Margaret Curtain (a black from NS) is divine! It might be my new favourite, I just have to compare the taste to Indian Stripe.

Sey, you might like Coastal Pride Orange which is a dwarf. I have only tasted part of one tomato so far, but was agreeably surprised.

Then again, if you like a more tart flavour, Russian Rose just pumps out gorgeous looking pink maters. She's a little too tart for me, but will be great for sauce.

Maglia Rosa is a delicious elongated cherry for those of us who just can't wait for a tomato to be ripe enough to be at it's prime. It is said that MR actually tastes best before it is fully ripe - my kind of tomato!

Linda

Linda, I've heard that Maglia Rosa is compact but very dense and that it does best when not supported. Also that it's ideal for containers. Does your experience agree with this? I was thinking of growing it next year.

Gorbelly, I'm growing it in a herb garden which is built into our stone deck. (It's about 15" square and 2' deep). My MR is currently 42" tall and I have a small cage on it as I didn't know that it grew best without support. It has very wispy foliage, rather like that of a heart variety. They say that it is dense, but mine isn't....... I think it would be ok in a 3 gallon container, in fact I asked Fred (the breeder) about it and he said that it would work. I hope that you will enjoy growing it next year!

Linda

fungus Delicious
is on my list as well as hopefully a good tasting red. NAR isn't that
big of a cheese, thick skin, average taste. Looks fantastic though. And
consistently big

----------------------------------------------------

There you go. I like the peer reviews.

This year I am trying BIG BEEF, BIG BOY and BETTER BOY side by side. So far nothing conclusive. There are a lot of RED tomato choice than other colors. I have tried so many of them in the past. So far Big Beef (hyb) is my best find in beefsteak size.

So the next year I will grow French Ox Heart , Delicious, Brandywine Sudduth and maybe Stupice. This strain of Stupice that I found at farmers market were much bigger than the one I had 2 years ago.

This is the first time I have grown Brandywine Sudduth's. The taste is to die for...and very comparable to last years Brandywine Cowlick's. This year my BC got diseased right off the bat...so no direct comparison this year. These might be tough to grow in your PNW climate sey. My Dwarf Purple Heart might get zapped next year. Don't get me wrong...it is a nice plant. I just prefer a more juicy/seedy type fruit. PH is very meaty.

Thanks, Linda!

I'm thinking about growing Orange Jazz as well. The thread by the breeder on TV has me intrigued. It sounds like a great orange beefsteak. There was a picture on the thread with a kid holding a perfect looking 2 pounder! Totally Tomatoes is offering it in their catalog.

If anyone has grown Orange Jazz already, can you give us your review?

Hi LoneJack

I wanted to grow Orange Jaz but did not hard enough to get seeds for it. Then I found so many new ones to me. So I got fully booked and beyond.

Ever since that I started this thread things has changed. I moved from WA to NC. At my new location the climate way different . It is like an uncharted territory for me when it comes to gardening. But I have been studying and trying to find and plant varieties that are better heat tolerant. Up in PNW I was into growing cold tolerant varieties.

My other challenge is making a new garden by turning grass, in a very sandy soil. But I have an ambitious grow out plant ; about 30 varieties and about 45 plants from all shapes and colors. Plus I must grow some okra, eggplant and chili peppers. Those are heat loving vegetables and should do well down here.

There is a good 3 months of winter ahead before I can get my hands dirty. hehe.

Sey

OK thanks Sey. I may still order it and plant one myself. I am only growing a few tomatoes this year because I need to allocate some of my tomato space for Tomatillos to can some Salsa Verde. I also start tomatoes for some friends and neighbors so I can splurge on some new varieties and let them pay for the seeds :) I'll have to see what else I might want from TT to get the most out of the $5.95 shipping charge.

Haven't been on here for a long, long time. Last year my garden was huge and a total loss. I have so many seeds that I can put in, but two new ones I'm going to try this year are Black Beauty and Brad's Atomic Grape. I will grow Brandywine Sudduth Strain and Riesentraube for sure and may try Esterina. Haven't made all my choices yet. Will be market selling so I want a good variety of toms.

