OPALKA or San Marzano - Page 2

Fred Hempel · December 28, 2019

One other thing to note -- The name "San Marzano" has almost no meaning. It is an umbrella term for a type of tomato, and it is important to discuss which specific San Marzano (type) one is referring to.

For seed labeled as simply "San Marzano" I think one should refer to the seed source (company or person), because something labeled San Marzano without that is as useful as getting a tomato called Red Beefsteak.

biscuitridge · December 28, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by KarenO

Well Dan, every tomato you grow is big

Mine were smaller and quite late which might account for part of the trouble. I find the small guys are more susceptible to BER for me so I look for bigger
Earlier and quite a bit bigger for me was Polish linguisa, and last year I tried abbatista which was also quite early for its type with large meaty fruit. Another blocky lobed one I’ve grown that did well is Ardwyna. Some call that a heart but for m a very solid blocky lobed paste tomato
I got away from growing many pastes in favour of hearts in general and the majority of my “ paste space” has been taken up recently by a project I have of stabilizing an Oddly solid and dry grocery store hybrid. I’m starting another project this year as well. Fred’s Marzano fire looks great....! I better add that to the list to try as well.
If I was choosing between just Opalka and san Marzano I would grow Opalka but in a hot Texas season there is likely no comparison to my area. In general, choose bigger for less BER in my opinion (and I hate peeling little ones too)

Thanks Karen, I'll see if I can locate some seeds, appreciate your input!

KarenO · December 28, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by imp

Karen, if you have a vitamix or very good strong blender, no peeling. Or a food mill or screen attachment for a grinder - I think a member named Tom has used that before for getting rid of the skins.

I think I prefer the taste of the Marzano, but mostly like hearts for saucing. I'll use almost any tomato though if needed.

I’ve made a bit of sauce in my day. Not wishing to hi jack this thread but I’ll say
I have a vitamix and a mill which I use for some things but I don’t like a purée like a tomato smoothie for my sauce . So I peel them and then I can leave it a bit more texture which I like.
Since I peel them, I do prefer big tomatoes and also ones not prone to yellow shoulders which also make peeling harder.
KO

Tormato · December 30, 2019

Many people swear by the Squeezo Strainer. I've never heard anyone swear at it. It must be good.

TC_Manhattan · December 30, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tormato

Many people swear by the Squeezo Strainer. I've never heard anyone swear at it. It must be good.

I have an old Vitorio squeezo that I've used for years. It's a hand-crank one.

Heidi is one awesome and prolific paste tomato. Great sauce, great halved and roasted, and great eating fresh. What more could you want?
Plant a couple of these and you will be inundated with buckets of tomatoes once they get started producing.

It's great fun to trial other varieties, and there are loads of them.
But, I always have a couple of Heidi plants, too, just in case...

Father'sDaughter · December 30, 2019

If my six year old seeds are still good, Heidi is making a return to my garden this summer. I used to grow it in 5 gallon plastic grow bags and one year harvested nine pounds from one plant. I think I recall someone posting that Heidi was so dense it routinely clogged up their food strainer and they had to continually stop to clean the screen.

TomNJ · December 31, 2019

I actually count and weigh all of my tomatoes by variety by week, and keep a Tomato Count spreadsheet each year (yes, I know

).

I last grew Heidi in 2016 and it yielded 22 lbs/plant. My record for all tomatoes was Rio Grande, also in 2016, at 32 lbs/plant. That was a good year with an overall yield of 17.5 lbs/plant from eight varieties, but the San Marzano was a bust at only 8 lbs/plant. That may not be typical of the variety as there is a lot of variability among years and I don't recall what went wrong, but I haven't grown it since. Opalka that year came in at 15 lbs/plant and is usually in the middle of the pack.

I don't typically have a BER problem, perhaps because I mulch heavily for even moisture. Opalka ia a very late variety, so it is more susceptible to the annual variety of foliage diseases that I race against each year, giving it a somewhat shortened production window.

Kosovo, a beautiful large pink heart, tops my average yield list over the years, and I expect 18-24 lbs/plant each year (2016 for comparison yielded 22 lbs/plant). It is also my earliest tomato with the least blemishes and no catfacing. Great for eating or canning.

Food strainer screen clogging is more frequent with paste tomatoes due to thicker skins and a higher skin to volume ratio.

hornstrider · December 31, 2019

Thank you all for your imput. Please tell me more about Heidi plum tomato's. Where can I purchase the seeds?

Fred Hempel · December 31, 2019

https://www.victoryseeds.com/tomato_heidi.html

MrBig46 · January 1, 2020

DTM 90 days is bad for me. The first fruits would be harvested in September and that usually ends the season. Mostly I don't follow DTM, but also the pictures of mature Heidi on Tatiana's TOMATObase are all from mid-September, which is late for me (I'm like Tatiana on fifty parallel north latitude). Like Karen, I want to try the Marzano Fire with the DTM 70 listed and compare it with some other pastes (I don't know which yet).Probably Gilbertie, Opalka, San Marzano Gigante and maybe Scatolone. San Marzano 3 probably not. They are strongly prone to yellow shoulders.
Vladimír

Father'sDaughter · January 1, 2020

I just checked my records as I didn't recall it being late (I too avoid late varieties). Each year I grew Heidi I had a "first ripe" before the end of July on plants that went out in mid-May.

