Who Still Hasn't Grown a Green or White Tomato? Why?

[barkeater]

I know I have no urge whatsoever to try either. I figure the whites will have no flavor, and I just don't think the greens look attractive enough, let alone thinking of having to sqeeze every one on the vine daily to determine their ripeness. :wink:

I also haven't tried any bicolors, as the pictures of them make them look soft, mushy and mild.

And even though I love Brandywine and Momotaro, other pinks I've tried have been kind of bland.

On the other hand, pictures of a big red, plump black, or deep gold tomato just make me drool.

Anyone else have these preconceived biases, or is it just me?

[bluelytes]

BARK,
No, its not just you. I planted two yellows last year, Lemon Boy and Limmony. Neither tasted good, IMHO. The Boy was mushy, and although the Limmony texture was good, it was BLAND, and I had a HUGE cracking problem with it.

Have not done whites yet, will do ONE this year. Greens I dont want to do again, (I did a green cherry last year), for mostly the reasons you cite. They are HARD to determine proper ripeness. Several of the green either split from over ripe or just fell offa the plant, So, no more greens for me


Regards;
bluelytes

[angelique]

I haven't tried growing a white yet. I really don't know which variety to choose. Any suggestions?

I do like greens. I have tried growing a couple varieties. I had a tough time determining when Green Grape was ripe. For some reason, when I shop at Whole Foods AND I don't have ripe tomatoes in yard, I usually pick up a couple of green ones (Green Zebra and Aunt Ruby's German Green, I think).

[Mantis]

I have now growin 3 greens , Grubs Mystery Green, Lime Green Salad and Cherokee Green. I love them all taste wise and so do all I have given them too to try.
They all have a amber blush when ripe.
Havn't tried any white ones and I don't want to as I just couldn't imagine them having any worthwhile taste.

[Suze]

Overall, I don't care for the white/ivory varieties. In my opinion, they are bland. I've grown a couple (and tasted a couple more, mostly from seedlings folks have asked me to grow for them), and that was quite enough. Notable exceptions would be Snow White and Dr. Carolyn. Now, those are good.

I do love many of the green when ripes, though. And I think Cherokee Green is one of the very best tasting varieties, GWR or otherwise.

[carolyn137]

I've grown lots of so called whites and GWR's and while the whites are pretty much bland I do find that White Queen is the best of the lot in terms of whiteness and taste, and there is some taste, and in a cherry tomato I think that Dr. Carolyn ( can't help it here, ) does have decent taste which no doubt reflects its parentage from Galina's Yellow, a really terrific gold fruited PL variety.

As for the GWR's, I was absolutely delighted to find out how great they can be re taste quite a few years ago and some of the first ones I grew aren't even offered commercially. Ones such as Grandma Oliver's and Charlie's Green, and of course since then I've grown maybe 10-15 more.

I just love the spicy complex sweetness of most of them and my absolute fave to date is the same as Suze's selection and that's Cherokee Green, which I think is miles beyond the others, and that includes Green Giant and other more recent ones. Have I grown them ALL? Heck no, but with maybe around 15 different varieties grown, give or take, Cherokee Green does stand out for me.

For years now it's been the so called black variety fad and quite a few years ago Craig and I both predicted that the GWR's would be the next fad and that certainly seems to be true. So be it, but I was growing them before they became a fad.

I think one of the major problems when it comes to fads with tomatoes is that where the demand is the varieties will follow, and sometimes I question, as I do with the blacks, if each variety really is distinct, when it comes to those GWR's that have become available in say the last 3-5 years.

[Mantis]

I forgot about SnowWhite. Always thought of them as a yellow down here. They are yummy to be sure.

[honu]

Snow White was yellow and yummy for me as well... I'd pop some in my mouth just before driving to work every morning, and the sweet, lingering aftertaste would stay with me all the way to work.
Way better tasting than some red cherries, such as Red Robbin, Rose Quartz Multiflora (OP), and Sweet Baby Girl hybrid.

