Big Beef Production

[Todd1700]

I know they are....GASP.....a lowly hybrid. But man you cannot beat Big Beef tomatoes for production of at least decent sized tomatoes. This is just the lower third of this one plant. The upper two thirds are loaded too. I mean there are some types that grow really small tomatoes that may produce more and certainly cherry tomatoes will have many more individual tomatoes. But for a type that produces baseball and even bigger sized tomatoes I have never seen their equal.

[KarenO]

Nothing lowly about good modern hybrids.
There is a reason many professional growers use them.
There is a tomato for every taste and purpose and that is a wonderful thing.
Great looking plant you have there
KarenO

[jmsieglaff]

It is a nice tomato! Your plant looks great. I've grown it before and will grow it again at some point.

[JRinPA]

I have some in the ground as insurance, big beefs and estivas. They set so well.

A couple years ago I had Big Beefs ripening 16-17-18 oz tomatoes, boom boom boom. And no watered down tasting either, just perfect timing for the weather on those first three trusses. Just finishing up pizza sauce and soup from that year.


See if I can find some pics.
The big beef row was on the right. Pic is after a few pickings. The bigger ones in the trays were mostly big beef. The ones about a third smaller and more round are probably estiva. Like the back left tray, near corner. Estiva often keeps a really green stem.

[Todd1700]

Nice! I typically plant about 6 Big Beef plants. I get so many tomatoes from just those 6 plants that it frees me up to experiment with the rest of the types I plant in my garden.

[Dark Rumor]

Those look like a truss of cherry tomatoes, very impressive.

[/QUOTE]

[Lee]

I'm another big fan of Big Beef variety as well... For the hybrids in the garden, this is a must grow each year.


You should also check out Mountain Gem. This is a relatively new hybrid variety created by Dr. Gardner from NCSU. You can search this site for some more information on it.
It is the only other hybrid I have grown that can match Big Beef for size and productivity. On the plus side, it has more disease tolerance (TSWV and late blight) and slightly better flavor.
It hasn't replaced Big Beef, but it earned a spot right next to it every year in the garden!


http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=48529


Here's a photo from Twilley seeds, where I sourced mine from....




Lee

[Todd1700]

Good to know. I will look into them. Thanks!

[hl2601]

I offer more than 80 wonderful rare tomato plants yearly at my May sale. Big Beef and Sun Gold are the only hybrids I sell,to date, because they are just that good Hybrids have many great characteristics...never think you shouldn't try them especially if your gardening conditions are trying!

[gssgarden]

Big Beef this year and every year!
Only hybrid comparable for me is Goliath and Early Goliath.
BB still takes it though

[b54red]

I grew them for many years because of their disease resistance and relatively good flavor for a hybrid. I finally stopped growing them when a third type of fusarium wilt got so bad in our area and they kept dying from it just like most of the heirlooms and open pollinated varieties did. Grafting saved my tomato growing although I still plant some without grafting to get an early start but they usually die quickly due to the fusarium and nematodes but I usually get some good tomatoes before that happens. I may go back and try Big Beef again as an early tomato because they were very productive until the fusarium would finally get them. If I lived a bit further north I would still be growing them every year.

Bill

[PaulF]

Originally Posted by b54red

If I lived a bit further north I would still be growing them every year.Bill

We must be a bit too far north. BB has been a bust every time we tried it. First we got a wrong variety. It was not much more than a round, red salad sized. The next time was more the right sized but on the verge of being a spitter. Even when we tried to give them away by putting them at the local Post Office, a few got taken but most had to be thrown out.

We must be turning the locals into tomato snobs. After many years of taking the extra heirlooms/OPs to give away, folks ask what happened to the "good" tomatoes, and "when are we getting the tomatoes that taste good".

The request is not to grow Big Beef and put the energy into more heart shaped and those ugly beefsteaks.

BB was the first to express diseases and I was afraid the good tomatoes would have the hybrid maladies spread all over the garden. Rouged them out and never again.

[MrsJustice]

My "Diener Tomato Plants Produced that many Tomatoes for me this year at one Time.

I guess every tomato has it own season to shine, Amen!!

[garden patch]

Big Beef is my go to for 10 years now. It has never disappointed me. I guess I’ve been lucky so far.

Peace to all I wish everyone a bounty harvest!

[MrsJustice]

Originally Posted by garden patch

Big Beef is my go to for 10 years now. It has never disappointed me. I guess I’ve been lucky so far.

Peace to all I wish everyone a bounty harvest!

Great, to hear from you again.
Do you save the Seeds yourself or buy them every year?
If you save the seeds yourself; Do your seeds produce identical Tomatoes for you each time? Amen!