Copia,Virginia Sweets or Lithium Sunset?

[HL2601]

I have spots for one of the above in the garden. My climate is hot, dry, windy and highly fluctuating temps. For those of you who have grown any of them I would love your opinions! I believe Copia is smaller and earlier. Lithium Sunset may be more productive and is softer-not a long keeper. I have no real background on Virginia Sweets.
Thanks,
Heide

[pondgardener]

[mention]HL2601[/mention] I am about a 100 miles south of you, so our growing conditions are close to being the same. The only tomato that you mention I ever grew was Virginia Sweets and it was very productive for me. In fact, one plant that I had getting some early sun in a pot, had snapped off in a heavy wind. I repotted it, burying the broken pieces together deeper in the potting mix and that plant grew over a dozen huge tomatoes, close to 2# each, with many smaller ones. I saved seed but it has been quite a few years since then. I may have to add one to my grow list this year. Good luck!

[Tormahto]

Ask Worth what he thinks about Copia.

[MissS]

Ask Worth what he thinks about Copia.

[mention]worth1[/mention]

[HL2601]

Thanks so much @pondgardener! That's great and helpful info especially coming from our neck of the woods.

Oh Worth! Where are you? Your opinion is needed!

[worth1]

Ask Worth what he thinks about Copia.

@worth1

Worst tomato ever.
Tastes like a soured wash rag.
Only tomato I have ever spit out of mouth.
Craig L feels the same way.
Said it was voted hands down worst tasting tomato at tasting event in North Carolina.

[HL2601]

Thanks for sharing Worth! Best description of a true spitter I have heard in a long time.

[Natural]

Lithium Sunset has good flavor and produces very well for me at mid-season. Better than Copia and Va. Sweets. But after a few good harvests, it becomes a disease magnet and drops off of a cliff.

[Tormahto]

I think there were 4 packs of Copia in the swap. One participant requested it. There are three packs left, as I don't have the heart to send it to anyone else.

[Nanooknorth]

I have grown all 3. What they said about Copia. I grew Lithium Sunset because it it’s incredible beauty, which counts to me. Flavor was very good as well as production. But Virginia Sweets, now you’re talking. I remember our first taste test. There were 3 of us going “wow” in unison. I also like Hawaiian Pineapple equally as well. My growing conditions are not like your, however, so that may be an influence.

[worth1]

Since I am a man I will put it in a man's perspective.
Copia is like that beautiful woman that has a really nasty personality.
All looks and no personality anyone wants anything to do with.
Seen men the same way.

[Tormahto]

It looks like it's down to Virginia Sweets vs Lithium Sunset.

If I could predict perfect weather for you, I'd pick VS. Bi-colors are great with great weather, bland and mushy with too much rain.

Striped tomato (like LS) can hold up better in off-weather.

And with a decade of requests for endless varieties, the top three for medium to large striped tomatoes are Pink Berkeley Tie Dye, Girl Girls Weird Thing, and Lithium Sunset. No other striped varieties come close to those three requests.