Old Time Tomatoes - Page 4

loulac · August 28, 2013

Since Marmande and Saint Pierre have aroused some interest I’ll add some details. I started growing them in the fifties, following my father’s example. They are still leaders among gardeners who refuse to grow hybrids.
Marmande has been named after the town where it was first grown in the south west of France from 1870 onwards when vineyards had been destroyed by phylloxera (an American gift !). It can be found in a seed catalog in 1926.
The origin of Saint Pierre is not known but it is found in a Vilmorin catalog in 1880.

I was quite hasty to say that they were sold by US seed sellers. Some quote them, describe them, but don’t sell them.
A few tips
http://www.rareseeds.com/marmande-tomato/?F_Sort=1 Marmande is on sale but not SP
http://davesgarden.com/community/tra...xt=PFPID:98492 SP can be traded here.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/30898/ Marmande can be traded there but it is described as being a hybrid. I’m not sure it is the original brand.

I’ll try to make myself useful :
If a Tomatovilian is interested in testing those varieties I’ll be glad to send him / her seeds that he / she will share with those who will be interested. I’m vacationing far from home now so I can’t send anything for a while but I’ll keep trace of PM’s.

Alfredo · August 28, 2013

Loulac, interesting background info on those varieties and thanks for the offer, I hope you're having a good time on your vacation

.

I would take you up on the offer for seed but I really only buy my seeds from the smaller seed companies to give them some support in the good work they're doing trying to preserve some of the heirloom varieties.

By the way, the seed company Franchi Sementi sells both Marmande and St.Pierre (and their descriptions seem to match yours). They're Italy's oldest family-owned seed company. The seed packs they sell usually have a very generous amount of seed too at a very reasonable price I think. The Marmande seed pack has 325 seeds while the St.Pierre has 500 seeds in it. Much more seed than what most other seed companies sell for at the price they have it at.

Here in the U.S., the company "Seeds From Italy" is the exclusive mail-order distributor for Franchi Sementi seeds. They're based out of Lawerence, Kansas. In case any tomatovillians want to check them out, their website is www.growitalian.com

August 28, 2013	#47
Alfredo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Clifton, NJ Posts: 554	Loulac, interesting background info on those varieties and thanks for the offer, I hope you're having a good time on your vacation . I would take you up on the offer for seed but I really only buy my seeds from the smaller seed companies to give them some support in the good work they're doing trying to preserve some of the heirloom varieties. By the way, the seed company Franchi Sementi sells both Marmande and St.Pierre (and their descriptions seem to match yours). They're Italy's oldest family-owned seed company. The seed packs they sell usually have a very generous amount of seed too at a very reasonable price I think. The Marmande seed pack has 325 seeds while the St.Pierre has 500 seeds in it. Much more seed than what most other seed companies sell for at the price they have it at. Here in the U.S., the company "Seeds From Italy" is the exclusive mail-order distributor for Franchi Sementi seeds. They're based out of Lawerence, Kansas. In case any tomatovillians want to check them out, their website is www.growitalian.com __________________ ~Alfredo Last edited by Alfredo; August 28, 2013 at 12:52 PM.

August 28, 2013	#46
loulac Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: France Posts: 554	Since Marmande and Saint Pierre have aroused some interest I’ll add some details. I started growing them in the fifties, following my father’s example. They are still leaders among gardeners who refuse to grow hybrids. Marmande has been named after the town where it was first grown in the south west of France from 1870 onwards when vineyards had been destroyed by phylloxera (an American gift !). It can be found in a seed catalog in 1926. The origin of Saint Pierre is not known but it is found in a Vilmorin catalog in 1880. I was quite hasty to say that they were sold by US seed sellers. Some quote them, describe them, but don’t sell them. A few tips http://www.rareseeds.com/marmande-tomato/?F_Sort=1 Marmande is on sale but not SP http://davesgarden.com/community/tra...xt=PFPID:98492 SP can be traded here. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/30898/ Marmande can be traded there but it is described as being a hybrid. I’m not sure it is the original brand. I’ll try to make myself useful : If a Tomatovilian is interested in testing those varieties I’ll be glad to send him / her seeds that he / she will share with those who will be interested. I’m vacationing far from home now so I can’t send anything for a while but I’ll keep trace of PM’s.