Tomato Round-Up 2024

   Welcome to the tomato round-up of 2024.  In general, it was a less-than-optimal summer for tomatoes, with hot weather, little rain, and periods of high winds.  We watered as systematically as we could, but many of the tomatoes were still plagued with blossom end rot (BER).  During a particularly hot spell in the middle of the summer, it seemed like the tomatoes simply stopped developing.  As a result, several varieties that are typically mid-season seem to be late to mature.

Descriptions and pictures below (click to enlarge).

 

DETERMINATES & DWARF VARIETIES

Dwarf Speckled Heart  (Dwarf, red & gold striped hearts, 5-12 oz fruit,~ 75 DTM).

This variety was compact, sturdy, and LOADED with flowers in July.  It has been a very productive variety.  I saved seeds earlier this month from some tomatoes that had the most heart-like shape.  The hot, dry weather this summer stressed the plants and some of the resulting tomatoes were oddly shaped and crinkled.  The skins were thick - again, because of the weather - but the tomatoes had few seeds, were meaty, and had a really good flavour.  I would love to try these again.

 

 

 

Dwarf Firebird Sweet  (Dwarf, pink & orange striped oblate, some with speckles. Pretty, 4-8oz slicer, sweet/rich flavour.  Vigorous, high-yielding, ~75 DTM.)

These were sturdy plants with the crinkled, dark-green foliage typical of many dwarf varieties.  They were a bit slow to get going, but eventually produced loads of flowers.  It's an indeterminate dwarf, so I had to 'top' the plant in August.  Many of the tomatoes are on the small size and are wonky shapes, rather than the symmetrical, rounded oblate examples I've seen pictured.  Perhaps the hot, dry weather is to blame, as Dwarf Speckled Heart had similar issues.  Blossom end rot was a problem, though wasn't as as severe as it was with, say, Ropreco or Velmozha,  Dwarf Firebird Sweet is much later than 75 DTM, at least in my garden. Pros: very prolific and pretty, with a lovely flavour.  Cons: wonky shapes, on the small side, and LATE.

 

 

Dwarf Roza Vetrov  (Dwarf, pink, open-pollinated, small/medium, round pointed fruit, early, good in cooler climates/short seasons.  Russian origin, name translates as “Wind Rose”.)

This was one of this summer's winners.  Very productive, early, and wasn't touched by the blossom end rot that seemed to plague most of the other tomato varieties, to one degree or another.  The pictures don't do them justice; they are a lovely shade of pink when fully ripe.  Looking forward to growing Dwarf Roza Vetrov again!

 

 

Dwarf Audrey's Love  (Dwarf, 2-4 oz striped bicolour elongated plum, chocolate with green stripes, great flavour, 3' tall, heavy producer, mid-season: 80-85 DTM.)

I only had 3 seeds to start with and when all was said and done, 1 transplant made it through the hardening off phase to be planted in the garden.  Alas, I really don't think it liked the spot I chose for it.  One of my garden note entries described the plant as a "bit of a hurtin' unit".  It was spindly and at it's peak, only had about 9 small tomatoes on it.  I would like to try this variety again, in a better location.  It is late to mature (con) but the tomatoes are attractive and have a similar flavour to a purple/black tomato (pros).

 

 

Gold Dust  (Dwarf,  medium-sized, sunny orange globes, some slightly pointed.  Compact bush-type plants, firm fruit, mild/sweet flavour, early, grow well in large pots.  Does well in cooler weather. 65-70 DTM.)

These plants were, indeed, compact and were loaded by fruit by the end of the summer.  I'm thankful I staked them, despite their short stature.  As of September 1st, most of the tomatoes on the plant were still not ripe, though by mid-month, many had ripened.  Mild flavour, very firm tomatoes.  Pretty colour, uniform shape, unblemished.  If these tasted like Amana Orange, I would grow them every year!  It is  a sturdy, reliable variety, just not a knockout for taste (I’ll see if the later maturing tomatoes on these plants taste better).

 

 

Linda  (Dwarf, red cherry, ~1 inch, oval/egg-shape, excellent flavour, ornamental look, very early.  Compact, up to 3’ tall, good in large pots. Ukrainian origin.  These are sometimes called a microdwarf, as plants often stay ~12” tall, especially when grown in small pots.)

This variety was another winner this summer.  No blossom end rot, productive, hardy, early, and flavourful. The plants were between 1.5 and 2 feet tall.