MrBig46 · January 1, 2020

For me it usually looks like this:
Planting seedlings 15.5.
First open flowers 1.6.
In addition, 90 days
First ripe fruit
15.9. first frost
How many of those tomatoes can I harvest?
Vladimír

kath · January 1, 2020

Heidi and Santa Maria were the 2 winners in my paste trial of dozens in 2016- for production, taste and total lack of BER. Both good enough to eat fresh, too.

I have lots of bagged seeds of Heidi from 2016, so if you'd like to try it just let me know.

kath

MrBig46 · January 6, 2020

I looked at Tatiana'sTOMATObase. In one post there is DTM 66 days, but it's from Augusta, which is completely different from me. But I'd still like to try.
Vladimír

hornstrider · January 11, 2020

How does Heidi compare to Juliet? From the pictures on the internet they look very similar in size and shape. I grow Juliet in the fall only. It is the only tomato that I can depend on in the fall growing season. Juliet are only good for canning, but not bad in a salad in the fall. How does Heidi compare to Juliet in taste? I am in Central Texas. How does Heidi do in the extreme heat??

December 28, 2019	#16
Fred Hempel Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Sunol, CA Posts: 2,723	One other thing to note -- The name "San Marzano" has almost no meaning. It is an umbrella term for a type of tomato, and it is important to discuss which specific San Marzano (type) one is referring to. For seed labeled as simply "San Marzano" I think one should refer to the seed source (company or person), because something labeled San Marzano without that is as useful as getting a tomato called Red Beefsteak. __________________ Artisan Seeds -- www.growartisan.com

December 31, 2019	#22
TomNJ Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2009 Location: Floyd VA Posts: 771	I actually count and weigh all of my tomatoes by variety by week, and keep a Tomato Count spreadsheet each year (yes, I know ). I last grew Heidi in 2016 and it yielded 22 lbs/plant. My record for all tomatoes was Rio Grande, also in 2016, at 32 lbs/plant. That was a good year with an overall yield of 17.5 lbs/plant from eight varieties, but the San Marzano was a bust at only 8 lbs/plant. That may not be typical of the variety as there is a lot of variability among years and I don't recall what went wrong, but I haven't grown it since. Opalka that year came in at 15 lbs/plant and is usually in the middle of the pack. I don't typically have a BER problem, perhaps because I mulch heavily for even moisture. Opalka ia a very late variety, so it is more susceptible to the annual variety of foliage diseases that I race against each year, giving it a somewhat shortened production window. Kosovo, a beautiful large pink heart, tops my average yield list over the years, and I expect 18-24 lbs/plant each year (2016 for comparison yielded 22 lbs/plant). It is also my earliest tomato with the least blemishes and no catfacing. Great for eating or canning. Food strainer screen clogging is more frequent with paste tomatoes due to thicker skins and a higher skin to volume ratio. Last edited by TomNJ; December 31, 2019 at 10:31 AM.

December 31, 2019	#24
Fred Hempel Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Sunol, CA Posts: 2,723	https://www.victoryseeds.com/tomato_heidi.html __________________ Artisan Seeds -- www.growartisan.com

December 30, 2019	#19
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	Many people swear by the Squeezo Strainer. I've never heard anyone swear at it. It must be good.

December 30, 2019	#21
Father'sDaughter Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: MA/NH Border Posts: 4,919	If my six year old seeds are still good, Heidi is making a return to my garden this summer. I used to grow it in 5 gallon plastic grow bags and one year harvested nine pounds from one plant. I think I recall someone posting that Heidi was so dense it routinely clogged up their food strainer and they had to continually stop to clean the screen.

December 31, 2019	#23
hornstrider Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Hutto, Texas Posts: 230	Thank you all for your imput. Please tell me more about Heidi plum tomato's. Where can I purchase the seeds?

January 1, 2020	#25
MrBig46 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Czech republic Posts: 2,541	DTM 90 days is bad for me. The first fruits would be harvested in September and that usually ends the season. Mostly I don't follow DTM, but also the pictures of mature Heidi on Tatiana's TOMATObase are all from mid-September, which is late for me (I'm like Tatiana on fifty parallel north latitude). Like Karen, I want to try the Marzano Fire with the DTM 70 listed and compare it with some other pastes (I don't know which yet).Probably Gilbertie, Opalka, San Marzano Gigante and maybe Scatolone. San Marzano 3 probably not. They are strongly prone to yellow shoulders. Vladimír

January 1, 2020	#28
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	Heidi and Santa Maria were the 2 winners in my paste trial of dozens in 2016- for production, taste and total lack of BER. Both good enough to eat fresh, too. I have lots of bagged seeds of Heidi from 2016, so if you'd like to try it just let me know. kath

January 6, 2020	#29
MrBig46 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Czech republic Posts: 2,541	I looked at Tatiana'sTOMATObase. In one post there is DTM 66 days, but it's from Augusta, which is completely different from me. But I'd still like to try. Vladimír

January 11, 2020	#30
hornstrider Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Hutto, Texas Posts: 230	How does Heidi compare to Juliet? From the pictures on the internet they look very similar in size and shape. I grow Juliet in the fall only. It is the only tomato that I can depend on in the fall growing season. Juliet are only good for canning, but not bad in a salad in the fall. How does Heidi compare to Juliet in taste? I am in Central Texas. How does Heidi do in the extreme heat??