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Old October 10, 2012   #16
dice
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"Value-added food processors can just add some 'tomato flavor'
to it. Catsup is 'catsup flavored', it does not matter if the original
tomatoes were tasteless or not. Processed tomatoes in
end products are a much larger market than fresh tomatoes,
so that is what plant breeders have targeted."

That would be my guess.
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Old October 11, 2012   #17
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I think a lot of people just don't realize what good food, (whether it is tomatoes, peppers or meat), actually tastes like. Anything that comes from the grocery store is what a vast majority of people thinks that is just what the food always tastes like. No wonder that they need salt, sugar and fat to make it palatable, huh?
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Old November 27, 2012   #18
Cole_Robbie
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My commercial pick right now would be Sunshine F1 from Seminis. But what stinks is that I only want about 100 seeds, yet the smallest quantity I can find is 500 from Harris for an eye-popping $38.50.
I just looked at tomato grower's supply, and they at least sell small quantities. The early red determinates they offer which interest me are:

Better Bush
Bush Beefsteak
Bush Early Girl
Legend
New Yorker
Oregon Spring
Red Rocket
Siletz
Sugar Baby

I had Bush Early Girl last year. I did not realize that it is a determinate.

Territorial has 'Beaverlodge' which I had great luck with outdoors and might try in containers as well. They say it's a 55-day determinate with "compact growth," but it seems like my plants got gigantic last summer and resembled a sprawling indeterminate.

If anyone has input on anything from the TGS list above, that would be great. I'd also love to hear from anyone who's grown the Sunshine F1. It's supposed to be from the "sunrise" family.
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Old November 27, 2012   #19
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I grew Oregon Spring two years ago. I wasn't willing to eat more than one of them. Mine were mealy, bland and I thought the skin was a little tough. Hardly big enough to slice and too large to call a salad tomato. I didn't try it last year. I should again, just to be fair, though. If you wanted them for sauce or cooking they would probably be fine. Just my opinion.
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Old November 27, 2012   #20
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Thank you. That's exactly what I was looking for in the way of reviews. That's one less variety I have to try.

I'm theorizing that if the seed company does not say something positive about the flavor in the description of the variety, it's probably going to be awful. The Sunshine description says "good for vine-ripe production." I wonder if that means it tastes ok?
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Old November 27, 2012   #21
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I have never heard of sunshine. I buy from several seed vendors and it is not listed in any of my catalogs. The one is a commercial supplier only and has a fairly extensive list to choose from.

The year I grew legend it rained EVERY day. It really didn't do very well in our weather that year, I know someone else who says it is a great tomato for him. There are factors we just can't control sometimes.


O.S. was in a high tunnel the same year so I had no weather issues with foliar related disease.
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Old November 27, 2012   #22
Keger
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie View Post
My commercial pick right now would be Sunshine F1 from Seminis. But what stinks is that I only want about 100 seeds, yet the smallest quantity I can find is 500 from Harris for an eye-popping $38.50.
I just looked at tomato grower's supply, and they at least sell small quantities. The early red determinates they offer which interest me are:

Better Bush
Bush Beefsteak
Bush Early Girl
Legend
New Yorker
Oregon Spring
Red Rocket
Siletz
Sugar Baby

I had Bush Early Girl last year. I did not realize that it is a determinate.

Territorial has 'Beaverlodge' which I had great luck with outdoors and might try in containers as well. They say it's a 55-day determinate with "compact growth," but it seems like my plants got gigantic last summer and resembled a sprawling indeterminate.

If anyone has input on anything from the TGS list above, that would be great. I'd also love to hear from anyone who's grown the Sunshine F1. It's supposed to be from the "sunrise" family.
Bro I dont know about your part of the country, but I did Red Rocket this year and they were first, but not that productive. Maybe better where you are, I just dont know.
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Old November 27, 2012   #23
Cole_Robbie
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I suspected that, thanks. The pic I saw of a plant did look small.
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Old November 28, 2012   #24
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Polfast from Pinetree will set a bunch early. However, I think they may have replaced it. About 5 oz, deep red, with good midseason flavor. This is from the hoop house the year before last.

Lee
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Old November 28, 2012   #25
Cole_Robbie
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Great pic. Thanks. I have had "polbig." I didn't realize the 'pol' was short for Polish.
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Old November 28, 2012   #26
dice
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I grew Siletz last year. The plant looked like Lee's picture of Polfast,
with maybe a bit more leaf cover. Flavor was what I think of as
commercial: not sweet, not zingy, but I have had many far blander
tomatoes. Fruit were a bit large to can, many would not fit through
the mouth of a wide-mouth mason jar without forcing them. It was
legitimately early. I grew it in a spot where verticillium killed Danko
the year before, and Siletz did not flinch.

New Yorker has a bit more flavor and smaller fruit, about
the same DTM.
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Old November 30, 2012   #27
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Thanks dice.

I just recently realized that "tumbling tom," which was one of my hanging basket varieties, is indeterminate. I thought they were awful to eat, but I have had customers coming back saying how much they liked to eat them, and that they loved how the plant lasted all summer. They were eager to buy more hanging basket plants next year, so I'm going to grow them again.

I didn't realize that there was such a thing as an indeterminate that would do well in a smaller container. Are the "dwarf" indeterminates similar? Customers wanting container plants really hate the way that determinates die on them, even though that is what they are meant to do.

Last edited by Cole_Robbie; November 30, 2012 at 01:22 AM.
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Old November 30, 2012   #28
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Shipability(longkeeping and bruise resistance...ie firm), disease resistance, and the ability to be picked by machine is top priority in many commercial vegetable varieties. Taste is secondary...

People who were raised on big box store tomatoes aren't too fussy. I see a lot of them throw produce in their cart without even looking it over.
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Old December 1, 2012   #29
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Have you considered Sibirskiy Skorospelyi (Siberian Precocious) ?
Heritage tomato seed has it

http://heritagetomatoseed.com/heirlo...y-skorospelyi/

It was actually Steve at Heritage that put me on to it... Maybe close to what you are looking for?
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Old December 1, 2012   #30
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Tania has it also and it is fairly early here in AK.
Sue
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