The mature plants are about 10" high and spread about 10" wide. No issues with disease, blossom drop, etc. --- all flowers seem to fruit nonstop (extremely productive)!

We have picked over 3 dozen tomatoes so far from the 3 mature plants.

Taste is OK --- the very ripe ones develop decent flavor (tangy, not sweet...something we like), the green shouldered ones are on the bland and tart side.

I'd rate the taste barely a 6 -- the redeeming part is they are juicy!

Tony

Looks good Tony! I grew floragold micro tomato this spring. I wasn't too impressed. I had a hard time with disease, so that was my biggest issue. They grew so compact and tight, that they were hard to manage, if that makes sense. It was like they wanted to grow down into the soil. They did put out a lot of fruit, but the taste was petty bland. I can't complain too much, got the seeds for free from a GW member. I'm definetly interested in growing some other micros and dwarfs, so I'll keep Tiny Tim in mind and also Red Robin.

Thanks,

Kevin

Linda and Kevin -- I got the Red Robin seeds. Will arrive on the 24th and I'll seed for 6 plants. Also (since shipping was fixed rate) got an early determinate to try out next year, called Red Rocket. Let me know what you think.

Tony

http://www.tomatogrowers.com/RED-ROCKET/productinfo/2373/

Red Rocket hasn't crossed my radar before but it sounds interesting! Early and productive with good flavor. How can you go wrong? Do let us know what you think when you've had a chance to grow this one.

Linda

I second Red Robin. It's also a very attractive little plant, and the taste is quite OK for a micro. If you haven't ruled out yellows, Hahm's Gelbe Topftomate is also good, very small, and super cute.

Tiny Tim update (7-6-2017).

Tony

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This Tiny Tim was planted March 22nd --- it hasn't stopped producing since the 1st ripe one on June 2nd, no disease problems, no blossom drop even in the 97+ degree 4 day heatwave we had in mid June. The flavor has improved --- soft skin, very juicy and tangy. We pick a half a dozen ripe ones every couple of days. Lost count of how many --- but, at least 60+ cherries so far! It is still loaded with fruit, but the blossoming has slowed down --- I think in a couple of weeks it will be done. Overall, very impressed with Tiny Tim!

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These three Tiny Tims were planted on May 23rd --- loading up with fruit (we'll see when the first ripe one arrives), again, no disease or heat problems.

Following the recommendations on Red Robin, I seeded these on 6-24 (plus Red Rocket, hoping to get one planted by end of July for late September tasting to see Red Rocket's flavor).

The Robins I'll plant in early August in the window boxes which will eventually go inside the house on our 7' long by 4' high window which gets 6+ hours of direct sunlight over the winter.

Tony

I underestimated the production of this little trooper --- Tiny Tim. Just counted 38 green fruit and the top trusses with blossoms are still turning into fruit! By the time it's done I can safely say it will produce over 100 cherries! Quite a feat for a plant that grew 8" high and spread about 12" across!

Tony

9-7-2017 update:

1 Tiny Tim (left front) and 5 Red Robin (planted 7-15 and 8-6) --- loading up with fruit.

Tony

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planted Red Rocket on 7-15 (never done such late planting here) just to see what happens --- it's nearly 3' tall and keeps growing, lots of blossoms and small fruits plus several large ones! that we'll get to taste in a couple of weeks

will report on flavor then

I have always grown Tiny Tim for over 40 years. Have given hundreds away.

It has one characteristics that no other tomato has that I know of. It loves shade. Timmy will grow happily and produce well where it is never touched by sunlight. That is a phenomenal characteristic. I only grow it to give to people in apartments or with totally shaded yards. They can pick their own tomatoes, and be proud to have grown them.

Taste is not great, but good in a salad.

Another great characteristic is that it will grow as big or small as you want. Grow it in a 6-oz styrofoam coffee cup, and it becomes an adorable little 6-inch plant loaded with tomatoes for your office desk. A novelty, but absolutely adorable! In a regular deep 4-gallon pot, it grows about 2 feet tall, also loaded with tomatoes. Stems are pretty strong to hold up all that fruit. They flop, but do not break.

Twice, I have given to different people a novelty coffee cup of cute little Timmy, and they planted it in full sun when it was already full of tomatoes. They died, probably because it could not root well and continue producing. But it may be that Timmy can not stand full sun.

I grew Red Robin once, and I concluded that it was probably just another name for Timmy. But I did not test it in a no-light situation or in 6-oz cups.

Tiny Tim is no Sungold in taste. But it has its own special niche in low light and in cute tiny containers.

Tarolli --- great post!

I've noticed that when I moved them to a very sunny spot, the leaves started dying out, so moved them back to a more shaded area and they are doing much better.

Plants and fruit look identical on both varieties. The only way I can tell them apart is by their labels.

9-18-2017 taste report:

Tiny Tim:

taste 6+ (no flavor complexity, just straightforward tangy)

texture 9+ (firm, thin skin is hardly noticeable --- just pops in your mouth)

juiciness 10 !!!

Total score: 26

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Red Robin:

taste 7+ (has some flavor complexity and a bit of sweetness followed by a tangy finish)

texture 8+ (somewhat soft, very thin skin --- does not have the same pop as the Tims)

juiciness 9+

Total score: 25.5

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Definitely like the taste of Red Robin better, but love the texture of the Tiny Tim -- so, glad we are growing both varieties.

Tony

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Top 4 are Tiny Tim, bottom 3 slices are Red Robin

Red Rocket update:

Took 80 days to ripen (so, not a 60 day early). 5-8 oz red fruits with a hint of tangy and some sweetness (nothing special taste wise) , some juice, but the main put-off is the mushy flesh.

Thumbs down.

Tony

Very helpful, Tony. Thanks for the link--

Carol

I find microtoms to be good only for very early growing since they can grow with less sun. The main problem is production. You can have a determinate tomato produce much more than a micro in same pot size. For example Maskotka.

fungus -- I grow micros during the winter as window sill tomatoes...can't fit a determinate on the window sill.

Tony

Thanks so much 14tomatoes and tarolli for the really great reviews. Very interesting, especially about Tiny Tim liking shade!!! Perhaps it would do well on a non-sunny windowsill in the winter.....

I am growing two Red Robins. One is great and has some green fruit, the other appears to be incorrect as it is too tall and doesn't have rugose leaves.

Linda

I should have suggested avoiding Totem and Tumbling Tom Red for those who are trying different cultivars. Both are nice-looking plants with absolutely AWFUL taste! I could not bring myself to eat them. Let tomatoes stay on vine until almost rotten to ripen more. Still could not eat them. Threw plants out!

Another cultivar that may be more shade-tolerant like Timmy is the new hybrid Candyland. My lights failed last year, and I lost many seedlings, but Candyland loved it. It won the AAS, and like all AAS, it is not especially good-tasting. A little better taste than Tiny Tim maybe, but nothing to brag about. Plant is small, but not a micro. In the ground, it grew about 1/3 as big as Sun Gold, but absolutely loaded with tomatoes. I wonder if it might become a micro in a small pot!

In the ground or in a pot of at least 4 gallons, Tiny Tim does not act determinant. It produces its heart out until frost here in 6a.

I wasn't sure what variety I was planting but this variety was like a rollercoaster ride with a disappointing end. It had loads of potential with hundreds of blossoms and fruit popping out like grapes. But they never got any bigger than a marble. And so I had hundreds upon hundreds of marble sized tomatoes that had the flavor of a piece of cardboard. I can't work with that. I will never plant this variety again.