[Suze]

Originally Posted by Mantis

I forgot about SnowWhite. Always thought of them as a yellow down here. They are yummy to be sure.

Originally Posted by honu

Snow White was yellow and yummy for me as well... I'd pop some in my mouth just before driving to work every morning, and the sweet, lingering aftertaste would stay with me all the way to work.

Heh. I have yet to grow a "white" that wasn't at least a pale yellow for me.

Anyway, tastewise - If memory serves, Bully and MsCowpea both mentioned liking Snow White very much too.

Speaking of MCP, I haven't seen her post in a while. Hope she's doing okay.

[shelleybean]

It's funny you asked this because I've been thinking about greens and whites a lot the last three days or so. The past couple of years I've focused a lot on pink and yellow tomatoes so I think this coming year I'll try to spend more time and space on reds and greens. I think when I went to bed last night I had pretty much chickened out on the whites again. I have so little space now, it seems such a waste to use space on something I don't really think I'll like a lot. I'm thinking what a lot of other people are saying and that most whites will be bland.

I did start an ARGG very late this past spring and brought it outside to harden off with all its big brothers and sisters but it didn't make it through the process and died. So I have seed for ARGG, Green Giant and Cherokee Green. Someone above commented that the pictures of the greens were unappetizing but I disagree. I think they look really refreshing. I can almost imagine tasting it when I look at one that's been cut. I'm very excited to try a green.

And as I said above, I've ignored the reds for a long time. I lost most of them to TSWV last year so some of the ones that were loaded up with green fruit will be given another try.

I wonder about Lollipop, a cherry I grew in 2005. It's always listed as a yellow but the color is always the way people describe whites. In full sun, they turn a nice yellow color, but the ones underneath the foliage never do, just a cream or very pale yellow color. The flavor, however, is very strong. If you were blindfolded, you might suspect you're eating a red tomato. I'll have to grow that one again, whether it really is yellow or white, I liked it.

[shelleybean]

Oh, I forgot. I decided to reserve final judgement on whites until after I heard more details about Taylor Lacey Leaf. Any thoughts?

[remy]

Hi,
I've never grown a full size white tomato either because of the assumed bland flavor it would have.
I've grown Aunt Ruby's German Green for a few years now. I really like it, lots of flavor. It is easy to tell when ripe because it develops a pink blush on the bottom. I do plant them where I remember it is Aunt Ruby like at the end of a row. I bring tomatoes into work for taste testing and most everyone always likes it. One lady thought it was the best tomato she's ever had and asked me to start a few plants(I grow extras for friends) for her next year.
I keep seeing good things about Cherokee Green, so I'm going to have to grow it(I have seeds) and see for myself.
Remy

[Tomstrees]

I've not grown the "white" varieties yet ...
I think the ONLY reason is room/space ...
There are so many others I want to try of different
color ~

Tom

[carolyn137]

(Heh. I have yet to grow a "white" that wasn't at least a pale yellow for me.)

I agree that almost all of the so called whites do turn a pale yellow to a deeper yellow, dependiong on the specific variety, the degree of foliage cover and the degree of UV . But I really do think that White Queen can and does give white fruits, as it has for me every time I've grown it, especially those that ripen under that heavy foliage cover.

And I'd add Snow White as well, but for me it splits like crazy, so that's why I didn't include it with my whites. Joe Bratka bred it and his Isis Candy also shows excessive splitting for me as well. It's not that I'm self serving in mentioning the variety Dr. Carolyn out of vanity, ahem, and I didn't name that variety anyway. It just happens to perform very well for me, doesn't show excessive splitting and does retain some of the taste of Galina's Yellow.

[dcarch]

I grew Great White (should be called GPYWHOPB, Great Pale Yellow With a Hint Of Pink on the Bottom :wink: )the first time. It gave me four good ones then died from blight when it was about to produce. It was my fault because I didn't do anything preventive.

I liked the taste, and look of Great White and will grow it again 07.

dcarch