Druzba Maturity

[missionrandy]

Reading different posts on TV in regards to Druzba has got me curious. Many members have stated that Druzba is a midseason. Some state it matures between earlies and mids...

From my past experience this tomato seems to be a late variety compared to everything else in the garden.
Maybe I have received seed from the wrong sources!

Could someone tell me a reliable source for this variety!
I will give it a go once more, just to give it a chance...

Randy
Zone 7b

[feldon30]

I have not grown it (if I'd grown 5 more vars, it would have been in there) but from what I recall of comments, it takes a while to get going and then kicks into overdrive.

The vast majority of listers in the SSE Yearbook for 2007 give it 85 days maturity, which is squarely in the late season group.

[PaulF]

Last year was the first year in a while for me and first time in SE Ne. Transplanted to outside soil on May 23. First ripe fruit on August 4. The average size was just over 5 oz and harvested a total of 34 tomatoes from one plant. If my calendar count is correct, that is 74 days to first ripe Druzba. Mine were a little smaller than expected, but the flavor was quite good if I remember.

[missionrandy]

feldon27 and PaulF,

Thank-you for your info! I found each time I grew this variety it matured in late August, early September. Very vigorous plants, good tomato's, just not early enough to escape the late blight.

From a few posts on TV, members state this variety is earlier. Which gives me some hope that maybe I had a bad source. Everyone raves on the taste and production of this variety, so I thought I would give it one more try.
Late tomato won't work for me unless it has some resistance to late blight. I will not spray any of my tomato's!

Randy

[carolyn137]

Randy, you don't have a bad source of Druzba seeds if you're making that judgment strictly on a DTM, which is purely a mythical guesstimate anyway.

I've grown it many many times in my zone 4b/5a and it's always been a late midseason for me, usually 75 to 80 days.

DTM is pretty much unrealiable b'c of the different geographic places where folks grow the same variety, the soil, the amendments, the weather and all else, so a DTM based on growing it just once just cannot and is not reliable.

So use DTM's, if you must, as very loose guidelines. I mean I've had lates come in before mids and mids come in before earlies, in any given year, if you get my drift.

[missionrandy]

carolyn137,

Thank-you very much, I understand what you are saying!

Soil conditions, light, watering, temperatures have been the same for all plants in our main garden. Druzba just seems to come in later, which doesn't do me that much good.

Any recommendations on a full flavoured Heirloom Tomato, with abit more acid and mid-season!!!

Thanks,
Randy