Welcome to the tomato round-up of 2025. This year brought us more precipitation than we've seen in the last two or three years, but most of it came early in the summer. Late July and August were quite dry, leaving us to water everything by hand. While we had a few hot days, we did not have a defined heat wave to contend with this summer. Thank goodness.
It was a fantastic year for some varieties. For others, it was a write-off due to low production or pervasive blossom end rot. The stars this year were Japanese Black Trifele, Fisher's Earliest Paste, Katja, Dwarf Audrey's Love, and Principe Borghese. The write-offs were Moskvich, Marina's Praise, Eva Purple Ball, Orange Strawberry, and (surprisingly) Hungarian Heart, Malachite Box, and Indigo Pear Drop. Somewhere in the middle were Franchi Red Pear, Bellestar, Early Annie, Dwarf Arctic Rose, and Dwarf Purple Heart.
Never have we had so many tomatoes ripen on the plants, or ripen so quickly once picked and brought inside. As of today, almost all the tomatoes are processed (frozen, dehydrated, or canned as sauce). Usually, there are boxes and boxes full of green tomatoes in the kitchen, and the tomatoes are processed slowly, as they ripen, until November.
Descriptions and pictures are below (click to enlarge).
DETERMINATES & DWARF VARIETIES
Dwarf Speckled Heart (DWARF, red & gold striped hearts, 5-12 oz fruit, productive, ~ 75 DTM).
These plants produced well, like they did last summer. I grew them in pots these year rather than in a deep raised bed. I found they grew a bit larger and produced a bit more grown in the deep raised bed. Dwarf Speckled Heart is early, compact, hardy, and productive. The only drawbacks, to me, are that the larger tomatoes tend to have thick/tough skin and that it sometimes has bristly fibres at it’s core. They make great sauce and are pretty to look at in the garden.
I neglected to take many pictures, but there are plenty to see in the 2024 Tomato Round-Up post.
July 19th:
August 28th:
Dwarf Purple Heart (DWARF, purple-black, heart-shape, 6-16 oz, Deep crimson flesh, meaty, well-balanced flavour. Plant sprawls a bit, ~4' tall. Good producer. Late season.)
I love dark tomatoes and had high hopes for Dwarf Purple Heart. The plants were fairly short (~3 feet tall), bushy, and when they finally began putting out tomatoes, productive, Unfortunately, Dwarf Purple Heart was much later to develop and mature than I expected. They were the latest of all the varieties grown this summer.
Many of the tomatoes were small-to-medium in size and were pointy, flattened hearts. The few large ones I harvested were beautiful, like rounded oxhearts, and were flavourful. If I could guarantee plants filled with tomatoes that look like the one pictured below, I might consider growing this variety again, lateness be damned. It is fairly certain, however, that this won't be a repeat.
September 16th:
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 DTM)
Dwarf Audrey's Love is on my "grow again" list. The plants were short, a bit bushy but not unruly, and loaded with tomatoes. Two of the four plants were grown in large containers (like the one pictured below) and did beautifully. Almost no BER. This variety exceeded my expectations and I look forward to growing it again.
July 21st:
August 15th:
September 7th:
September 13th:
Dwarf Arctic Rose (DWARF, pink, round/oblate, early, often 5-6 oz, 3.5' tall, stout central stem, can grow in 5 gallon containers/pots but will thrive in containers 10+ gallons, balanced/sweet flavour. Descriptions online say 65-70 DTM, but I found it to be 80-85 DTM+)
I am still not sure how I feel about this variety. I grew two plants in a raised bed and the remaining four in 5-gallon pails. The plants were very compact and productive. I am generally not a fan of the kind of tightly/thickly ruffled rugose foliage this Dwarf Arctic Rose has. It was definitely not an early variety, at least not for me. The tomatoes were small- to medium-sized and ripened into an almost coral pink. The flavour was pleasant, but did not jump out as exceptional in any way. These tomatoes had lots of seeds.
July 19th
September 1st:
September 6th:
Early Annie (DET, red globes, 3 to 4-inch round, ~4oz, canning/slicing, reliable. 60-70DTM)
These plants were absolutely loaded with tomatoes. Early Annie is always a reliable producer. Early in the season, it looked like we were going to end up with a very large harvest of Early Annie tomatoes. Unfortunately, BER began to be a problem and by mid-August, it was clear that the vast majority of these tomatoes were going to be marred by it. I ended up picking a number of the tomatoes green (the ones that had the slightest indication of BER) to use in making green tomato chow chow. Many of the others, with worse BER, ended up being composted. I wish I'd taken a picture of the plants when they had some ripe tomatoes on them.
