This thread is for varieties from the 2020 swap that participants really liked, or really didn't like.

I have to start this thread off with a tip of the hat to [mention]Tormato[/mention] for his Elbonian Mudslinger. I believe this was an accidental cross with Elgin Pink (was that right)? It is a very nice and productive dark tomato that I will definitely grow again. I'll be saving seeds as well to send back into the MMMM. Below is my harvest today, which is very impressive to me since I'm growing all my tomatoes as single stems which will never give me the huge yields of a big sprawling bush. I think I should get at least 20 or more nice big beefsteak type tomatoes in total by the end of the season. The plant is potato leaf and very vigorous and is at least as tall as other high vigor plants I'm growing like Red Lithium, 1884 Pink, etc and is 7 feet tall already if not 8. A bit of cracking, but not bad since these are completely vine-ripened and have less cracking then some of my varieties that are really cracking badly this year. And here is one of them cut open, with a small piece already cut off for sampling. It is rich and meaty with great flavor and a bit more acid than most dark tomatoes I've had which is a plus for me. I've never done particularly well with dark tomatoes here in hot, humid 7a. I've tried Cherokee Purple twice, which tastes great, but always gets diseased and dies before producing much. Bear Creek, Black from Tula and Big Cheef are the few I've tried that have grown well and produced. The mudslinger is out producing all of those, although Big Cheef was close. I'm growing two other large dark tomatoes, Pale Perfect Purple (from Bunny Hop) and 1884 Purple (also from the MMMM) and both of those are doing great as well. I'm thrilled to have so many dark tomatoes growing well for once!

Other winners I received and tried for the first time thanks to the MMMM are Limbo (a smallish determinate paste, but with better flavor than most), Japanese Black Triefele, Matsu Express and Candy Sweet Icicle. The loser for me was Neves Azorean Red, which I just have one plant of, but hasn't set a single fruit yet. It has a great reputation, so I expect that is a fluke and I'll have to try again. Oh, and Big Marley, grown out by me and several friends wasn't even as big as some of my regular favorites. Maybe it was just an unstable cross?

My favorites this year were:

Upstate, huge hearts between one and two pounds, prolific

San Marzano Redorta, much larger and better than San Marzano

Palestinian, large and prolific

Rebecca Sebastian Bulls Bag, huge hearts

Unfortunately, I was not impressed with any black or dark tomatoes. I tried Black Krim, Paul Robeson, and Carbon. They just seemed too blah.

I didn't do well with most of my tomatoes this year, but my favorite was Pamplemousse du Grand Père!

lee53011 wrote: ↑Mon Oct 25, 2021 9:23 pm My favorites this year were:

Upstate, huge hearts between one and two pounds, prolific

San Marzano Redorta, much larger and better than San Marzano

Palestinian, large and prolific

Rebecca Sebastian Bulls Bag, huge hearts

Unfortunately, I was not impressed with any black or dark tomatoes. I tried Black Krim, Paul Robeson, and Carbon. They just seemed too blah.

What was your seed source for Upstate? This one is new to me.

MissS wrote: ↑Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:12 pm

lee53011 wrote: ↑Mon Oct 25, 2021 9:23 pm My favorites this year were:

Upstate, huge hearts between one and two pounds, prolific

San Marzano Redorta, much larger and better than San Marzano

Palestinian, large and prolific

Rebecca Sebastian Bulls Bag, huge hearts

Unfortunately, I was not impressed with any black or dark tomatoes. I tried Black Krim, Paul Robeson, and Carbon. They just seemed too blah.

What was your seed source for Upstate? This one is new to me.

Guess

@MissS got it in the swap, and have sent in a bunch this year. I see Tormato is taking credit for my original seed.

winners
black and brown boar
karma purple
both were productive and good tasting.

honorable mention
sweet ozark orange. good tasting, but blossom end rot was an issue.
taiga. good tasting, not hugely productive, some tomatoes had what looked like sun scald or some
other skin issue.
taiga cross. this was a regular leaf plant that produced rosy pink tomatoes that looked just like taiga
in size, and shape. i will send in a few seeds for anyone interested in growing out the f2 seeds.

no stinkers really, just a couple surprise crosses


keith

Many winners in 2021-
Amish Yellowish Orange Oxheart- a heart that was large and productive. Earliest large tomatoes my garden. Took a bit of break with the extreme heat but continued producing later on and until NOV Starts pale yellow and when very ripe is deep orange.
SwoonTormato's masterpiece that produced the most fruit of any heart I grew - there were maybe 12 in that category! Yummy yummy grow it!
Rosovyi Myod- Another great year for this pink heart. Bad garden placement but it pumped out hearts anyway. Winner
Vladyka- Another pink heart-so productive! Smaller fruits for me than Rosovyi Myod but just excellent quantity. Yummy, meaty, flavorful
Captain Lucky- Technicolor wonder-colors galore- beautiful GWR with red marbling in center. Not sure why it took me so long to try this one. If you haven't grown it yet, you should.
Pale Perfect Purple- I grew this from the Carolyn Tribute. Oh my- if you need perfectly shaped dark pink orbs in your life, this is for you. Literally perfect fruits in clusters of 4. Easy and would be good to bring to market I bet.Understandable it made Carolyn's top 100.
Bulgarian Triumph- Again not sure why it took me so long to grow this. Perfect orbs a bit smaller than PPP above, but red and delicious. Don't usually like reds but this is one that was great. A dependable tomato for sure- reminded me a little of Thessaloniki which I also really like.
Chornyi Slon-Black Elephant- Try this one! I sent it into MMMM this year. The most productive black I have grown. Just loved the heat. Nice maroon interior. So good.
Midnight Sun- At first the droopy PL leaves scared me and everyone in my garden who came to see said they wondered if it was sick. Have faith though-the plant is just that way. The beautiful yellow hearts with red striping are just wonderful. My family loved them.
Marzan0 Fire- Now this one's a beauty. Flames like those old muscle cars and delicious in a salad or made into sauce. Loved watching them continually produce on manageable vines

More winners but maybe for another post-
LOSERS-
Jersey Devil- took forever to really establish and produce fruit...lackluster
Gold Medal- too late for my garden even with an extended season this past year
Constoluto Genovese-dont bark at me-this tomato just did not produce here though it seems to do well elsewhere
Red Icicle-not true seed a mealy small terrible spitter
Carmello- I was soo disappointed-small fruits, late here, very little production.