I started looking through my 2017 seed catalogs last night. So much for my "final" growlist, LOL.

Haha. I keep revising my list too. But I will have to restrain myself to about 30 varieties and 5o plants TOTAL. I will experiment stringing (one row of about 13 plants) and another row Florida weave and the rest staking.

Today I was at LOWES. The have packed the racks. But I don't need ant tomato seeds. I bought some cool crops seeds ( chives, scallions, parsley, snap peas...) I also bought a 72 cell seed starting tray and a bag of seed starting soil. I know it is too early but could not stop the itch. hehe

sey

What kind of eggplants are you going to grow Sey?

Have you considered growing sweet potatoes?

Sweet potatoes need a lot of space, don't they? Otherwise I'd give them a whirl--my father loves sweet potatoes, and it would be nice to grow some for him. Unfortunately, I have limited space have to play sun-shade jigsaw puzzle due to some big old trees near me (which I love, but they do make having a larger garden impossible).

The best eggplant I ever ate was one of the Mitoyos I grew in my garden this year. Excellent, excellent variety. Cannot speak of it highly enough. My brother, who is usually rather agnostic on eggplants, asked me for more of them after pronouncing the first one I gave him "really great".

Peter, I am going to grow several varieties of eggplants like Japanese /Chinese Ichiban, maybe some Italian too, ... and one that I got seeds from gorbelly.

Yes, I will grow some sweet potatoes outside the main garden. This area ( Southwest Columbus County , NC) is know to have good sweet potatoes. They have even Sweet Potato Festival. Another commercial crop grown here is Soy Beans. I will grow some of that too. Just for fresh harvesting , not for shelling.

PS:

(1)Today I planted some chives, scallions and flat parsley. I will just let them grow on their own term. I know onion family is more cold tolerant than parsley when it comes to germinating. The next items on my agenda are sugar snap peas and lettuce but probably I will have to wait another month.

(2) I bough starter mix and a 72 cell tray for tomatoes and peppers. I will get into action in couple of weeks from now ( ~~ mid January )

(3) LOWES has already packed the racks with all kinds of seeds. I am thinking about getting Steak Sandwich seeds to add to my ever expanding grow list.hehe

Sey

Sweet potatoes do need a lot of space and they are also ground crawling and sun loving, so unless you attempt to trellis them, if they are shaded by your other probably already big plants by the time they get going, they won't grow. Alas they are also a favorite for deer. I gave up on them up here, just don't have the place for them.

I am growing Italian eggplants.. Nadia, Galine, and Prosperosa. Which other ones do you grow gorbelly? I just realized I should add an asian type... I will grow one of the hybrids from Johnny's.

Gor, thanks for your eggplant review.

Eggplants are are generally eaten un ripe very much like cucumber and squash. Once they get to their full mature size I'll harvest them. Then they should be shiny and firm.

Eggplants need high temperatures to cook, either cook at 350F oven or pan fry, before going into things like EP Parmesan. You cannot cook them with zuke. They need longer cooking time and higher temperatures.

This is a dish with tomatoes, eggplant, garlic and eggs.

Precook eggplant , peeled( 80% done ? ). Chopped !

Precook fresh tomatoes ( skinned de seeded ) with garlic, to get good consistenc, like thick spaghetti sauce.

Combine and simmer at low heat.

When done, break in the eggs. Leave on top ! Do not mix. : Either scrambled or sunny side up style. I like SS up style .it is showy.

Quantity proportion : One/ 6 oz tomato, one /6 oz eggplant , 3 cloves of garlic, one egg

This amount is for one person. . Multiply as needed. Add salt peppers, spices to taste.I personally add some fresh red pepper with some heat and flavor , too.

NOTE : Eggs in this dish substituted for cheese in Italian stye of cooking.

Sey

I was going by general advice to pick eggplants when they are still glossy, and you can squeeze them and they are firm but have a little give and bounce back right away.

