So Texans, Where do you Stand on Tomatoes?

[karstopography]

That’s amazing @karstopography!

Idk, there’s something about counting chickens before they hatch that comes to mind. Winter tomatoes were a revelation in inner city Houston once upon a time, but in spite of being closer to the relatively warm Gulf of Mexico here I don’t have the benefit of millions of people and many thousands of buildings throwing off enough ambient heat to be an open air greenhouse like it was.

Microclimates are real and meaningful as far as tomatoes are concerned.

[Wildcat82]

That’s amazing @karstopography!

Idk, there’s something about counting chickens before they hatch that comes to mind. Winter tomatoes were a revelation in inner city Houston once upon a time, but in spite of being closer to the relatively warm Gulf of Mexico here I don’t have the benefit of millions of people and many thousands of buildings throwing off enough ambient heat to be an open air greenhouse like it was.

Microclimates are real and meaningful as far as tomatoes are concerned.

Not just microclimates but also soil type and disease/pest problems can be amazingly local.

At out old residence, there was zero soil, just caliche. Then 7-8 miles away was a cornfield.

Mites absolutely wipe out my strawberries literally days after they pop up, and yet, 20 miles away from my house, the commercial Poteet strawberry farmers have never had mites bother their strawberry fields at all.

[karstopography]

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Bella Rosa still going strong. No sign of disease. The fruit are well formed and growing. Cooler than normal November weather apparently not a deal breaker with these tomatoes, but still got a long way to go.

[PlainJane]

That’s just amazing @karstopography!

[Harry Cabluck]

Will soon set up the seed-starting station in the house. Much easier to control the temperature here than out in the garage. Would like to acquire two-dozen Maxifort rootstock seeds, but unable to find seedsman willing to sell such a few. Anticipating an early spring, due to global warming and will sow seeds two-weeks earlier than normal. Wishing everyone a healthy and happy holiday season. And a successful 2024 growing season.

[karstopography]

Austin went from 8b to 9a on the new 2023 Hardiness zone map. I was in Austin recently and am amazed how much Austin has grown. Don’t discount the increased Urban Heat Island effect of a greatly enlarged city. I would imagine being zone 9a and being more or less inner city your last freeze date would be mid February, at the very latest. The link from 2019 has the date At February 15th, moved back from February 25th.

https://www.kxan.com/weather/weather-bl ... edia%20Inc.

I start my tomatoes here in 9b on the coast around January 1st or that first week of January for transplanting around February 15th to February 25th. Our last freeze is February 15th. I don’t have any benefit from being in a large urban area and being semi-rural risk frosts that my friend in town a couple miles away doesn’t get.

[Harry Cabluck]

!Karstop! Wishing you great seed-starting (and no dampoff) with a successful 2024 season. Received this year's supply of Maxifort rootstock seed a few days ago. Will start heirloom seeds around Christmas this year. Rootstock seeds to be sown around Jan. 1.

[karstopography]

!Karstop! Wishing you great seed-starting (and no dampoff) with a successful 2024 season. Received this year's supply of Maxifort rootstock seed a few days ago. Will start heirloom seeds around Christmas this year. Rootstock seeds to be sown around Jan. 1.

Absolutely, let’s hope 2024 is good for both of us. I still don’t know exactly what I will end up growing, sort of an embarrassment of riches as far as seed goes. My schedule isn’t all that different from yours, I might start my tomatoes January 1st before the game.

[karstopography]

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Does not appear I’ll be getting ripe tomatoes for Christmas. I’m shooting for the New Year’s Day now. Biggest tomato on the sole Bella Rosa plant might be six ounces or so. All the fruit look clean and the only issue is where they might have rubbed against the bamboo stake.

We have a relatively warm week ahead and I have noticed the tomatoes put on weight during the warmer weather. The plant itself remains healthy and there’s zero pests to contend with.

[Wildcat82]

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Does not appear I’ll be getting ripe tomatoes for Christmas. I’m shooting for the New Year’s Day now. Biggest tomato on the sole Bella Rosa plant might be six ounces or so. All the fruit look clean and the only issue is where they might have rubbed against the bamboo stake.

We have a relatively warm week ahead and I have noticed the tomatoes put on weight during the warmer weather. The plant itself remains healthy and there’s zero pests to contend with.

