surprises from swaps.
I got a big orange beefsteak surprise from the tomato seed which was supposed to be a cherry tomato. Tasted pretty good too, though it was late to ripen.

**carolyn137** · October 24, 2014

Kathy, was the swap one of Tormato's ( Gary) from here? If so why not ask him if he could find the person who sent him the seeds. Others have done that when they get something that wasn 't what it sould be and sometimes he can help and other times, no.

If not from here anywhere else you did a swap you could do the same thing.

How many plants of it did you put out, for it could well be a stray seed of an already known variety, so I think it's maybe a bit premature to name it before you can find out more about it.

Carolyn

KathyDC · October 25, 2014

Carolyn, hello! The last time I was active on the board you were under the weather so I am glad to see you back in action again.

Yes, it was one of his swaps - I never thought to ask so thank you for the suggestion! I found the pack yesterday that it came from as I was organizing my seeds, and unfortunately it didn't have any sort of identifier on it such as a name, but it's still worth a shot.

I have so far put out two plants, one the first year that was a surprise, and one this year which was true, so I suspect it in fact is a known variety, not a cross or such - so I take your point!! It's mostly for my own convenience. "Mystery red beefsteak" doesn't sound very good!!

In any case, the mystery continues...

maf · October 25, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by KathyDC

It's definitely not a cross, because it came up true this year as well. It's a fairly prolific red beefsteak, averaging around 12oz (but which can get over 1 lb) that has green shoulders until it's almost overripe. Delicious, meaty, relatively more resistant to fungus issues than some of my other plants.

How many plants did you grow this year to rule out the possibility of a cross? If you grew out three or four, or more, and they all came up as the same red beefsteaks then fair enough....

Edit, I see from a follow up post you only grew one plant each year, definitely does not rule out the possibility of a cross between PBTD and a red beefsteak, as the differences between what you grew and PBTD are all from dominant genes and therefore most likely to be expressed.

Edit 2, if you grow out at least four plants next year and none of them come up pink, purple, brown, or striped then you can reasonably safely say it is not a cross. If it turns out to be a cross it could be a very interesting little project.

KathyDC · October 27, 2014

That's a big commitment in my relatively small garden but this particular plant is good enough that I wouldn't mind giving it that kind of space. Thank you!

newgardener_tx · October 28, 2014

Your plants and fruits are beautiful. What kind of mix do you use in the pot? I have tried many kinds, none of them works so far in the hot Texas weather.

KathyDC · October 28, 2014

Thank you! I use an even mixture of potting soil, compost, peat moss and vermiculite. I feed them once a week with Texas Tomato Food. I also have about a softball-sized hole in each bucket so that the plant can root down and not get too stunted.

They do very well until the humidity and blight set in, and then I have to start spraying pretty regularly with a very dilute bleach spray (you can find the particulars here on Tomatoville if you search for bleach spray). The Washington, DC area is humid but nothing like home (I grew up in Houston) so I don't envy you dealing with fungus and heat issues.

maf · October 28, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by KathyDC

That's a big commitment in my relatively small garden but this particular plant is good enough that I wouldn't mind giving it that kind of space. Thank you!

If space is an issue you could potentially grow a few of these plants close together and stake and prune each one to a single stem. Wouldn't give you the same level of production per plant as unpruned plants, but would be a useful way of phenotyping a batch of plants without wasting too much space. Good luck, whatever you do

KathyDC · October 29, 2014

Maf, that's a good idea, and thank you! I am planning on putting in a bed and probably doing away with my bucket system for next year, which should help with overall space. I can also sneak in a bigger bed than what my other half is expecting

Tormato · October 29, 2014

There's likely no way of tracking down the source. The swap two years ago was single packs or a bit more sent in, with probably a dozen or more sources. If you still have the original label, maybe there's a slight chance. It took me more than a year to track down the original source of the NOT Red Brandywine that is now the pink Seek-No-Further Love Apple. My finding the source was a fluke, to boot.

Gary

KathyDC · November 3, 2014

I did manage to find the original package, it's labeled as from "happygardener23."

mike · February 4, 2015

Excuse my intrusion into this thread, but can someone please explain why this is even a discussion in the first place.

In an earlier thread, it was described that this "mystery" tomato was simply a mislabeled packet of seeds and that it did not produce 'Red Brandywine' as labeled. With no way of knowing what the variety was, the logical and conscientious thing to do is to simply notify the vendor of the mistake (so they have the opportunity to fix the problem), enjoy the harvest of the fruit that was produced, and throw our the remained of the mislabeled seed.

The seed in that packet, although a mystery, is certainly not a new variety. What the world does not need is another renamed pink beefsteak tomato. There is no 'Seek-No-Further Love Apple' variety.