It worked for my Mitoyos but not for my Aswad. I think you will be surprised at how firm the Aswad are. They feel unusually hard, and they are heavy and much denser feeling than other eggplants. They really hold up and maintain a meaty, chewy texture even after plenty of cooking.

I eventually learned to err on the side of earliness and pick the Aswad when they got to large grapefruit size. Earlier in the season, I'll pick them at small cantaloupe size this year.

The Thai Long Green were just always bitter for me, whether I picked at 2 inches or 12 inches. Maybe they will be sweeter in your soil/climate.

Why are we discussing eggplants on a tomato forum?

Why not? We are growing them, they are related to tomatoes, there is no eggplant forum, and Sey doesn't frequent the vegetable gardening forum. I was interested in what else he was growing. I doubt the topic will continue very long. Sey even gave a recipe for tomato and eggplant... which makes sense as they are harvested at the same time and are good together!

I'm glad you are enjoying the Aswad but it doesn't sound like my cup of tea... I would prefer something more tender personally.

I grow eggplant too and cannot get enough of them, but I won't contribute to this off topic discussion.

That's a bit extreme, don't you think? This topic wasn't even made for that purpose, it is just how the discussion went. This is certainly not against any kind of rules, though if you'd like feel free to mark the topics and let the moderators decide. All the same, I think I will head out from this forum... I don't think I meet the prerequisite tomato.... passion. :)

Peter: I'm glad you are enjoying the Aswad but it doesn't sound like my cup of tea... I would prefer something more tender personally.

Peter, I love a tender creamy eggplant like Mitoyo, too. I think different eggplants work better for different purposes. I like Aswad for grilling, parm, veggie burgers, and other recipes where I don't want my eggplant to fall apart. Eaten raw, it has more crunch than other eggplants, which can be good for some things.

This site is pretty relaxed. As long as we are talking about gardening, not politics or religion I don't see any problems. Beside the main topic is open for discussion and comments. II am the OP and I don;t think that the thread is hijacked. lol

Talking about new picks, I have added Aunt Ruby's (?) German Green and thinking about adding Steak Sandwich. What so you think ?

Sey

I think if you're growing more than 1 GWR, you should do a comparison with the Malakhitovaya Shkatulka I sent you. Not because I will be offended at all if you don't use them but because, as you know, I'm a huge cheerleader for MS, which I feel is a strangely underappreciated GWR. :D

I am adding black cherry back in, and trying blue cream berry from baker seeds this year. Also thinking of Rutgers in a container

My final decisions are Kellogg's Breakfast, Golden Rave, Yellow Mini, Brandywine Sudduth, and I think I will try to slip in a Jet Star. I just ordered the seeds. Happy 2017 I hope everyone has a great year!

Labradors wrote:

"I grow eggplant too and cannot get enough of them, but I won't contribute to this off topic discussion."

You just did!

Sey, if you decide to grow Green Giant, which is much more productive and IMO better tasting than ARGG, than I would axe ARGG altogether. That is what I did after growing ARGG for years. Or, at least grow both, and make your own decision.

I think it can be hard not to wander into adjacent topics on a forum. I think this is the wrong place to start a thread on eggplants, but people are naturally going to talk about other things in their garden.

I apologize for being a bit too detailed. It's just that I wanted to elaborate on the seeds that sey mentioned I sent to him. There really should be an eggplant forum, though. Lots of eggplant growers here.

I like eggplant too. Apparently a lot of people like eggplant. I have never grown eggplant. Maybe I will grow eggplant this season. I don't know squat about eggplant though. There really should be an eggplant forum. I suppose until then, Sey's "Tomato Coices" thread will do.

Sey, I will be back to my regular goings - on tomorrow. I will get those tomato seeds in the mail for you.

Sey, the seeds are on their way to you. I hope they perform for you as well as they do for me here in Charlotte.

I'm adding Orange Russian 177, Isis Candy and Rapunzel just because they look cool.

I pick off of what we want to eat. Black Krim, Sun Gold, Yellow Pear (for my mother and sauce). I pick a few good tasting slicers. Brandywine Pink, and some traditional reds. We're also fond of Lemon Boy and I am trying a hybrid seed vs a plant this year.