I'm curious how your tomatoes come out taste-wise. Without a lot of sun/warmer temperatures my slicers seem to turn out mealy and the cherries lack flavor. The Sungolds I have are about the only variety I've grow that seem to really keep their flavor. Your Bella Rosa does look really nice. Fingers crossed that the sun comes out for us the next couple weeks.

[karstopography]

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First draft of my 2024 tomato seed starts. Might, likely, will edit it down to 18 from the current 24. Estimated time of seed starting is January 7th.

[karstopography]

As of now, I’m planning on cutting out Great White, Kellogg’s Breakfast, Domingo, Pineapple, BLT, and Bear Creek.

That will leave me four small roma/paste types for dehydration/sauces/fresh eating, then one large yellow/orange, one anthro/white, six large pink, one bicolor, two red, and three dark for a total of 18.

[karstopography]

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A so it begins. Got my tomatoes started.

Pinks
Missouri Pink Love Apple
Aunt Ginny’s Purple
Brandywine Cowlick’s
Pruden’s Purple
Barlow’s Jap
Dester
Hoy
Giant Belgium

Reds
Aker’s West Virginia
Cuostralee
Red Barn
Aussie
Beefmaster (hybrid)

Dark
Japanese Black Trifele
Carbon
Black From Tula
Black Krim

Yellow/Orange/White/Anthro
Dr. Wyche’s Yellow
Sart Roloise

Small fruited Paste/Grape/Cherry
Principe Borghese
A. Grappoli D’ Inverno
Creamsicle Grape
Gardener’s Sweetheart
Pandorino (hybrid)

[MissS]

@karstopography How do the Brandywines perform for you?

I'm surprised to see them on your list because so many people complain about getting only 1-2 fruit when they are growing in the south.

[karstopography]

@karstopography How do the Brandywines perform for you?

I'm surprised to see them on your list because so many people complain about getting only 1-2 fruit when they are growing in the south.

I’m rolling the dice.

I’ve not done any of the true brandywines unless you count True Black Brandywine and Brandywine OTV. I don’t count OTV as a true Brandywine being that OTV is a cross with something else, as I understand it an unknown yellow tomato. Bear Creek also reportedly has a brandywine parent, but nobody calls Bear Creek Brandywine anything. True black brandywine is I’m sure a cross somewhere down the line. All three of those did reasonably well in previous grow outs, not the worst or best as far as production goes. Almost all big slicer types no matter what they are eventually stop setting fruit once the heat settles in.

Seems like B. Cowlick’s, from the things I have read, could have the best shot at working here. Figured I would give it a shot.

My buddy up the road a bit does Red Brandywine every season and has good results and ample fruit, although, it is later to produce than most everything else he grows.

[Seven Bends]

@karstopography, you faked us out with NINE last-minute substitutions! How did you make your final decisions? Looks like a great list; I hope they all turn out amazing for you.

[karstopography]

@karstopography, you faked us out with NINE last-minute substitutions! How did you make your final decisions? Looks like a great list; I hope they all turn out amazing for you.

Is the the number, nine?

I had the first selections in a big zip bag and kind of pondered for several days on what I truly like and what I was curious about and ended up with what I planted. I felt like exploring more into the direction of deeply tomatoey tomatoes, the bigger pink and red types, and backed off from the other less tomatoey colors some.

I also read some older posts from successful growers in hot and humid areas and what big size and flavor open pollinated tomatoes worked in those regions. That’s how Giant Belgium, Aker’s West Virginia, Red Barn, and Barlow Jap got included. I’ve been meaning to grow Missouri Pink Love Apple and decided why not in 2024. Sweet Tooth and some comments I had read about its potential for splitting scared me away from growing it. Splitting tomatoes, tomatoes prone to splitting, are something I try to avoid. Japanese Black Trifele got a late inclusion because I decided I’d miss having it for salsa.

[Seven Bends]

@karstopography, you faked us out with NINE last-minute substitutions! How did you make your final decisions? Looks like a great list; I hope they all turn out amazing for you.

Is the the number, nine?

Yep. I'm facing a big work deadline and am a skilled procrastinator so I spent some time counting.

[karstopography]

First tomato to sprout is Pandorino.

[karstopography]

20 out of 24 varieties have at least one sprouting seed, most look like multiple seeds are up, 100% of the planted seed. Laggards are Aunt Ginny’s Purple, Cuostralee, Giant Belgium, and Barlow Jap. The last three might be 2018 or 2020 seed, for sure all three are MMMM swap seed. Aunt Ginny’s Purple is TGS commercial seed, but might be from two or three years ago.