Dulcinea Rosso Bruno

[angelique]

Hi All,

I just returned home from Bel Air Market. In the veggy section, they are selling Dulcinea Rosso Bruno Tomato ("Premium Vine Fresh Tomato"). For two of these small-medium tomatoes, it cost 2.00 on sale. They are sold in a read red mesh bag that reads:


"Once upon a time, a young, Italian farmer was smitten with a charming village girl. Smart, funny and kind, she was constantly courted by many suitors. Because the farmer couldn't compete with the baubles other men bestowed, he went to his fields to create a jewel based on the characteristics that captured his heart...Blending an assortment of tomato varieties, he crafted a masterpiece in honor of his beloved..."

And the story goes on. Anyhow, does anyone know anything about this variety of tomato? Is it worth keeping the seeds to try to plant next year?

Thank you for your help.

Cheers,

Angelique

P.S. Did I get suckered by a cheesy story?

P.P.S. These tomatoes are from Canada.

[PNW_D]

Angelique,

I too came across these tomatoes at our local Choices store a few weeks back, and couldn't resist. I think mine were on sale too for $2.00. If you look in the top part of the red sleeve you may find a coupon for future purchases :-)

Anyhoo, I love black tomatoes, and for greenhouse (grown in nearby Delta) store bought they were OK. I think mine may have been somewhat overripe - their advice is to eat them on the green side - check out the pictures.

I did save seed, but note their website indicates F1, so who knows.

Here is the link:

http://www.dulcinea.com/rosso_bruno_faq.html

[angelique]

Hi PNW_D,

Thanks for the advice. I just ate one. It was nice and tart (center), but the texture was horribly "mushy". I plan on saving the seeds just because. I'll try to grow them next year.

Angelique

[feldon30]

I saw these here in Houston at Central Market and at HEB Louetta @ Steubner/Veterans.

My favorite part "And our tomatoes are pollinated by bees."

[travis]

"My favorite part: 'And our tomatoes are pollinated by bees.'" [feldon]

In fact, this particular tomato is grown in greenhouses in the PNW and California. Mechanical or introduced natural pollinators are necessary to produce fruit in greenhouse tomato culture.

Pollination of Greenhouse Tomatoes

"Tomato plants have both male and female reproductive organs on the same flower, so with a little help, each flower can self-pollinate. In the natural environment, wind and insects pollinate tomatoes. In a greenhouse environment, more attention must be paid to the pollination process to ensure maximum fruit set. Today, tomatoes are pollinated in greenhouses either by bumblebees or by mechanical pollinators.

"Mechanical pollination is done with a battery-powered, hand-held pollinator or by electric vibrating benches. The hand-held pollinators are labor-intensive. Workers have to hand pollinate each plant two or three days each week during flowering. Vibration benches work on an automatic timer and do not require much labor after installation, but they are expensive and not cost-effective for small- to medium-scale growers.

"Mechanical pollination of tomatoes was predominant in U.S. and Canadian greenhouses until the mid-90s, when the use of bumblebees was adopted from European growers. Today, most greenhouse tomato growers in North America are using bumblebees, which work every day of the week, selecting only the flowers that are ready to pollinate. Bumblebees can pollinate up to 30 flowers a minute. It is not unusual to have 100% pollination, which results in higher yields than are achieved with mechanical methods.

"Bumblebees are mild-mannered and easy to work with; they rarely sting without provocation. They start a new colony each year, with only a single queen hibernating over the winter. This queen then starts a new colony in the spring. By mid-summer the colony can number in the hundreds. At the end of the summer the bees begin to die out and the process starts over again. However, due to breakthroughs in bumblebee breeding, full-strength colonies of bumblebees are now available year round.

"For commercial production, the bees are shipped by airfreight and placed in the greenhouse as the first flowers begin to open. Stocking rate varies from one hive for a small greenhouse to two to four hives per acre for larger facilities. The hives are usually replaced every 8 to 12 weeks as the colony begins to die out. There are two primary species of bees produced in Canada and the United States: Bombus occidentalis for the west and B. impatiens for the east.

"According to the USDA and AgCanada, the dividing line is at the 100th meridian, which runs through the middle of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, and the Dakotas. To avoid confusion, the USDA has classified these states as 'eastern' states in the case of bees. Bees West, Inc., supplies western species, and Koppert Biological Systems, Inc., supplies eastern species."

Source: http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/ghto...ml#pollination

[gardengalrn]

This is off-topic but I couldn't resist. Angelique, I love your pic!! Your dogs are adorable. I have a black lab myself and when I saw your pic I envisioned that you were holding some sort of treat for them...labs are so driven by their stomachs!!

[angelique]

Hi Gardengalrn,

Thank you. Momo is the chocolate lab and ziggy is the curly coated retriever. The lab, is definitely food driven. Once when DH and I went on vacation, he gained 5lbs in 4 days by begging my grandpa for more food. No Joke. Ziggy (the CCR) is not very food driven. However, when Momo is around, he chomps down on his food so Momo won't take it. In fact, Ziggy is a very slow and delicate eater when Momo isn't around. The CCR is definitely a more picky eater too.

Cheers,

Angelique

P.S. DH took the pic. You're right, I couldn/t have pulled it off without food.

[gardengalrn]

LOL, I can totally understand that. One year we were going to my parents in Maine and a friend who had a lab offered to care for Jake. I told her not to leave food down, he is the type you delve it out at breakfast and supper, not all the time. She didn't believe me since her dog had never been like that. LOL, she learned it quick enough. He ate himself sick within hours of us dropping him off. We got him as a stray when he was about 2 yrs old so I don't know his history but I'm sure that has something to do with it. Still, every time I see your picture I smile because I can practically hear the wheels turning in their heads, LOL.