Hybrid Paste tomato or best paste overall

[MendozaMark]

Originally Posted by Gardadore

How do hearts do in your part of the world? I have been completely converted to making sauce from them as opposed to the pastes. My sauces this summer have been sweet but full flavored. I use the oven roasting method and I also oven dry tomatoes.

One of the most prolific was Fish Lake Oxheart, large robust red. Others that are delicious are Anna Maria's Heart, Anna Russian, Joe's Pink Oxheart, Kosovo and Amish Paste (actually a heart). A good paste for me has been Ernie's Plump, a double pear and quite prolific. These are,of course, larger than the pastes, but then you need less tomatoes to make the same amount of sauce.

Tanya has a wonderful list of oxhearts to consider at http://t.tatianastomatobase.com:88/w...haped_Tomatoes

I wish you luck in your project. Your friend should be amazed at the difference in flavor between the regular pastes and the hearts, especially after they are cooked down.

This is my first year trying any OPs or heirlooms. I did get some cherokee purple seeds at an outrageous price last year in Argentina. Unfortunately, they ended up red, ribbed and were the biggest disease magnet. Everything I have grown here was from collected seed from fresh tomatoes. Thats how i can tell you most of the round reds are hybrids here.

I did bring seeds of Anna Russian, but they never germinated after 2 tries. Most of the seed I got was from good vendors, but a couple i got from ebay before I discovered tomatoville. I have German red strawberry and they are looking decent. I also have Fish lake on my 2016 wish list. So i am not sure if they will do well. Other then cherries I am trying to keep everything early to mid season. I do use shade cloth but temps get crazy hot here in the desert from December to Feb. I am also Canadian, so I shut down too in those temps.

The hearts have really intrigued me though and I wish I had more varieties on hand to try. I am just starting to collect seed back in Canada for my 2016 visit, so I will try to get a few hearts. The shorter season ones would be better but a great tomato must be tried regardless some times. Thanks for the advice and encouragement.

[ABlindHog]

I forgot to mention Chico III is a bushy plant that is about 2' tall. I live in a very windy place so I do cage them but under normal conditions it would probably not be necessary.

[MendozaMark]

Originally Posted by ABlindHog

Chico III was developed by Paul Leeper to grow in the hot dry Rio Grande Vally in Texas. It is a determinate OP 3-4 oz paste tomato with well balanced flavor that cans very well. I generally get two flushes of ripe tomatoes, first a large flush at about 65 days and a smaller one at about 80 days. I recommend Chico III very highly. Leeper later developed a larger version called Chico Grande. It produces 6-8 oz fruit and is otherwise similar to Chico III. I have not grown Chico Grande so I can not recommend it but if you need the larger size it would be worth investigating.

Excellent, I will put Chico III on my wish list, I really like the 65 day and the fact it does well in the Texas heat. I will probably try the Chico Grande too.

This really is an addiction, 70 varieties ready to roll out and i am working on 2016...lol.

[MendozaMark]

Thanks to the generous Cole_Robbie i did score some George Detsikas Italian Red seeds that do make a few hearts. I am really excited about that one, as well as, the other varieties he is sending.

[MendozaMark]

Originally Posted by ABlindHog

I forgot to mention Chico III is a bushy plant that is about 2' tall. I live in a very windy place so I do cage them but under normal conditions it would probably not be necessary.

Even better then ! We get Zonda winds off the Andes mountains here. 3 years ago on Xmas eve it blew one side of my fence down. I spent Xmas day rebuilding the fence.

Just reread your message, 2 feet is sheltered from the wind in my yard because of the dog fencing. My neighbour grows his tomatoes in between olive trees so he has good wind shelter too.

[MendozaMark]

I promise i will post some pics once i finish up my vast amount of yard projects. I am in the middle of building raised gardens which requires fencing so I my dogs don't destroy them. I have been doing a lot stone work here too, although i am self- taught so don't expect a masterpiece.
It looks like Fred Flintstone had a cage match with Paul Bunyan, wood and rocks everywhere.

[salix]

Mark, sending a p.m.

[clkeiper]

Even if you aren't planning to stake them... staking them saves an awful lot of fruit from laying on the ground and rotting/bug damage etc. even a stake with the main stem tied to it would make a difference in the return on the crop. Even if it is just a tree branch whittled to a point and pounded in if at all possible. I didn't stake my romas ( I ran out of cages and stakes) and they were beautiful mounds until they all got heavy enough to pull the plant down. Now I am digging through the plants to pick and tossing way more than I want to from bug damage and rotting from being in contact with the ground.

[MendozaMark]

Originally Posted by clkeiper

Even if you aren't planning to stake them... staking them saves an awful lot of fruit from laying on the ground and rotting/bug damage etc. even a stake with the main stem tied to it would make a difference in the return on the crop. Even if it is just a tree branch whittled to a point and pounded in if at all possible. I didn't stake my romas ( I ran out of cages and stakes) and they were beautiful mounds until they all got heavy enough to pull the plant down. Now I am digging through the plants to pick and tossing way more than I want to from bug damage and rotting from being in contact with the ground.

I agree completely and I stake all my tomatoes. Sometimes I am guilty of not tying them to the stakes in a timely fashion but the stakes are always there. It is my Argentinian neighbour who has been growing his determinate pastes for many years without staking. I will be teaching him staking as i am giving him lots of indeterminates to trial, but there is no guarantee he will stake his pastes. I will try my best but my Spanish is not very good and things get lost in translation.

Cheers

Mark