I am easily attracted to plants to try. This year I am trying Orange Russian 177 because I REALLY want a bicolor and my previous bicolor attempts have disappointed. I'm also trying Rapunzel because it sounds amazing and fun. I did a donation to University of Florida for Garden Gem and Garden Treasure because it is fun to support research..

I had 21 plants last year. I'm trying to keep it around 12 this year.

ncrealestateguy Sey, the seeds are on their way to you. I hope they perform for you as well as they do for me here in Charlotte

-------------------------------------------------------------

NC, appreciated. If they do well in Charlotte, should do well down here too. I think we have similar summers.

On the new picks, I have got a few varieties that is said do well in the heat and humidity of the south. They are :

PRUDEN'S PURPLE, CREOLE , BRANDYWINE SUDDUTH, BRANDY BOY , BIG BEEF and INDIAN STRIPE PL.

Well of course I have about 20 more in my grow list. I am covered. hehe

Sey

EDITED:

NC, got the seeds. Thanks much.

More seeds than I actually needed at this time.

Sey

Good to hear they got there. I am going to try Prudens Purple this year too and I did Indian Stripe last year for the first time... It was a big winner. I have not had a Brandywine of any kind do well for me.

My grow-out list this year (*new to me): Matt's Wild Cherry*, Isis Candy, Snow White, Black Cherry, True Black Brandywine*, Black Prince, Black Krim, Prudens Purple*, Pink Berkeley Tie Die, Large Barred Boar, Indian Stripe*, Kellogg's Breakfast*, Lemon Boy, Aunt Ruby's German Green*, Brandywine Red, Omar's Lebanese*, Brandy Boy, Brandy Boy F2* (I saved seed and want to see what I get), Brandywine Suddiths, Early Girl, and Bella Rosa*.

Last spring, I tried both Purple Bumblebee and Sunrise Bumblebee from Baker Creek, but neither one came true to seed. I grew out about 20 of them, to share, and they were all just plain orange colored cherries....like a sungold. I was very disappointed.

I completed my order from Totally Tomatoes' website on Friday and expect delivery any day now.

I ordered:

Orange Jazz

Black Opal (a cherry bred from Black Cherry)

Black

Marglobe Improved

Bloody Butcher

The last 3 were selections that my neighbor made and I will grow transplants for her. I will be growing one Sungold and one Black Opal on a 8' wide trellis. It will end up being a jungle of the 2 plants but I shouldn't have any problem telling the fruits apart like I did when I grew a Sungold and a SS100 on the same trellis.

I just placed my seed order. Every season, I trial a new category of tomatoes. Last year It was Oxhearts. I discovered a nice Orange Strawberry that I will keep doing from that trial. These trials are in addition to my "core tomato crop", which i do every season.

Rutgers improved

Orange strawberry

BFBS (an unknown, early, beefsteak purple that I found 5 years ago)

Pruden's Purple

Green Giant

Green Zebra

Black Krim

Polish Linguisa

Persimmon

Chocolate Stripes

Indian Stripe

Orange Jazz

Kellogs Breakfast

Sun Sugar

Cuostralee

Hillbilly

Black From Tula

Momotaro

And for my Bi Color Trials:

Orange Russian 117

Texas Star

Gold Medal

Mortgage Lifter Bi Color

Oaxacan Jewel

Pineapple

Striped German

Vintage Wine

Ananas Noire (Thanks to Sey)

I will do about two of each variety, except for a few of my favorites, which I will do three plants. I plant directly into 6 inch pots, starting late Feb. and plant out date the first or second week of April.

That's a real nice list NC!! How did Orange Jazz do for you?

This will be my first year growing it. Along with the Prudens Purple and the Momotaro and the rest of the Bi Colors. I hope it does well, because I love the big, meaty orange tomatoes. Persimmon is one of my faves.

Nice selection , NC.