July 19th:
Principe Borghese (DET, red, heirloom, determinate, small, dry, few seeds, good for sundried tomatoes. Reliable, productive. ~ 75 DTM)
What can I say? Principe Borghese has always been a reliable, sturdy, productive, and early variety. It's a variety that I've grown often and will continue to grow. Most of these tomatoes end up dehydrated for storage, and some are used fresh in salads.
July 19th
September 6th:
Fisher’s Earliest Paste (DET, red, egg-shaped, early, hardy, good flavour. 90+ years of selection by the Fisher family of Montana. RARE.)
Another variety for my "grow again" list. These tomatoes had almost no BER and were generally blemish-free. Good production, too. Like many paste tomatoes, their skin is a bit thick, so they keep well even after they have ripened. I have never found a "days to maturity" mentioned online for this variety. I would say maybe 80 DTM? I picked several in August that had begun to blush, but the majority were picked green and ripened indoors in a cardboard box. Most of the ones picked green ripened within a week or two. I dehydrated a few but used most to make sauce. The green ones were used in making green tomato chow chow.
September 1st:
Mid-September:
Siccagno (DET, red, small fruit, no staking needed, drought tolerant/low irrigation, paste, Italian heirloom. Looks to be 80-85+ DTM)
This was my first year growing Siccagno, an Italian heirloom renowned for producing excellent paste tomatoes. I was intrigued by descriptions referring to it as a low irrigation, drought-resistant variety. With the last few summers being as hot and dry as they were, this seemed like a great option.
The plants were bushy and robust early in the season and, as they grew larger, slumped over and the vines grew over each other. Descriptions I'd read said that no staking or cages were required. Now I know why: it would have been useless! The plants were moderately productive. The tomatoes were much later to ripen than expected. I haven't seen a "days to maturity" mentioned online, but it seems to be around 85+ DTM.
I don't know if I over-watered, but a good number of the tomatoes ended up with BER.
Taking into account the sprawling nature of the plants, the lateness to mature, and the fact that the deer seemed to love snacking on these, I had decided not to grow them again. Then I tasted a ripe Siccagno. Sometimes, paste tomatoes taste mealy and mediocre fresh, but Siccagno was delicious. I dehydrated most of the tomatoes harvested and snacked on some fresh. It is certainly not the most convenient/manageable variety to grow - I'm not a fan of sprawling plants - but I am going to have to reconsider my decision not to grow this one again.
Late August:
September 28th:
Bellestar (DET, red, medium/blocky-oval shape, 4-5oz fruits, canner or paste, compact, early set, Canadian heirloom, ~70-75 DTM)
Bellestar is a little workhorse of a variety. All the plants were grown in large pots. This variety is compact, productive, hardy, and early. One of the first ripe tomatoes of the summer was a Bellestar. The fruit is meaty, making these tomatoes good for canning and paste/sauce. The skin is a bit thick, so they keep well even after ripening. Though considered more a cooking tomato, Bellestar tastes good fresh and is nice cut up in salads. This one is on the "grow again" list.
July 19th:
August 1st (first ripe tomato of the season):
August 15th:
September 6th:
Taxi (or “Yellow Taxi) (DET, uniform bright yellow globes, 3-5 oz, sweet/low-acid, compact/busy plant, productive, disease-resistant. ~2’ tall. Great for salads/salsas/fresh-eating. ~75 DTM.)
Taxi was one of the first tomato varieties I ever grew. It is short, compact, productive, and early. The blemish-free tomatoes are bright, cheerful, yellow globes. This would be a great variety for a new gardener or for growing in a child's garden. The skins are thin, making the tomatoes easy to peel/process. They look lovely sliced on a vegetable tray. The only drawback, to me, is their very mild flavour. If the taste packed more punch, this would be a variety I'd grow annually.
August 15th:
August 28th:
SEMI-DETERMINATE VARIETIES
Katja (SEMI-DET, pink beefsteak, larger fruit than most early varieties: 3-5” and 8-16 oz. Good flavour, good slicer variety. Plant sprawls a bit, does well in cool summers. 75 DTM. Origin: Siberia.)
Every once in a while, you find a variety that makes you feel like you've hit the jackpot. Katja was that tomato for me this summer. The plants were fairly short and sprawled a bit. The tomatoes were medium-to-large pink beefsteaks that were early to ripen, had almost no blemishes, little BER, and tasted fantastic! They were easy to process for sauce (thin skins). About half went into sauce-making and the other half were sliced and eaten fresh. I am really looking forward to growing this variety again. It is so refreshing to come across a variety that lives up to it's glowing reviews.
Katja was a near-tie for the first ripe tomato this year (Bellestar beat it by a hair).