 

 

Black Sea Man (Determinate, 'black'/mahogany, heirloom, beefsteak, 8-12 oz, rich flavour, slicer, can be grown in large containers. "Triangular" foliage. Russian origin.  Early mid-season, ~ 75 DTM)

Black Sea Man is one of my favourite varieties.  I think I have grown it more often than any other.  The plants are robust and productive, and the flavour of these tomatoes is out of this world.  Lots of blossom end rot this year, but the plants are so productive that I still came away with plenty of Black Sea Man tomatoes to enjoy.

 

Ropreco Paste  (Determinate.  A small-to-medium red paste tomato that has a small point on the blossom end.  ~2-3” long, 2-3 oz, productive, sets well in cooler weather.  A small plant but it is best to support it because it is heavy with fruit.  Good for sauces, drying, and canning.  Also tastes good fresh. ~3’ tall.  Italian origin.  Early, ~65-70 DTM,)

Ropreco was the biggest bomb of the season.  I planted 6 of these and was counting it to be the main variety for sauces and dehydrated tomatoes.  All but one of these plants was plagued with blossom end rot (and what the BER didn't get, the deer did!).  This is the second time I have grown it and both times, it had a lot of BER.  It's such a shame, as the plants are productive.  It just hasn't been dependable for me.

 

Velmozha  (Determinate.  Large, pink, blunt heart, averaging 200-300g.  Bushy plant, 80 cm to 1.40 m tall. Good resistance to diseases. Russian origin, grown commercially since the 1950s. Velmozha means ‘noble’ in Ukrainian.  Early: 70-75 DTM.)

These plants put out LOADS of flowers and were very, very productive.  Real workhorses. The plants were sprawled somewhat and were about 3.5 feet tall.  Quite a number of the tomatoes ended up with blossom end rot, but I suspect Velmozha would have done better in a cooler summer, as would have Rozovyi Myod.  The first ripe one was picked on August 26th, though most ripened in September.  Mild, sweet flavour, few seeds.

 

 

(Not pictured:  Manitoba and Scotia) 

INDETERMINATES

Rozovyi Myod  (“Pink Honey” or “Siberian Pink Honey”.  Indeterminate, large pink hearts, 6-12 oz, sweet flavour.  For best flavour, do not over-water.  Does well in cool/mild summer weather.  Russian origin.  Early mid-season. 75-80 DTM.) 

The first 3 tomatoes to ripen in the garden this summer were all Rozovyi Myod, and they were large.  By July 20th, the plants were loaded with flowers and they were the first to set fruit.  Two of the plants already had large fruit on them.  I harvested the first ripe tomato in late July.

By early-August, I'd noted that quite a number of fruit had set and that the plants just kept putting out masses of flowers.  

This variety, like Velmozha, is very productive, but it had a lot of problems this summer with blossom end rot.  Such a shame, as the number of tomatoes I would have harvested from these plants alone would have been staggering, had they not been lost to BER.  The flavour is mild and sweet and the tomatoes have few seeds (which made seed-saving a challenge).  It would be nice to see how well these tomatoes would do in a cooler, wetter summer.

 

 

Cosmonaut Volkov   (Indeterminate, deep-red globes, 2-3” fruit, productive, complex tangy flavor, meaty.  Plants about 4 feet tall.  Ukrainian – some say Russian -  origin.  Named for the pioneering Soviet cosmonaut Vladislav Volkov.  ~75 DTM.)

The foliage of Cosmonaut Volkov was wispier than I expected.  By mid-August, I was underwhelmed with how these plants were doing.  I had read Cosmonaut Volkov was a very productive and early variety.  There were few tomatoes on our 2 plants and they were nowhere near ripe. 

In early September, most tomatoes on the plants were still unripe.  I tasted the first two ripe ones the first week of September and completely changed my mind about growing this variety again.  I had written it off due to low productivity and the fact that it’s “just another medium-sized red tomato”.  The flavour, however, was excellent!

 

 

 

Japanese Black Trifele  (Indeterminate, black/mahogany, pear-shaped, medium-sized fruit, rich flavour.  Despite the name, it’s origin is either Estonian or Russian, depending on the source you read. ~80 DTM.)

Japanese Black Trifele was a winner!   It didn't do well last summer, but this year: wow!  I had 2 of these plants and wish now I'd planted more.  You just never know how any variety is going to perform during any given summer.  "Triangular" leaves, like Black Sea Man.  The plants were loaded with flowers early in the summer and ended up growing to ~ 3.5 feet tall.  The flavour is fantastic.  This is another one I would love to grow again.

 

 

 

Guido  (Indeterminate, large, deep-red beefsteak, 10-18 oz, delicious old-time tomato flavour.   Italian heirloom. 80-85DTM.)

