Help Me Decide

[george k]

Hi,
I was hoping to get some input on the following varieties for my 2016 grow list:

small red:
Eva Purple Ball or Goose Greek

Large Red/Pink beefsteak (I have room for two):
Neves Azorean red
Coustralee
Marmande Garnier Rouge
La Vie en Rose

Thanks Much

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by george k

Hi,
I was hoping to get some input on the following varieties for my 2016 grow list:

small red:
Eva Purple Ball or Goose Greek

Large Red/Pink beefsteak (I have room for two):
Neves Azorean red
Coustralee
Marmande Garnier Rouge
La Vie en Rose

Thanks Much

Eva Purple Ball

Neves Azorean red
Coustralee

Worth

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by george k

Hi,
I was hoping to get some input on the following varieties for my 2016 grow list:

small red:
Eva Purple Ball or Goose Greek

Large Red/Pink beefsteak (I have room for two):
Neves Azorean red
Coustralee
Marmande Garnier Rouge
La Vie en Rose

Thanks Much

I don't know if you meant to put pink rather than red for those first two since both are pink and here's a link to Goose Greek since some have said it is red, which it is not.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Goose_Creek

My choice for the pink one would be Eva Purple Ball, which I also introduced.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Eva_Purple_Ball

Sheesh, why are almost all the ones you listed ones I introduced? LOL Maybe b'c I'm a senior citizen who has been around so long? LOL

Of the large reds I'd chose Neves Azorean Red, which I've grown many times and was the person who first introduced it by SSE listing it, and also Cuostralee, same story on having grown it many times and also being the first to list it in the SSE Yearbook.

So the above two would be my picks for the two ones to grow,

I have grown Marmande Garnier Rouge but it's basically just Marmande with the womans named added.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/M..._Garnier_Rouge

I have grown just Marmande and maybe it was the weather in the summer I grew it but I was not impressed.

http://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Marmande

I haven't grown the last one you listed.

Carolyn

[greyghost]

Just a couple of comments about La Vie en Rose; around 2010 or so, a nearby
Tomatoville fellow, BigdaddyJ received seeds for Claude Brown's Yellow from
Terry (of Secret Seed Cartel). His grow out yielded a large pink tomato instead of a yellow. He gave me seeds and both of us continued to grow it out for 2 or 3 years, always hoping for the pink. At the time, Terry thought it was a cross between Fritz Ackerman but I see that on her website she refers to the pink parent as "unknown". I stopped growing it because of the likelihood of getting a yellow-I always felt I needed to grow several to ensure getting the pink which was always large with a wonderful assertive taste. The yellow is also offered on her site as "Moonshiners Ball".

I'm tempted to purchase La Vie en Rose since she finally has it stabilized.
That said, NAR and Coustralee are wonderful tomatoes, too. Whichever two you choose, be sure and grow the third variety next year-I've never grown any of the
Marmande's.

Darlene

[george k]

Worth,
Thanks, thats what I was leaning toward.
George

[george k]

Carolyn,
Thanks for the reply. I can't tell you how valuable your book has been for me. Also, I learn so much from you reading this forum. I most certainly will take your advice!
George

[george k]

Darlene,
Thanks for the reply. Much appreciated!
George

[barefootgardener]

NAR is a fantastic tomato! You cant go wrong with it. I have grown Coustralee a few times and it is a good, large and productive tomato. But I prefer MRG over Coustralee. To my taste MRG has a more full bodied old fashion tomato flavor. My one plant was super productive with over 80 tomatoes that were mostly medium to large in size. A winner and one of my favorites in the garden. A good slicer and a great canner. And the fruit/skin has the most beautiful red color.

Did I convince you or confuse you more??
You have some really good choices.. Cant go wrong either way.

Ginny

[george k]

Originally Posted by barefootgardener

NAR is a fantastic tomato! You cant go wrong with it. I have grown Coustralee a few times and it is a good, large and productive tomato. But I prefer MRG over Coustralee. To my taste MRG has a more full bodied old fashion tomato flavor. My one plant was super productive with over 80 tomatoes that were mostly medium to large in size. A winner and one of my favorites in the garden. A good slicer and a great canner. And the fruit/skin has the most beautiful red color.

Did I convince you or confuse you more??
You have some really good choices.. Cant go wrong either way.

Ginny

Ginny,
I think you convinced me. I know they're all good choices, and I really wanted to try one from Secret Seed Cartel. It's NAR and MRG and EPB.
George

[Salsacharley]

I saw a grower selling Marmande at a market this summer and the fruits were large and mostly perfect, deep red and beautiful. I didn't taste them but the sure looked excellent.

[Gardenboy]

#1 Neves Azorean Red
#2 Marmande Garnier Rouge

Two great tomato varieties. I grow 3 plants of these varieties every season. Productive and delicious!!

[clkeiper]

My Goose Creek was Pink. I didn't think it was a wonderful producer though. Not a bad tomato just a poor producer. I wan't more from a plant than that one gave me. nor was it small. I think it had 10 oz-ish toms on it last year.

[Tormato]

My first question is always...do you like sweet tomatoes, tart tomatoes, or in-between (balanced flavor) tomatoes? From there, selections can be made.

[george k]

Originally Posted by Tormato

My first question is always...do you like sweet tomatoes, tart tomatoes, or in-between (balanced flavor) tomatoes? From there, selections can be made.

I guess I would lean toward sweet, but I like them all. Since I have limited space to grow, I would choose the better producers. What would you suggest for good producing red/pink beefsteaks besides the once I've listed?

[Tormato]

Eva Purple Ball has always been my benchmark for small (non-cherry) tomatoes.

The new benchmark is Bulgarian Triumph, "ingly" sweet.