Veg Favorite tomato variety?

[Littlesister]

I planted some tomato varieties from seed this summer that I had not tried before and am wondering what tomatoes you prefer.

My favorite, by far, is a Russian tomato, "Paul Robeson." I found the fruit to be prolific, of a good size and the taste absolutely wonderful. It is very dark red with a deep, rich, full tomato flavor. DH and I agree that it may be the finest tomato we have ever tasted.

 

[packyderms_wife]

Purple cherokee and brandywines.

 

[naturallysweet]

Genovese costoluto

 

[coloradohermit]

Black Krim

 

[summerthyme]

For all purpose, Bonny Best. For flavor, I always grow a variety called Pantano Romanesco. Super big beefsteak, way too tender to ever be found in stores or even farmers markets... best flavor anywhere.

Summerthyme

 

[Littlesister]

Thanks everyone for responding.

coloradohermit,
I have grown black krim and we enjoyed it.

Summerthyme,
I am also growing Pantano Romanesco right now and I agree that the flavor and size is great, but I haven't gotten much fruit from them and the plants seem to not enjoy our high humidity here in south Alabama.

 

[BenIan]

Cherokee Purple and Black Krim.

 

[LC]

Porter and Improved Porter aka Porter's Pride as being basically impervious to high plains weather with good tomato flavor.

 

[TerriHaute]

That's like asking which of my children is my favorite.

I like to grow Better Boys every year because they are prolific, uniform in size, crack and blight resistant, heat resistant, and produce fruit all the way up to frost. They don't have the rich flavor that heirlooms do but any home grown tomato tastes better than store bought.

For flavor, I like brandywines, beefsteak, and Arkansas Traveler. For salads and caprese, roma and yellow plum are my go to's. For cherry tomatoes, we like sun sugar and sweet millions.

 

[summerthyme]

Thanks everyone for responding.

coloradohermit,
I have grown black krim and we enjoyed it.

Summerthyme,
I am also growing Pantano Romanesco right now and I agree that the flavor and size is great, but I haven't gotten much fruit from them and the plants seem to not enjoy our high humidity here in south Alabama.

They definitely aren't as high yielding as some of the newer varieties. But just a few fruit added to a pot of sauce makes *such* a difference in flavor, I always grow 3-4 plants just for that. Their biggest drawback is that they are SO darned tender that you really have to snip the stems with scissors or small pruners to harvest... using the traditional "grasp, twist and pull" method only results in your fingers meeting in the middle of the fruit!

The Bonny Best is a niche heirloom from the 1950s... medium sized fruit with good flavor, and lots of them. Meaty enough to use for sauce, but juicy and sweet enough for fresh eating.

However, we are in the northern part of the country, and what works here might not do well in the South. Try the Southern Exposure seed catalog for varieties suited to your aree.

Summerthyme

 

[Raggedyman]

Cherokee Purple for slicing and San Marzano for dehydrating/sun drying

 

[CarolynA]

My favorite is the heirloom "Mortgage Lifter". Second favorite is the "Super Sweet 100" . This is my first year growing Mortgage Lifter and they are fantastic. Great for BLTs.

 

[ericha]

I am guilty of planting some varieties of tomatoes because they seemed cool in the catalogue. But too often those weird wacky tomatoes just don't grow as well as basic proven varieties. I've taken to planting Rutgers for the past few years.

 

[duchess47]

My favorites have always been Roma.

 

[Cyclonemom]

Cherokee Purple for slicing and San Marzano for dehydrating/sun drying

There's a man after my own tomato heart.

I would also add in Sunsugar (they are orange) for a cherry variety. They are even more candy-like than the super sweet 100's. Side effect is the 4 year old eats so many he get's a bum rash.

Am trying out 2 "pink" varieties this year - Bradley and Caspian Pink. Jury is still out yet, as the Bradley's aren't quite ready yet. The sudden cool down over the last couple weeks has really put a damper on the ripening process........

 

[Cyclonemom]

I love mortgage lifter's, but our picnic bugs do to, and get to them even before they turn ripe! I gave up a couple years ago b/c I couldn't handle the bugs, but boy, they sure are good on a burger or BLT, and make GREAT juice!

 

[ioujc]

Without a doubt, Roma. Then Sweet 100's>>>>those things have come back for three years from volunteers!

 

[vessie]

San Marzano Romas are the most tasty and versatile that I grow.

For the regular tomatoes, you can't beat Cherokee Purple as it tastes like a 'real tomato' as my sister opines.

Also, Lemon Boy is outstanding with its perfect balance of sweet and tang.

I brought over some huge Lemon Boys to my sister last week and her DH who doesn't like tomatoes, became a believer instantly!

He now Loves tomatoes as long as they're Lemon Boys. V

 

[ioujc]

I bought some once from an older neighbor that he called "Mr. Stripey." They were the BEST tomatoes I've ever eaten! He gave me seed and I tried to grow some, but they never did well......

 

[vessie]

I bought some once from an older neighbor that he called "Mr. Stripey." They were the BEST tomatoes I've ever eaten! He gave me seed and I tried to grow some, but they never did well......

I would love to try Mr. Stripey next year.

They are an heirloom beefsteak and are high in sugar content so no wonder they're so good! V

 

[lisa]

Definitely Roma.

 

[Bud in Fla]

When I lived in SC & NC I grew "Marion" tomatoes. Strong acid flavor. Hard to find now now.

 

[vessie]

My tomatoes were decimated by the poxy deer and elk whilst I slept.

Deer and Elk are definitely not colour blind, they knew which tomatoes were ripe and ate every one, including my bell peppers, my awesome cucumbers and the jalapenos.

I'm predicting that winter in the PNW is going to be super cold and as snowy as we had back in 2008.

When they eat things like hot peppers, you know they're desperate to get fat on them. The even cleaned all my honeysuckle and ground roses.

I came home from a trip to what appeared to be a stealthy landscaper making everything look nice and pruned too.

Thank God my sister who lives next door has a fenced in veggie garden and is always on Maui.

I went over and picked all the ripe Cherokee Purple tomatoes and Boy Howdy are they good! V

 

[Wildwood]

Cherokee Purple and Fourth of July.

I can't add anything new about the most wonderful Cherokee Purple.

The Fourth of July is a small tomato but not quite a cherry. They produce earlier than anything I've ever tried and keep going til frost. They are just barely big enough to slice. They are a hybrid so no seed saving but the taste is wonderful when I'm eating tomatoes weeks before
anyone else. Burpee is the owner and Tractor Supply has the seeds.

 

[Wilbur]

Early Girl is one of my favorites. We planted six different varieties this year and only made enough (barely!) for our family. Last year we gave tomatoes to several different families and made quite a few into "sun dried" tomatoes. Hopefully we will have better luck next year.

 

[WalknTrot]

For big "eaters" I like Polish, Brandywine and Anna Russian. The Polish are huge and absolutely the tastiest tomato ever. For sauce, I use Amish Paste, but do use the others for sauce simply because they produce so heavily.