Another late variety wanted to take a chance on.  While it hasn't done as well as I'd hoped, it has done better than Mrs. Bot's Italian Giant.  Most of the tomatoes are still green on the plants.  The plants are nice and sturdy, more compact than I expected, which I like.  There was a moderate amount of flowers on the plants early in the summer.  That surprised me, as I had read that Guido is a productive variety.  Many of the tomatoes are small to medium in size, though there are several large tomatoes on the plants, just starting to blush (as of September 22nd).  Blossom end rot was an issue, but it was with most varieties I grew this year.

 

Mrs. Bot's Italian Giant  (Indeterminate, large red beefsteak, ruffled at top, meaty, few seeds, sweeter flavour than a typical red, excellent for sauce or fresh eating, 10-20oz.  ~80-85 DTM.  Originated in Castel Franco in the province of Treviso in the Veneto region in Italy.)

The beautiful pictures of Mrs. Bot's Italian Giant online made me want to grow it despite it being a late variety.  The reality of what my plants produced was, well...meh.  The tomatoes that are a decent size (not 'giant', by any stretch) have blossom end rot and the rest are quite small and are still very green on the plants.  The plants themselves are nice and sturdy, which I love.  I just wish they had produced larger tomatoes, in more abundance, and without BER!  It was worth a try; you win some, you lose some.  The one pictured below is the only example I have, as of September 22nd, of a ripe MBIG that is close to the 'typical' size.  It had a tiny bit of BER, but I saved seeds from it, anyway.

Striped German  (Indeterminate. Bicolour – yellow marbled with blush red, very pretty, large beefsteak, fruity flavour, ~ 80-85 DTM.  Can grow up to 7’ tall. Heirloom from West Virginia, USA.)

I grew these once before, and the tomatoes were flawless.  They looked like the were glowing from the inside and the flesh was marbled pink/red and yellow.  It is moderately productive.  I only grew one plant this year, but wished I'd had the space for one more.  The tomatoes this year aren't as flawless, but they're still pretty.  The plants are sturdy and compact for an indeterminate.

 

(Not pictured: Reinhard's Chocolate Heart. It is an indeterminate brown oxheart, rare, with rich flavour,  Typically 300-400g.  It is a cross between Cherokee Green x a pink oxheart, 80-85DTM, of German origin.  I also grew it in 2023 and 2022.  This year's plants produced more tomatoes than in the last two years, but the tomatoes are smaller, later, and not as uniformly shaped.  There were also issues with BER this year.  I would like to grow it again, though, as it is a beautiful, delicious variety!)

 

Season's First Batch (Tomato Sauce)

 

 

Dry, Cure, Bubble, and Brew

'Tis the season for seed saving. 

 

First Frost, Squash Zapped

   Last night, I covered the tomatoes, peppers, and a few flowers with sheets and floating row cover.  We've been doing this for a week or two, not because of low overnight temperatures, but to prevent the deer from dining on what remains of our garden.

   The forecast overnight low was 4 degrees C, so I didn't worry too much about frost.  That was a mistake!  When I looked outside this morning and spotted thick, white sparkles on the sheets, my heart sank.  The tomatoes and peppers are okay, but the squash plants....*sob*.  The Burpee's Butterbush and the North Georgia Candy Roaster plants got zapped by frost overnight.  Some of the leaves are still alive, so we'll leave the squash on for the time-being.  

 

   With the exception of one squash - and that would be a stretch - the Burpee's Butterbush are nowhere near mature or ready to harvest.  The Candy Roasters might be mature enough to harvest in a pinch.  Just as well, as it turns out...

   To top off the "Bad Luck For Squash" theme of the day, a Candy Roaster snapped from the plant when I was examining it this afternoon, looking for frost damage.  The break was right up against the squash; there is no longer a stem attached.  It will have to be cured and then eaten in relatively short order.

 

 

 

Smoke, Ash, and Speckled Hearts

   Smoke from wildfires in the region has moved in over the last 2 days.  The air is hazy and there is fine ash on everything outside.  It is particularly noticeable in the mornings.

   The fungus gnats are also out in full force, as they always are towards the end of gardening season.  The sunshine is beautiful and the temperature is right, but the combination of smoke and gnats filling the air sadly makes a person more inclined to stick to indoor tasks.

   We have begun to cover the tomatoes, peppers, and flowers at night.  Not because of frost risk - the nights are still mild - but to keep the deer from eating everything in sight.  They have been coming into the yard nightly and doing a number on sunflowers, asters, apples, tomatoes, lettuce, etc.  They even tried a pepper plant and some bush bean plants (one time each, so these must not be among their favourite snacks).  So far, they have left the winter squash alone.  I hope they simply won't recognize the squash as edible and it will be allowed to grow to maturity unharmed!

