Need a good medium size RED for an EB

[Greatgardens]

I'm looking for a good medium-sized red tomato that tastes good, that is Indeterminate or semi, and is resistant to stem cracking or splitting. A dwarf would be good or a regular IND that is known to grow well in an EB. That generally means it is tolerant of the constant high-moisture environment. (I'm aware that lots of folks say that anything can be grown in an EB, but my experience is many varieties do not do great.)


I've had a suggestion of Celebrity, and that might fit the bill. I've grown it before in an EB, and it did pretty good. As a matter of fact, it did the absolute best against Septoria several years ago, trouncing Iron Lady. I don't remember how it did so far as cracking. So Celebrity is a candidate. Also Homestead has been suggested, but I've never grown it, so only know what I've seen on the internet (including Youtube).


You folks who grow the Project Dwarfs -- any that would seem to be a good fit? And hybrids are absolutely OK. One that I've thought about is "Bucks County" from Burpee. I've grown it, and it is quite good, but only have grown it in dirt.



Any suggestions?

[Barb_FL]

For Dwarfs, Sweet Scarlet (I have seeds if you need them) - this is great tasting and doesn't split for me.

Hybrids - Momotaro

Other - AKMARK's Matsu Express

Hopefully, Marsha will chime in. Check her SASE list out; she has descriptions on each one.

BTW - What varieties have you grown that don't do well in the EB? Anything that I have grown in an EB, I've also grown successfully in a Root Pouch.

[AKmark]

Mat-Su Express is certainly worth trying. I will send a bunch of F9 seed to Marsha in Florida this fall to distribute.

[Koala Doug]

New Big Dwarf?

[wildcat62]

Originally Posted by AKmark

Mat-Su Express is certainly worth trying. I will send a bunch of F9 seed to Marsha in Florida this fall to distribute.

Sounds good.

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by AKmark

Mat-Su Express is certainly worth trying. I will send a bunch of F9 seed to Marsha in Florida this fall to distribute.

Awesome! Any chance of getting some pretty soon? I start seeds in about 12 days, some even next Wednesday.

[AKmark]

Originally Posted by ginger2778

Awesome! Any chance of getting some pretty soon? I start seeds in about 12 days, some even next Wednesday.

I have them going right now. I have 30 F8's going to make this selection. They are very consistent, a couple have my eye that have slightly larger fruit overall. I will get them to you as soon as I can, but it will not be that soon. I am sending you a couple of others to trial if you want? BBX Dester F5 pink is one I want you to try. YUMMY GOOD. We will see soon if my Rebel Yell x Mat-Su Express took.

[Cole_Robbie]

Mano is my favorite red dwarf, fruit are medium-sized. I have not tried it in an Earthbox.

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by AKmark

I have them going right now. I have 30 F8's going to make this selection. They are very consistent, a couple have my eye that have slightly larger fruit overall. I will get them to you as soon as I can, but it will not be that soon. I am sending you a couple of others to trial if you want? BBX Dester F5 pink is one I want you to try. YUMMY GOOD. We will see soon if my Rebel Yell x Mat-Su Express took.

Ok, looking forward to them.

[Greatgardens]

Hi Barb-

Originally Posted by Barb_FL

For Dwarfs, Sweet Scarlet (I have seeds if you need them) - this is great tasting and doesn't split for me.

BTW - What varieties have you grown that don't do well in the EB? Anything that I have grown in an EB, I've also grown successfully in a Root Pouch.

Thanks for the offer of SS. I'll probably take you up on that, but have quite a few months up here before I need to do anything. I have quite a few dwarfs now to trade, too.


Note: this is going to sound like I don't like EarthBoxes. But quite the opposite – the older I get, the more I like them. However, they come with some issues, too. And as always, YMMV.


In my experience, there are four main issues with the EB and especially with full-sized tomato plants.


1. Splitting/cracking Due to constant high moisture.
Cracking -- examples for me are Jet Star, Better Boy, Supersonic, Early Girl. I have not found a way around this other than careful selection of the varieties and early picking. Unfortunately, I'm not too diligent on the early picking.


2. "Dwarfing" (Some plants do not grow to be normal size in the constrained space of an EB, especially if there are two in a box.)
I can only cite one tomato example thus far -- Brandy Boy (with a dwarf companion plant). Grew to maybe 1/3 normal size and only had 5 usable tomatoes -- all smaller versions of the typical fruit. Could it have been just this plant? Maybe, but the plant had grown normally, and the dwarf companion plant in the box grew just fine. A better example might be eggplants. My eggplants and the fruit never get as big as they do in soil. However, until I started growing eggplants in EB's, it was a very hit-or-miss proposition due to verticillium. With the EB, I get plenty of fruit, year after year.


3. The plants overgrowing their space -- partly my fault there, since I'm not inclined to make another stand to spread things out more.
Many full-sized tomatoes, although the "bushy varieties" are the worst. There are lots of varieties that don't get huge, but many do.


4. Disease -- having the plants bunched up especially with two to a box makes foliage diseases worse. It also makes spraying more difficult.


Some caveats -- Some issues are solved by just putting one plant in a box. A good splitting example is a dwarf -- Perth Pride. Grown in an EB, they nearly all split. Grown in a 7 gallon (14") pot, they don't except after a heavy rain. (I've never grown PP in-ground.)


-GG

[Greatgardens]

Estiva from Johnny's? Has anyone grown it? Sounds like a good size (6-7 oz), IND, and crack resistant.

[zipcode]

I think you need to try some classic reds known for taste and see which ones do well in your conditions. Like Rutgers. Or a determinate. There's plenty of determinate reds out there and some are really good in taste, and production per space is usually much better then indeterminates. And usually they are bred with crack resistance in mind since they are for outdoor growing.

[Greatgardens]

Yes, a couple of DET on my "list." Mountain Fresh plus might be worth trying. Does well in dirt, and doesn't crack there. Tastes quite good also, I think.

[Cole_Robbie]

Rutgers is a good suggestion. And I like that description of it as "classic red determinate." There are a few different Rutgers varieties out there. It may have changed a bit over the decades. Celebrity is another variety that may also have changed over the years. Many people have shared good experiences with it, but mine were like red rocks.

When you look at determinate varieties in a catalog like Johnny's, they are catering to small farmers and market growers. Shelf life and firmness are a priority. The vendor across the way from me at market might sell a thousand bucks worth of tomatoes on a good day. But they are all those firm hybrids from Johnny's. They store them in plastic flats that would leave imprints on anything I grow, but it's ok because they are so firm. I've seen their workers pour out buckets of them with little worry of damage. Customers seem to love those big, firm tomatoes, but they are not to my liking at all as far as something to eat.

[Gerardo]

I can vouch for Matsu and Momotaro liking permawet feet. Best of luck.