July 21st:
August 2nd (first Katja ripe):
August 4 (second Katja ripe):
August 17th:
September 5th:
Orange-1 (SEMI-DET, orange globes, 2-8 oz, ~75 DTM, good flavour, productive, meaty, few seeds. They have a slight red blush when mature. Also called, “Belarus Orange”. Does well in cool summers. Origin: Belarus. Uncommon).
I seemed determined to have some orange tomatoes summer. Despite growing three varieties, it didn't really go well!
Of the three I grew, Orange-1 fared the best. It was fairly short (~3 feet tall), sprawled a bit, and produced lots of small-to-medium tomatoes. Globe to slightly oblate in shape, smooth, and generally blemish-free. I found they were a bit later to ripen than many of the descriptions indicated. Meaty, low in seeds. The flavour struck me as tangy rather than fruity/sweet. Very easy to process for cooking (thin skins).
July 21st:
September 1st:
Moskvich (SEMI-DET, deep red globes, 4-6 oz, productive, cold tolerant, crack resistant, early, slicer. ~ 60-70 DTM. Russian heirloom.)
Uhg, Moskvich. What happened?!
Mid-season, the plants were large, lush, healthy, and COVERED in tomatoes. They had grown taller than expected (5+ feet). I had high hopes for an abundant harvest and it seemed evident that the wonderful reviews I'd read about Moskvich were accurate.
By mid-August, though, the majority of the tomatoes had BER. They were mostly small in size. The production, in practical terms, was very small (almost non-existent) due to BER. It's doubtful I will try growing Moskvich again (this was my second time), but never say never.
Adding salt to the wound was the fact that the few tomatoes harvested ripe and blemish-free had excellent flavour: robust, having the acidic bite of a good “old-fashioned” red tomato.
I was so put off by the state of the tomatoes that I neglected to take pictures of them ripe.
July 19th:
INDETERMINATE VARIETIES
Japanese Black Trifele (IND, black/mahogany, pear-shaped, medium-sized fruit, rich flavour, ~80dtm. Despite the name, it’s origin is either Estonian or Russian, depending on the source you read.)
This variety was such a star this summer! I grew it for the first time last year and it did even better this year. Healthy, PRODUCTIVE plants that were about 4 feet tall. The tomatoes had no BER, were uniform in shape, and early. Japanese Black Trifele was one of the earliest varieties to mature this year. Most of them matured on the plant, which is almost unheard of for us, growing in this region. The tomatoes that were picked green during the first half of September ripened quickly indoors in boxes. The tomatoes were a dream to process (peeled easily) and the flavour was excellent. This variety is on my "grow again" list.
September 6th:
September 13th:
Hungarian Heart (IND, pink, large oxheart (often 1lb or more), paste/canner/fresh, crack-resistant, few seeds, origin: Hungary, ~ 80 DTM. Heirloom.)
Yikes. Along with Moskvich, growing Hungarian Heart was another "what happened?!" experience.
I have grown Hungarian Heart a few times before, and it has always done well. Moderately productive with smooth, meaty, flavourful tomatoes that are wonderful to eat fresh and that are easily processed for sauce. The largest tomato I have ever grown was a Hungarian Heart.
This summer? Spindly plants with few tomatoes. The tomatoes that developed were mostly misshapen, some almost catfaced (which is hard for an oxheart to do!). The plants were mostly write-offs by late August. I was able to harvest a precious few, albeit small, Hungarian Hearts in early September.
First week of September:
Franchi Red Pear (IND, red, large, pear-shape with vertical ribbing, 8-18oz, early for a large tomato, 75DTM, origin: Northern Italy.)
I planted these in the north garden and one in a large container by the fence. The plants were healthy and moderate producers of medium-to-large tomatoes. They were among the latest tomatoes to mature, making the "DTM" closer to 80-85 than the 75 I have seen in descriptions online.
Franchi Red Pear is a wonderful sauce tomato. Meaty, dense, not too many seeds, and easy to process. They also keep longer than many varieties after ripe. I still have several in the kitchen waiting to be enjoyed in sandwiches or made into sauce. I will grow these again.
July 26th:
September 1st:
September 5th:
Eva Purple Ball (IND, smooth, round, pink-purple fruit, 4-6 oz, multi-purpose tomato. Excellent, complex flavour. Easy to peel. Excellent disease resistance. Grows well in hot, humid areas. Late 1800s heirloom from the Black Forest region of Germany brought to the USA by Joe Bratka’s family. ~80 DTM.)
Well, shoot. I had high hopes for Eva Purple Ball. I knew the tomatoes would be easy to process and had read positive reviews about its flavour. I planted 6 of these and looked forward to enjoying them fresh in sandwiches and for canning.