October 24, 2014	#1
KathyDC Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Suburban Washington, DC (Zone 7A) Posts: 347	Mystery beefsteak Hello tomato friends! I received as part of a swap a tomato that I thought was going to be Pink Berkeley Tie Dye. It definitely was not! But I have no idea what it actually is. So for now I'm calling it Rainier Red. Whatever it is, the tomato has done very well for me the past two years. It's definitely not a cross, because it came up true this year as well. It's a fairly prolific red beefsteak, averaging around 12oz (but which can get over 1 lb) that has green shoulders until it's almost overripe. Delicious, meaty, relatively more resistant to fungus issues than some of my other plants. Someone compared it to Marianna's Peace, but I've never grown that before. I'd welcome anyone who might like to give it a try, and tell me what they think it could be or compares to. I've attached a few pictures here. Anyone who's interested in growing it out, let me know and I'll send you some seeds, with a request that you keep me updated next year! PS, sorry these are sideways! Last edited by KathyDC; October 24, 2014 at 06:41 PM.

October 24, 2014	#4
green_go Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Canada, Ontario, z5a Posts: 142	Sometimes we get surprises from swaps. I got a big orange beefsteak surprise from the tomato seed which was supposed to be a cherry tomato. Tasted pretty good too, though it was late to ripen. __________________ Gala

October 24, 2014	#5
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	Kathy, was the swap one of Tormato's ( Gary) from here? If so why not ask him if he could find the person who sent him the seeds. Others have done that when they get something that wasn 't what it sould be and sometimes he can help and other times, no. If not from here anywhere else you did a swap you could do the same thing. How many plants of it did you put out, for it could well be a stray seed of an already known variety, so I think it's maybe a bit premature to name it before you can find out more about it. Carolyn __________________ Carolyn

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October 24, 2014	#2
habitat_gardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: California Central Valley Posts: 2,543	Photo of sliced tomato? Marianna's is pink. The fluting is reminiscent of Cuostralee, but mine don't have green shoulders or a bellybutton. Doesn't look like anything else I've grown.

October 25, 2014	#6
KathyDC Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Suburban Washington, DC (Zone 7A) Posts: 347	Carolyn, hello! The last time I was active on the board you were under the weather so I am glad to see you back in action again. Yes, it was one of his swaps - I never thought to ask so thank you for the suggestion! I found the pack yesterday that it came from as I was organizing my seeds, and unfortunately it didn't have any sort of identifier on it such as a name, but it's still worth a shot. I have so far put out two plants, one the first year that was a surprise, and one this year which was true, so I suspect it in fact is a known variety, not a cross or such - so I take your point!! It's mostly for my own convenience. "Mystery red beefsteak" doesn't sound very good!! In any case, the mystery continues...

October 27, 2014	#8
KathyDC Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Suburban Washington, DC (Zone 7A) Posts: 347	That's a big commitment in my relatively small garden but this particular plant is good enough that I wouldn't mind giving it that kind of space. Thank you!

October 28, 2014	#9
newgardener_tx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: austin, tx Posts: 249	Your plants and fruits are beautiful. What kind of mix do you use in the pot? I have tried many kinds, none of them works so far in the hot Texas weather.

October 29, 2014	#12
KathyDC Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Suburban Washington, DC (Zone 7A) Posts: 347	Maf, that's a good idea, and thank you! I am planning on putting in a bed and probably doing away with my bucket system for next year, which should help with overall space. I can also sneak in a bigger bed than what my other half is expecting

October 29, 2014	#13
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	There's likely no way of tracking down the source. The swap two years ago was single packs or a bit more sent in, with probably a dozen or more sources. If you still have the original label, maybe there's a slight chance. It took me more than a year to track down the original source of the NOT Red Brandywine that is now the pink Seek-No-Further Love Apple. My finding the source was a fluke, to boot. Gary

November 3, 2014	#14
KathyDC Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Suburban Washington, DC (Zone 7A) Posts: 347	I did manage to find the original package, it's labeled as from "happygardener23."

February 4, 2015	#15
mike Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Oregon Posts: 18	Excuse my intrusion into this thread, but can someone please explain why this is even a discussion in the first place. In an earlier thread, it was described that this "mystery" tomato was simply a mislabeled packet of seeds and that it did not produce 'Red Brandywine' as labeled. With no way of knowing what the variety was, the logical and conscientious thing to do is to simply notify the vendor of the mistake (so they have the opportunity to fix the problem), enjoy the harvest of the fruit that was produced, and throw our the remained of the mislabeled seed. The seed in that packet, although a mystery, is certainly not a new variety. What the world does not need is another renamed pink beefsteak tomato. There is no 'Seek-No-Further Love Apple' variety.