   The Dwarf Speckled Heart tomatoes are just beginning to ripen.  What productive plants.  These two tomatoes were much further along than the others:

Dwarf Firebird Sweet

While most of the tomatoes in the garden are still green, we did discover two ripe Dwarf Firebird Sweet tomatoes on September 2nd.  The thin gold streaking and speckles are pretty!

 

 

Velmozha, Snackeroonie, and The Great Big Sunflower

How is it September already?

   The last few days have brought us sunshine and more reasonable daytime temps (low 20s Celsius).  In the garden, the beans are still behind in their development.   The Burpee's Butterbush squash plants put out female flowers out in earnest this past week and a half; quite a few have set now.  The Sweet Meat squash plants have 4 squash growing, the equivalent of 1 per plant.  I wish the tomatoes were further along with their ripening so I could just pick them, as every day I find more with BER.

Pictures from the end of August:

   The first ripe Velmozha tomato.  This might be the meatiest tomato I've ever grown; there were hardly any seeds inside to save.  I am very curious to see what the others are like once picked.  The flavour was sweet and mild, like most pink hearts.  It wasn't a "knock your socks off" tomato for flavour, but will make great sauce.

 

 

   R. discovered that a number of apples were on the ground beneath the tree yesterday morning.  When he picked them up, he spotted teeth marks in them.  Snackeroonie was back for another visit!  He/she is by almost every night now and has sampled the kale, lettuce, sunflowers, nasturtiums, asters, and a few green tomatoes.  We are going to have to rethink how and where we plant certain crops in the garden going forward.

 

The deer also munched on the lettuce...

 

...and the sunflowers...

...and the jalapeno plant.

 

   This is one of the Russian Mammoth sunflowers I planted (I planted 5 or 6 sunflower seeds this year, but dozens of volunteers came up).  They didn't grow as tall as I expected, but the heads are very large.  This variety produces cheerful whoppers of a sunflower! 

R.'s hand on the sunflower for scale.

 

The garlic bulbils are reaching maturity.   They're in the plant room now, drying down.

The dahlias look so much healthier now that the days aren't as hot.

 

Ajvarski peppers, a sweet (and eventually red) variety.

A "Snacker" cucumber, the first of the season.

Burpee's Butterbush squash (a small butternut variety).  New female flowers are opening every day or so now.  Hoping the plants average 3-4 squash each, like they have in past years.

 

"Unwin's Mix Dahlias" (dahliettas)

   Two days ago, I replaced the bolted lettuce with new lettuce transplants.  The next morning, I discovered they'd been eaten down almost to the soil.  Not by deer, in this case, but by sparrows!  I covered what remained of the transplants with juice jug tops.  That should keep the little buggers away from the transplants until they are able to get established.

 

A busy bee on a beautiful sunflower.

One of our little assistants.

 

 

Kale going to seed.

Marigolds, pansies, lettuce, and thyme.

Dill seed, drying down.

 

One of the Dwarf Audrey's Love tomatoes is beginning to ripen.

 

   Dwarf Speckled Heart.  There are a lot of tomatoes on these plants, some with a perfect heart shape (like those below) and some wrinkled and warped from the harsh conditions this summer.  In any case, I am eager for these to ripen.  Dwarf Speckled Heart is listed as 70-75 DTM on a number of seed sites, and simply as "mid-season" on others.  In our garden, it is taking longer than that to mature.

Some more Velmozha tomatoes starting to ripen.

 

 

With respect to tomatoes, I had more or less written off Cosmonaut Volkov as a variety I would try growing again.  I have two of these plants on the go this summer - one in a bucket and one in a large containers.  I have been underwhelmed with the production (lower than almost anything I have read online about this variety) and it is not as early to ripen as I expected.  I thought, "It's just another medium-sized red tomato, so no great loss".  

   Two small tomatoes began to blush, so I picked them and let finish ripening indoors.  I ate one last night and one this morning.  The flavour has completely changed my mind about growing Cosmonaut Volkov again.  They were delicious; salty, a bit acidic, rich.  Like the sun-warmed tomatoes I would eat fresh from the garden when I was very little.  Now, I can't imagine not growing this again.

   Garlic hanging to cure (pictured is Red Russian).  Even though the garlic was harvested earlier than ever this year (end of July/start of August), judging by the condition it was in, it could have been harvested even earlier.  Parts of the garlic patch were wetter than expected.  As a result, the papers on the bulbs were rotting or broken several layers deep.  This is visible in the picture.  The garlic will be fine to eat, once cured, but it will not store anywhere near as long as it usually does.  To put it mildly, this has not been a good year for the garlic.  Trusting next year's harvest will be back to normal!

 

On with September!  I wonder what the month will bring?

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