A Colorful Market Table - Page 2

joseph · July 19, 2014

Around here it's hard to sell any slicing tomato that isn't round and primary red.

Cherry tomatoes of various colors look great on a table at market, but the labor to pick them makes them uneconomical for anything other than a splash of color.

Cole_Robbie · July 20, 2014

Just give a sample. They taste great. People have no choice but to love them.

I'm a very small-time market grower, so my time isn't worth much. I spent about six hours picking and washing, and I made roughly $200 from the cherries. Obviously there are expenses to grow them, too, but I've already paid them, so I'm happy to get that money back at least.

clkeiper · July 20, 2014

Cole robbi! That was fabulous selection of cherry toms. How many do you plant to have that many at a time? what/how many varieties do you have? Thanks for the info. It is so hard to guess at how many of what to plant and plan on for the market.

Cole_Robbie · July 20, 2014

Thanks. Most of my plants are in one 50-ft row, about 18 or so. I don't have more than 2-3 plants of any one variety.

They are the Artisan mix from Johnny's, plus white cherry, sungold, Chang li (Chinese yellow pear), Dancing with Smurfs, and Joe Laurer's Pink German Egg. I would have black cherry, too, but those plants got set out too late and didn't produce well.

I think I'm finally confident in my variety selections. Now I need to get better at providing more consistent irrigation to combat blossom end rot. I lost a lot of the oblong-shaped fruit to BER.

clkeiper · July 20, 2014

I am envious! They are beautiful. well done. I did sun sugar, sun gold, lemon drop, orange sunshine, sweet olive, a green cherry ( I hope) and some 4th of July.... I hope mine look as nice as yours when they start producing.

joseph · July 20, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I think I'm finally confident in my variety selections. Now I need to get better at providing more consistent irrigation to combat blossom end rot. I lost a lot of the oblong-shaped fruit to BER.

If you made different variety selections you wouldn't have to get better at providing more consistent irrigation... There are tomato varieties that rarely if ever get BER in spite of inconsistent irrigation.

Salsacharley · July 20, 2014

I'm going to market this coming Thursday with Knopka, Ambrosia Red, Sungold, Gold Nugget, Sugar Drop, Submarine Blush, Jan's, Bosque Green Cherry, Elfin (if enough are ready), Yellow Pair, Black Pear, Chocolate Pear, Green Pear, Ivory Pear, Purple Pear, Black Cherry, Starfire Isis, Maglia Rosa, Blush, and a bunch of different Tigers, Blues and Bumblebees. I will probably only have a pint or so of each, but they should look spectacular. I only have a few ripe big varieties but I need to get my space at the market established. I'm also going to charge more for a full pint of cherries than their equivalent weight in big varieties.

Cole_Robbie · July 20, 2014

Thanks again, Carolyn.

Neat varieties, Charley, I will have to look into those. If you could take pics, I would love to see them.

And Joseph, I don't disagree at all. I'm just very partial to the varieties that got BER. I love eating them, because of how good they taste, and that's what makes them so much fun to sell.

clkeiper · July 20, 2014

Cole Robbie, how does that dancing with smurfs taste?

Cole_Robbie · July 21, 2014

It's ok. I wouldn't call it amazing, but it's not bad.

bower · July 21, 2014

Cole Robbie, your tomatoes look fantastic!

The market here is somewhere in the middle - most people still want a round red tomato, but there's enough interest to sell other coloured heirlooms and mixed cherries, no worries about coming home with unsold produce... especially anything as good looking as yours.

Cole_Robbie · July 21, 2014

Thanks Bower

AKmark · July 21, 2014

I bet you cant grow enough of those cherries to satisfy the people, your color mix looked really awesome. People just love the colors and the different types, the cherries usually hook them, and then they try other stuff too. Nice!

Cole_Robbie · July 21, 2014

Thanks, Mark. I started selling a color mix of cherries last year, and this year there are two other vendors with similar products. The Artisan mix really puts me over the top competition-wise.

Cole_Robbie · July 30, 2014

My table this afternoon:
http://i.imgur.com/2kdcjT8.jpg

I think I'm going to drop the Sungold for next year so I can call it an heirloom/OP mix. Another tough call is Black Cherry, which I like, but I like Purple Bumble Bee better. Maybe I will try Chocolate Cherry in place of Black Cherry next year.

July 20, 2014	#18
clkeiper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ohio Posts: 4,350	Cole robbi! That was fabulous selection of cherry toms. How many do you plant to have that many at a time? what/how many varieties do you have? Thanks for the info. It is so hard to guess at how many of what to plant and plan on for the market. __________________ carolyn k

July 20, 2014	#20
clkeiper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ohio Posts: 4,350	I am envious! They are beautiful. well done. I did sun sugar, sun gold, lemon drop, orange sunshine, sweet olive, a green cherry ( I hope) and some 4th of July.... I hope mine look as nice as yours when they start producing. __________________ carolyn k Last edited by clkeiper; July 20, 2014 at 09:49 PM.

July 20, 2014	#24
clkeiper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ohio Posts: 4,350	Cole Robbie, how does that dancing with smurfs taste? __________________ carolyn k

July 19, 2014	#16
joseph Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: Cache Valley, N/E of The Great Salt Lake Posts: 1,244	Around here it's hard to sell any slicing tomato that isn't round and primary red. Cherry tomatoes of various colors look great on a table at market, but the labor to pick them makes them uneconomical for anything other than a splash of color.

July 20, 2014	#17
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	Just give a sample. They taste great. People have no choice but to love them. I'm a very small-time market grower, so my time isn't worth much. I spent about six hours picking and washing, and I made roughly $200 from the cherries. Obviously there are expenses to grow them, too, but I've already paid them, so I'm happy to get that money back at least.

July 20, 2014	#22
Salsacharley Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: New Mexico Posts: 2,052	I'm going to market this coming Thursday with Knopka, Ambrosia Red, Sungold, Gold Nugget, Sugar Drop, Submarine Blush, Jan's, Bosque Green Cherry, Elfin (if enough are ready), Yellow Pair, Black Pear, Chocolate Pear, Green Pear, Ivory Pear, Purple Pear, Black Cherry, Starfire Isis, Maglia Rosa, Blush, and a bunch of different Tigers, Blues and Bumblebees. I will probably only have a pint or so of each, but they should look spectacular. I only have a few ripe big varieties but I need to get my space at the market established. I'm also going to charge more for a full pint of cherries than their equivalent weight in big varieties.

July 21, 2014	#25
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	It's ok. I wouldn't call it amazing, but it's not bad.

July 21, 2014	#26
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	Cole Robbie, your tomatoes look fantastic! The market here is somewhere in the middle - most people still want a round red tomato, but there's enough interest to sell other coloured heirlooms and mixed cherries, no worries about coming home with unsold produce... especially anything as good looking as yours.

July 21, 2014	#28
AKmark Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Wasilla Alaska Posts: 2,010	I bet you cant grow enough of those cherries to satisfy the people, your color mix looked really awesome. People just love the colors and the different types, the cherries usually hook them, and then they try other stuff too. Nice!

July 30, 2014	#30
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	My table this afternoon: http://i.imgur.com/2kdcjT8.jpg I think I'm going to drop the Sungold for next year so I can call it an heirloom/OP mix. Another tough call is Black Cherry, which I like, but I like Purple Bumble Bee better. Maybe I will try Chocolate Cherry in place of Black Cherry next year.