Red Brandywine and Bucks County

Tomatovator · September 25, 2006

Anyone out there have experience growing both of these? I purchased Red Brandywine seeds from Heirloom Seeds for next Spring but I am concerned about production. I only have room for 8 to 10 plants. Should I expect more production from Bucks County compaired to Red Brandywine? I am also concerned about which one might taste better but with limited space my main concern is production.

barkeater · September 25, 2006

I have 2 growing side by side. The tomatoes are the same, but there is a big yield difference. Bucks showed its hybrid vigor early on as it was twice as big as Red BW after a month. Now at full growth, Bucks has about 1/3 more plant mass.

Here is the key difference: Bucks has yielded 19.69# vs. 8.26# of Red BW! There are still many left on both plants, at least 4# or more on each.

feldon30 · September 25, 2006

Tomatovator,

You may want to read this topic:
The Lowdown on Bucks County?

**carolyn137** · September 25, 2006

Unlike Barkeater I have seen no difference at all between true Red Brandywine and Buck's County Red and in the link Feldon gave I explained about the two and their relationship and the naming. At least I think I did b'c I didn't take the time to read thru everything, wanting to get my school taxes in the mail before the deadline.

Actually I compared Red Brandywine Hybrid ( now renamed Buck's County Red) plants with seeds of the same, both from Burpee when it was first introduced, with my own true OP Red Brandywine.

For a reliable round red with high yield and few to no blemishes you might want to also consider the OP's
Break O Day, Druzba and Bulgarian #7 in addition to true Red Brandywine and of course there are some others that meet the same criteria re a few hybrids.

MawkHawk · September 25, 2006

I grew 2 plants of Red Brandywine from Heirloom Seeds this year. Both plants grew very small for me, almost dwarf-like plants about 2' tall. I got only 3-4 fruits per plant as well. But taste was very good. I don't blame the company as I've purchased a lot of seeds from them and all have been fine. If you're concerned about production then this prolly shouldn't be on your list, IMHO.

Tomatovator · September 25, 2006

Mark
How long was it till you noticed the plants were not growing normally? Did you notice it when they were seedlings or did it take longer? Did you ask Heirloom Seeds for any info regarding the seeds they sold you? I wonder if there was a bad batch or something?

Since I already got the seeds for Red Brandywine I think I'll give them a try based on what Carolyn and Feldon have offered. Maybe I'll start more than I plan to grow and only plant the best 2 or 3.

**carolyn137** · September 25, 2006

Tom Hauch who owns Heirloom Seeds ( not Heirloom tomatoes.net) was the person who got Red Brandywine out of the SSE Yearbook many years ago and was the first to offer it commercially and prides himself on calling it his signature tomato variety.

A few years ago there were a few folks who were saying his seeds weren't right so I contacted him, asked for some seeds and grew them out along with my own RB. Again, they were identical.

There's all sorts of things that can make a variety not perform up to its capacity in any one season, which is why I say that if a variety comes to me well recommended or it's a variety I've read about that I have good expectations for, I always used to grow it at least a second year.

MawkHawk · September 26, 2006

Carolyn, I agree 100% with you. I'm not placing blame. Most of my fruits are quite a bit smaller this year over last year and my overall yield is down. This is all probably due to hot, dry midsummer weather, a mid-season deer attack, etc. Many of my plants are a bit smaller than last year as well. Some of my plants, like Pruden's Purple, are enormous. I'm just giving my observations for this year.

Maybe the Red Brandywines don't do well when it is too hot or too dry. It was very hot throughout July here and very dry.

They were fine as seedlings so I guess I first noticed that they were kind of small after a few weeks in garden. Ya know, tho, I think these might make excellent container plants in my little greenhouse, which I'm gonna try next season.

September 25, 2006	#1
Tomatovator Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Pennsylvania Zone 6 Posts: 461	Red Brandywine and Bucks County Anyone out there have experience growing both of these? I purchased Red Brandywine seeds from Heirloom Seeds for next Spring but I am concerned about production. I only have room for 8 to 10 plants. Should I expect more production from Bucks County compaired to Red Brandywine? I am also concerned about which one might taste better but with limited space my main concern is production.

September 25, 2006	#3
feldon30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Rock Hill, SC Posts: 5,346	Tomatovator, You may want to read this topic: The Lowdown on Bucks County? __________________ [SIZE="3"]I've relaunched my gardening website -- [B]TheUnconventionalTomato.com[/B][/SIZE] * [I][SIZE="1"]*I'm not allowed to post weblinks so you'll have to copy-paste it manually.[/SIZE][/I]

September 25, 2006	#4
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	Unlike Barkeater I have seen no difference at all between true Red Brandywine and Buck's County Red and in the link Feldon gave I explained about the two and their relationship and the naming. At least I think I did b'c I didn't take the time to read thru everything, wanting to get my school taxes in the mail before the deadline. Actually I compared Red Brandywine Hybrid ( now renamed Buck's County Red) plants with seeds of the same, both from Burpee when it was first introduced, with my own true OP Red Brandywine. For a reliable round red with high yield and few to no blemishes you might want to also consider the OP's Break O Day, Druzba and Bulgarian #7 in addition to true Red Brandywine and of course there are some others that meet the same criteria re a few hybrids. __________________ Carolyn

September 25, 2006	#5
MawkHawk Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Metro Detroit/Z6 Posts: 168	I grew 2 plants of Red Brandywine from Heirloom Seeds this year. Both plants grew very small for me, almost dwarf-like plants about 2' tall. I got only 3-4 fruits per plant as well. But taste was very good. I don't blame the company as I've purchased a lot of seeds from them and all have been fine. If you're concerned about production then this prolly shouldn't be on your list, IMHO. __________________ Mark

September 26, 2006	#8
MawkHawk Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Metro Detroit/Z6 Posts: 168	Carolyn, I agree 100% with you. I'm not placing blame. Most of my fruits are quite a bit smaller this year over last year and my overall yield is down. This is all probably due to hot, dry midsummer weather, a mid-season deer attack, etc. Many of my plants are a bit smaller than last year as well. Some of my plants, like Pruden's Purple, are enormous. I'm just giving my observations for this year. Maybe the Red Brandywines don't do well when it is too hot or too dry. It was very hot throughout July here and very dry. They were fine as seedlings so I guess I first noticed that they were kind of small after a few weeks in garden. Ya know, tho, I think these might make excellent container plants in my little greenhouse, which I'm gonna try next season. __________________ Mark

September 25, 2006	#2
barkeater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NE Kingdom, VT - Zone 3b Posts: 1,439	I have 2 growing side by side. The tomatoes are the same, but there is a big yield difference. Bucks showed its hybrid vigor early on as it was twice as big as Red BW after a month. Now at full growth, Bucks has about 1/3 more plant mass. Here is the key difference: Bucks has yielded 19.69# vs. 8.26# of Red BW! There are still many left on both plants, at least 4# or more on each.