With new trials I would be happy to find one out of three that I really like. This year I will have about 15 new varieties. I don't know yet how my repeats will do down here. I think overall they will do better here than in PNW. I am betting on BFBS (thanks NC).

Talking about Orange/yellow, I have Hillbilly, Kelloggs Breakfast, Golden Jubilee, and Big Rainbow. . Okee dokee. I wish everybody a good 2017 season. Lots of work to do though.Haven't even germinated a seed yet.

I made my new light stand, for 3 sets of double T8 , 48".

sey

Would love to see a pic of your light stand, Sey. I need to do something different from what I'm doing now.

I have a few picture of my setup. I have 24 linear feet of light shelf, 16 of which is lit by 4 bulb T8 shop fixtures. The other 8 feet are lit by double fixture 2 bulb T12s that I need to replace with the 4 bulb T8s.

These was taken last May 30th after I had already planted most of my garden. I only had a few things going for my brother in Minnesota and my fall planting of leeks and bunching onions.

Garden pictures · More Info

Close up

Garden pictures · More Info

Nitsua(6b MO) Would love to see a pic of your light stand, Sey. I need to do something different from what I'm doing now..

--------------------------------

Here it is Nitsua

The trays will sit on the floor and the lights' height will be adjusted to accommodate the seedling height. In the beginning, when the plants are small ( in 12oz cold drink cups) I might just use 2 sets of lights. But when they are re potted into bigger pots, I'll bring my 3rd set into operation.There will be no load on the stand other than the fixtures hanging.

Also I can group my seedlings by height and adjust each light accordingly.

PS: It cost me under $20 and I put it together in about one hour, But I had a plan how to do it (size, cuts ..) . With T12 lights it should be made wider.

Any more questions, be glad to answer.

Sey

Final for 2017 ... I hope... (about a third will go in my neighbor's garden):

3. Orange Pixie dwarf
2. Lime Green salad dwarf
1. Pride of Flanders dwarf
1. Momotaro Hybrid
1. Think Pink Hybrid
1. Rowdy Red
1. Bolseno hybrid
1. Ananas Noire
5. Margo Hybrid dwarf
1. Green Berkeley Tie-Dye
1. Bella Rosa Det. Hybrid
1. Camaro hybrid Det.
1. Brandy Boy Hybrid
1. Pruden's Purple
1. Green Zebra

1. Stump of the World
1. Bulgarian #7
1. Brandywine Sudduth
1. Chapman

1. Rose heirloom
   1. Limmony heirloom
   1. Lucky Cross

my neighbor (who loves BWS) :

5. Brandywine Sudduth
1. Jaune Flamme
1. Neves Azorean Red

1. Mrs Maxwell's Big Italian
1. Royal Hillbilly
1. Aunt Ginny's Purple
1. Arkansas Traveler
1. Red Rose
1. Purple Calabash

1. Balls Beefsteak Hybrid

Thanks, Sey. I'm enjoying digging around and getting seedling lights ideas.

I'm adding Pink Berkeley Tie Die and Carbon to debut at this summer's garden party.

Nitsua, ...good luck with your quest.

14tomatoes_md_7a , that is very good grow out list, close too 50 plants (?).

that is about how many plants I will be growing: Mostly one of each, some 2 ane very few of them 3 plants each.

sey

Have to pop in to say Thank You for this thread. Was looking for comments on something else (the low Kellogg's Breakfast production comments I'd seen), saw this and got excited about eggplants. Actually spent the evening browsing Baker Creek's and searching comments here (if you're going to pay shipping for Aswad, why not add a few other things to the order ;-) ). Picking up both Aswad and Miyoto and to round this back to tomatoes, adding Japanese Black Trifle (even though it has mixed comments here), Nyagous (ditto) and Carbon (even though big tomatoes don't do superbly here, planning to add shadecloth this year and will just grow one). I'm one of those who think the garden forums would be easier to use if they cut them back to fewer forums (especially those where there've been no comments for 6 months - just merge to it's closest relative). Happy you're all relaxed and sharing great info. You've got a new started thread so perhaps I'll pop in there with what's already on the heat mat.