Store Bought Vine Tomatoes

[Gerald51]

Strangely, my wife likes store bought vine tomatoes better than the tomatoes that I grow. I must say they aren't bad for a Winter time tomato fix.

Does anyone know the variety and where I can purchase some seed?

Gerald

[Gerald51]

I just noticed the label in the picture and googled, "fresh farms 4664 tomatoes" and found this: http://www.eurofresh.com/products_TOV.asp


Now I need to find out where I can purchase the seed.

Gerald

[desertlzbn]

I am not sure of what variety they are, but look at the NESEEDS catalog or online, and they have some seeds that may match that tomato.

[mjc]

They are going to be a commercial variety, probably one typically grown in greenhouses, probably hydroponically. The varieties used could be grown outdoors, but since they are greenhouse grown they are available year round.

Most of them are hybrid (F1), so saving the seeds and getting a stable OP version would be a multi-year project.

Here's some of the ones used in the trade...

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/c-414-gre...ly-tunnel.aspx

and

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/c-562-truss.aspx

Another common one is Daniela (Hazera Seeds...a commercial variety seed source).

Well, if it is Brilliant, it looks to be a Seminis seed and that EuroFresh link says they are the exclusive producer for the US, which probably means they have a lock on the seeds, too.

[habitat_gardener]

Another idea is to figure out what she likes about the tomatoes, and come up with some other suggestions. Milder and sweeter, maybe? Momotaro F1 is a mild and sweet variety whose seeds are widely available. I saw them at the local produce market yesterday advertised as a hothouse-grown local tomato.

[carolyn137]

If you click on the Eurofresh site you'll see that the variety name is Brilliant and that they have exclusive use to grow them and distribute fruits in the US.

I'm 99.9999% sure it's hybrid seed as is most of the seed grown for varieties like this that are marketed in stores, so, as mj says if you want to save seeds, called the F2 seeds and then grow out lots of plants to see if you can find some that resemble the hybrid, and keep doing that for several years until you have an OP variety that breeds true, well, that's an option.


Hmmmm, a one paragraph sentence I just wrote. My excuse? It's been a difficult day here, trust me.

[mjc]

Since Daniela is a commonly used one AND available (maybe with a bit of searching for smaller quantities than 1000 seeds) that may be one to start with, unless the EuroFresh are the ONLY ones you ever buy (my local stores vary the ones they carry, so...).

[Gerald51]

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Another idea is to figure out what she likes about the tomatoes, and come up with some other suggestions. Milder and sweeter, maybe? Momotaro F1 is a mild and sweet variety whose seeds are widely available. I saw them at the local produce market yesterday advertised as a hothouse-grown local tomato.

She likes them because they are really firm and have an acid bite to them. She hates mushy soft tomatoes.

These store bought vine tomatoes are a little larger than the size of a golf ball.

Gerald

[Gerald51]

I found this, but I'm not sure if they sell seed or not:

Americans love Brilliant tomato

Brilliant has been voted Best Tasting Cluster Tomato of 2008. According to a taste test of the American Inspection Organisation Chefsbest Brilliant is best both eaten
as is and as part of salads as far as taste, fragrance, appearance and structure are concerned.


Chefsbest, an independent organisation of "master tasters" in the United States has found the Brilliant the best tasting cluster tomato. During a blind tasting test Chefsbest have tested various tomato species on appearance, fragrance, taste and structure. In addition professional chefs tested the taste and the structure also of cluster tomatoes in salads with mozzarella, basilicum and olive oil. Chefsbest obtain their products from supermarkets and arrange tests by independent chefs. The mark "best taste" will only be given when the product is clearly better tasting than its competition.


Joep van de Burgt, sales manager of Seminis in the United States is very happy with this decision, but he is not actually very surprised. "Brilliant comes quickly in flower and has a regular cluster. Ripening is uniform and this means that the taste of every tomato in a cluster is as good." Traders both in the United States and in the Netherlands appreciate the species apart from the good taste also because of the
beautiful clusters. Brilliant is grown all year round in the Netherlands and is one of the main species of the coming autumn culture.


For more information:
Seminis Vegetable Seeds
Peter Custers
P.O.Box 22
1600 AA Enkhuizen
tel: 0228 - 35 77 00
fax: 0228 - 35 77 12
tel: 06 - 51426931

[jwr6404]

ania lists a Brilliant Pink as well as a Brilliant Pink(PL) that originated in Germany/Kraft

[Duh_Vinci]

While I'm not familiar with variety you have in the picture, I have grown Campari from Coscto f2 this year.

Very early in the spring, we were having dinner, and brought home couple clusters of Campari from Costco. So after eating few of those, there were 2 seeds left on my plate. For no particular reason, just out of curiosity, I took those seeds, cleaned them up and planted them into 3oz cups.

Next thing I knew - they sprouted. They kept growing, and growing, so eventually I transplanted them into the garden.

Taste to me was nearly identical to the store bought "parent". Shape and size was also the same:




















To do this right, it would certainly takes more than two plants as Carolyn suggested, and saving seeds from the plants and fruits that are desirable for what ever reason appeals to you.

All in all, it was a fun experiment!

Regards,
D

[rnewste]

D,

Very nice photo sequence capturing the entire growth cycle. Your plant looked very productive. What fertilizer did you use on it?

Raybo

[mjc]

According to the distributor's catalog, Campari is an F1...

[Duh_Vinci]

Thanks Raybo!

Prior to transplanting - native soil and compost, with addition of dry bone meal (set for couple of weeks).

At the transplant - Aggrand natural 4-3-3

During the growing season - Aggrand natural: 4-3-3, Bone Meal 0-12-0 liquid and Kelp liquid 0-0-8 (all foliar fed) and every month or so, top off the base of the plants with small amount of compost.

What I like about their products, that I can mix the ratio of all three to what I feel is right for the plants at any given time.

Originally Posted by mjc

According to the distributor's catalog, Campari is an F1...

They certainly are. And from what I could find, were not available to general public - commercial growers only. So a seed saved from this original F1 fruit, was the only way I could try it at home...

Regards,
D