Though the plants were healthy, the tomatoes were late to set and productivity was low. Tomatoes were slow to develop, but when they did, they were perfect little globes. BER hit with a vengeance in late summer. From the 6 plants, I harvested about 5 unblemished, ripe tomatoes. So many had severe BER that I mentally wrote this variety off and let the deer eat whatever remained on the plants. Very disappointing.
Marina’s Praise (IND, elongated orange and pink bicolour plum with pointy tip, excellent fruity flavor, variegated foliage that is more prominent early in the season. ~80 DTM. This variety is a cross between 'Orange Russian 117' Oxheart x 'Variegated PL’.)
Marina's Praise was one of three orange varieties I grew this summer. The pictures online really captured my attention. The marbled orange and blush-red colouring was so pretty, and it was described as a sweet and very flavourful variety. It took me a while to track down some seeds, but I eventually obtained a few from a fellow tomato enthusiast.
The plants were large and sprawling. MUCH pruning occurred to keep the plants to a manageable size (and there were still plenty of tomatoes on them). The foliage was crinkly-looking and also variegated, which was interesting. The variegated appearance was more prominent early in the season.
Marina's Praise is a very productive variety. There were loads and loads of tomatoes on the plants by mid-summer. Unfortunately, BER was a huge issue, and the vast majority of tomatoes ended up in the compost, too damaged to eat. The tomatoes were also smaller than I expected (an inch or two long, rather than 3 or 4 inches). Most of the tomatoes were long and pointy, though a few were round and "chubby".
I tasted a few that managed to mature on the plant, unblemished. They were sweet and very mild. It was a mild, watery hint of what the flavour could/would be under optimal growing conditions.
I had been eager to grow Marina's Praise. It might do better grown in-ground than it did grown in large containers (more consistent watering), but I don't think I will give it another try.
July 19th:
September 5th:
Indigo Pear Drop (IND, large cherry, elongated pear-shape, heavy yields, golden yellow with purple/antho shoulders, sweet/fruity, great for snacking, 65-70DTM)
I grew Indigo Pear Drops once before, in 2022. It produced oodles of striking purple and gold pear-shaped cherry tomatoes that had a sweet, fruity flavour.
The plants this year were large and healthy. They had LOADS of flowers and had begun to set well in the first half of August. By mid August, it was apparent that the remaining flowers weren't setting. By late August, though there were lots of tomatoes, it seemed like they had stopped growing and were not ripening. By September 10th, it was obvious that they were not going to grow to their usual size and that they still hadn't begun to ripen properly (i.e., there was no gold blush on the tomatoes yet). I ended up leaving them uncovered at night for the deer to enjoy...and they did!
September 1st:
Malachite Box (“Malakhitovaya Shkatulka”, IND, GWR/green-when-ripe, beefsteak, medium-to-large sized fruit, ~70 DTM, very good flavour. Russian heirloom)
I grew Malachite Box in two previous years. It produced beautiful, blemish-free, tasty GWR beefsteaks that were early, to boot.
This year, I planted two Malachite Box in large containers near the north fence. I don't know if the summer was too hot for them, or if they didn't like growing in containers, or the seed was too old, or...? Spindly plants, poor production, catfacing, and BER. I harvested about 4 tomatoes, but the skins were tough and the flavour didn't hold a candle to how I know they can taste when grown in optimal conditions. I will grow Malachite Box again, just not next year and likely never again in containers.
Orange Strawberry (IND, bright orange, oxheart, droopy foliage but vigorous plants, few seeds, ~80-85 DTM. Heirloom.)
This was the first time growing Orange Strawberry. Based on this year's experience, it won't be a repeat. The plants were late to produce tomatoes, produced little, and the tomatoes were late to mature. I was very nonplussed, so have no pictures. The tomatoes were too late for my liking, the tomatoes were small (compared to the oxhearts I was expecting), and many had BER. Those tomatoes that did make it to the end of the summer and ripened had thick, tough skin and not much flavour.
Pink Berkeley Tie Dye (IND, pink/red/green striped, beefsteak, 8-12oz fruit, rich flavour, mid-season, ~ 70 DTM, open-pollinated, disease resistant.)
These plants were sturdy and I liked that they only grew to about 4 feet tall. They were grown in the south garden. Moderate production of generally medium-sized tomatoes that matured earlier than most of the other medium and large varieties in the garden.
The appearance of Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye is pretty when it's ripe. (Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of the ripe ones!). Many of the PBTD tomatoes were wrinkled and/or oddly-shaped this year, for some reason. They tasted great, it just made processing them for sauce a challenge and they were an unappealing shape to use in sandwiches. A number of them were lost to BER damage, too.
July 19th:
No comments:
Post a Comment