Another hybrids choice

[mayax68]

I have a garden of about 21 tomato plants. I've been growing tomatoes for 3 years now and this year was pretty bad. Yields were low and disease was rampant. I grow heirlooms, but for the next year I would like to plant at least couple of hybrids for security. I'm looking for 2 things in my tomatoes sweetness and productivity. Can you please help me decide on 1 or 2 of the choices below.

Thank you.
Maya.

Heinz 1350 VF
Heinz 1439 VFA
Jet Star VF
Momotaro

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by mayax68

I have a garden of about 21 tomato plants. I've been growing tomatoes for 3 years now and this year was pretty bad. Yields were low and disease was rampant. I grow heirlooms, but for the next year I would like to plant at least couple of hybrids for security. I'm looking for 2 things in my tomatoes sweetness and productivity. Can you please help me decide on 1 or 2 of the choices below.

Thank you.
Maya.

Heinz 1350 VF
Heinz 1439 VFA
Jet Star VF
Momotaro

Of the ones you list only Jet Star is a hybrid, and I've seen both hybrid and OP for Momotaro.

I'd definitely grow Jet Star F1 as well as Ramapo F1 and also consider the other Harris hybrids in addition to Jet Star F1, Supersonic F1 and Moreton Hybrid F1.

[cottonpicker]

I have grown both and recommend both Jet Star and Momotaro from your list. Although not on your list, I have grown and also recommend Supersonic. I intend to grow Moreton next season.
LarryD

[barkeater]

Jet Star will do well in Connecticut. Momotaro tastes great but I wouldn't consider it a heavy producer. And for old canners, I think Campbells 1327 beats those Heinz varieties by a mile. And I'm with Carolyn, grow Ramapo for a great hybrid.

[tomakers]

Jet Star and Supersonic are 2 of my insurance plants for the last 30 years. They are both excellent.
JMO,
Tom

[RJ_Hythloday]

well, well, well,

If some hybrids are good enough for Dr Carolyn...

I guess I've got time to rethink next years grow out and maybe replace the corn patch w/ 8 or 10 more toms. ;-)


hmmm....

Further reading shows that the good Doctor grew out Ramapo to an OP that would probably be an F6 this season, is that right?

So I guess I'll go search around here for those threads.

[AZRuss]

For what it's worth, I'm in agreement with everyone here. Ramapo, Moreton, Jet Star and Supersonic are all wonderful hybrids. I'd add Brandy Boy to the list. Momotaro is delicious (!!) but has definitely not been a strong producer for me.

[barkeater]

I hate to admit it,I grew Ramapo to F6, but since Rutgers brought back the hybrid, I've stopped. Someone else may have continued to what I believe could be F8. However, I found diminishing yield after F4, and last year used F3 seeds to replenish my F4. I cut back this year due to a pending job change and only grew the F1's I bought last year.

In any case, for taste, Ramapo is great at any F'n stage;-)

[BigdaddyJ]

Momo is my pick

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by RJ_Hythloday

well, well, well,

If some hybrids are good enough for Dr Carolyn...

I guess I've got time to rethink next years grow out and maybe replace the corn patch w/ 8 or 10 more toms. ;-)


hmmm....

Further reading shows that the good Doctor grew out Ramapo to an OP that would probably be an F6 this season, is that right?

So I guess I'll go search around here for those threads.

Well sure I grow hybrids from time to time. Most folks I know grow both hybrids and OP's, even those of us who concentrate on OP's.

This year I'm growing, I think, Sungold F1, which I grow almost every year and three new hybrids that Dr. Randy Gardner bred, SmartyF1 which was introduced this year by Johnny's and Mountain Magic and Plum Regal which will be available commercially in 2010.

And yes, when Ramapo F1 went out of production I decided to try to make selections and hopefully get an OP that came close. Initially a friend in NJ was able to send me plants b'c some folks down there had sandbagged F1 seed, and then I was able to get a few F1 seeds from a Professor at Rutgers, and I used them as well.

Each time I made a selection I grew the F1 at the same time in order to have a direct comparison, and it didn't take but 3 generations before I had something I thought was pretty darn close.

I offered F2 and F3 seeds initially in some seed offers and Bark, who posted above, was one of the first to try it and since he was someone who grew Ramapo F1 commercially in NJ I was pleased when he said it was spot on.

I don't know what generation some folks are on now, but I suppose, like Bark, once Rutgers decided to rerelease the F1 I suppose most folks will go back to that as Bark has.

Several of us have been eyeing the Harris hybrids Jet Star, Supersonic and Moreton Hybrid as potentially ones that might go out of production, but Rutgers has now rereleased Moreton Hybrid, some of you might remember it wasn't available for a few years, and I do think Jet Star and Supersonic are going to be OK, especially after I talked with someone at Harris Seeds.

Yes, all three of those Harris hybrids are some of the oldest ones around, along with Big Boy F1 and Better Boy F1, but the former have some of THE best tastes and production that I and many others have experienced.

[mayax68]

THank you for your replies.

I will settle on Jet Star F1 as well as Ramapo F1 for the hybrids for next year.

[cecilsgarden1958]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

Of the ones you list only Jet Star is a hybrid, and I've seen both hybrid and OP for Momotaro.

I'd definitely grow Jet Star F1 as well as Ramapo F1 and also consider the other Harris hybrids in addition to Jet Star F1, Supersonic F1 and Moreton Hybrid F1.

Seriously though. Everyone knows I'm a big hybrid fan, but I have never had any luck with Jet Star, Supersonic or Moreton. All of which have been recomended by Carolyn for years and from what I gathered over the years, all like. Why don't they grow well for me, I wonder. One year only I had half decent Supersonics, but not what you would call successful. Other years numbers were high but the fruit was small, around 3-4 ounce.
My successes with hybrids have been Bush Big Boy (discontinued), Mt. Pride, Big Girl (discontinued), Carolina Gold, Sweet Tangerine, Champion, Lemon Boy & First Prize
For a 'sweet' hybrid choice, add Champion and Sweet Tangerine to your list.

Never had the chance to try Ramapo, I don't think.

CECIL

[b54red]

If you want a tomato that is decent tasting yet highly productive with amazing disease resistance you might want to try Big Beef. It is my insurance tomato; it makes a decent sized fruit that is juicy and has a good balanced flavor. Two others 1st Prize (TGS) and Cabernet which make a slightly bigger tomato are similar in taste and productivity.
I have never tried Ramapo because I have never seen it in a catalog though I have only read good things about it.

[barkeater]

Cecil,

It's too bad about your experience with Jet Star and Supersonic. I grew both for years, especially Jet star. it was my maincrop commercial tomato for many years in NJ, and all the customers raved about the flavor. I also grew Supersonic, but found it not very productive.

Fast forward 10 years and 300 miles north. Supersonic was the most productive tomato that year, but they were the softest tomato I ever grew. Jet Star was small, unproductive and lost its flavor.

Go figure!

[Blueaussi]

Mayax68, you don't say what diseases were a problem for you. What I was fighting would determine what hybrids I would grow. I always grow at least one TSWV resistant tomato after losing my entire crop to it in 2002. ( So far for me, Amelia is the most productive, but Bella Rosa is the best tasting.)