Matina and Wisconsin 55

[KLorentz]

I need some opinions on these two. Was wondering what the flavor was like etc.


Kevin

[velikipop]

Highly recommend Wisconsin 55. Great flavour though my plant did not produce a lot of fruit as it did for others. I think it is one of those great all purpose tomatoes.

[carolyn137]

Kevin had asked me about these two in a PM and I encouraged him to post it in a thread so he would get, hopefully, different opinions about them.

Here's what I wrote in my PM to Kevin:

Matina, known as Tamina in Europe, a lookalike for Stupice, that is, small red fruits, PL foliage, but I think the taste of Matina is better. Matina is an old German commercial variety and Stupice was bred in Czeckoslovakia.

WI55 is a standard round red commercial variety and is about the same as Rutgers, New Yorker, Valiant, and many more with respect to fruit size, all are red, all are RL and all are quite reliable. I prefer an OP called Break O Day that fits into that same group.(adding here b/c I think the taste is better)

[rxkeith]

matina has been a pretty good and reliable cropper for me when i was living in da U.P. it has produced early, and over the entire growing season most years. i try to grow it every year. flavor is good for an early variety. i recommend it.


keith

[Wi-sunflower]

Wis 55 is a popular variety here in Wis.

But what many people don't know is that it was originally developed for growing in the rich black muck ground we have in certain places around the state. If you don't have a good rich growing area, it won't produce well at all.

Another problem with Wis 55 is that many people think the 55 stands for 55 days and means it's an early tomato. That's not the case at all. It's a medium to late tomato.

Last year I grew Russian Apple Tree. I know it's been said here that it's just another name for Matina, but I grew both and the RAT was definitely better and different. The RAT was planted 1 day after the Matina but ripened about 3-5 days earlier and were noticeably larger. Not big but maybe 1/2 - 1 oz bigger than the Matinas. I had about a flat of each in my field and they were only a couple of rows apart so had similar conditions.

Both varieties produced all season even tho we had a cool crummy summer.

Carol

[OneoftheEarls]

I would try that WI 55, also comes in Gold

similar in size are:
Bellstar
Bloody Butcher
Bonnie Best-good taste/produce
Bradley
Break O'Day as Carolyn mentioned
Canabec Super-never fails for me
Crimson Sprinter
Druzba-good taste/produce
Early Wonder
Farmer Reds-good taste/producer
Fireworks
Legend-good taste/produce
Magnus-pink
Marglobe
Manitoba
New Yorker
Old Brooks
Thessaloniki
Porter
Sub-Arctic Maxi

A few in that same niche...

[barkeater]

I liked Wisconsin 55 a lot, it was fairly early for me, but not real productive. Similar in flavor and DTM, and more productive for me were Old Brooks and Campbells 1327.

[eyolf]

AS you're reading, Wi55 is kind of a plain-vanilla variety, very similar to a large number of others.

Not that that's bad.

Matina is much like a few others mentioned including"

Stupice
Kotlas
Kimberly
Bloody Butcher
and an Australian variety whose name escapes me for the moment...

All are early, productive, and flavor is quite good for an early tomatoe. I love Kotlas the best, but it isn't a great difference beween them. I call them "lunchbox " tomatoes: two bites, small plum sized, juts perfect for sticking in a box lunch. In my experience, they keep on producing starting early, and last well right up to frost.

[icelord]

There are a whole slew of tomatoes out there with the same look and taste, wisconsin 55 is one of those, I did well with rutgers.

Icelord

[carolyn137]

and an Australian variety whose name escapes me for the moment

****

I bet you're thinking of either Red Russian or possibly Grosse Lisse, and the latter is probably the variety Trophy renamed as has been discussed here and there before.