tale of woe

22 years ago

arrrggghhhh

last season, I purchased five varieties of heirloom tomato seeds off the web. I grew brandywine, green zebra, caspian pink, big rainbow and tigerella. they were wonderful. they tasted magnificent. I started them in february and things were grand. this season I was way too involved in work and other personal matters and I didn't get my seeds planted indoors in time. so I bought hybrid tomatos at wal-mart and planted them. they look beautiful, the plants are thriving, they are heavy with fruit, they are ripening at a consistent rate. the only problem is they don't taste like anything. they are basically . little flavour. if any.

on a more positive note, however. I didn't clean my garden very well last fall and I had tomato plants volunteer in a few places. I let them grow and they are producing a few fruits. it appears that I have between two and three varieties of the heirlooms growing. there will only be a handfull of tomatoes, but it will be enough to convince me to start seeds this winter no matter how busy life makes me.

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Comments (5)

fusion_power
22 years ago
Live and learn.

I grew over 100 varieties of heirloom tomatoes this year and had lots of opportunity to try out different tastes and textures. Big Beef is a pretty good hybrid. Most others are not worth growing.

Fusion
gardenlad
22 years ago
It's a shame you had to learn the hard way exactly why people grow heirlooms. Although there are several reasons for passing seed down, one generation to the next, the prime reason is taste.

FYI, Green Zebra is technically not an heirloom. It's an open pollinated variety developed by plant breeder Tom Wagner. This doesn't affect its taste, by any means. But credit should go where credit is due.
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carolyn137
22 years ago
FYI, Green Zebra is technically not an heirloom. It's an open pollinated variety developed by plant breeder Tom Wagner. This doesn't affect its taste, by any means. But credit should go where credit is due.

Tom would not agree with you.

He's stated here at GW and other places that to him an heirloom is something that is treasured and if one treasures Green Zebra then by his definition it's an heirloom, as are all the varieties he's created.

And of course that's yet another definition of an heirloom, ahem, that' we've been discussing elsewhere.

Carolyn
yellowhair
22 years ago
Whether it is, or not, just wanted to say that I enjoyed growing this tomato this year and one of my plants has 36 tomatoes on it right now. And, no pest problems. I'll definitely start these next year inside again---just on my sunny window sill.

oops, almost forgot---DH's 2 plants he bought at a nursery look rather pathetic compared to mine!! hehe I don't know why, but I think he feels that if you don't go out and BUY your tomato plants----they're no good. I'm trying to teach him. Some days are more difficult than others.
gardenlad
22 years ago
You might point out to him that _somebody_ had to grow that seedling he bought. Somebody who was growing thousands of them, so could not lavish the attention on them that you do on yours. So that, therefore, your's actually are better plants.

Just between us, that isn't necessarily true. But he doesn't have to know everything. :>)