Malachite Box or Aunt Rubys German Green?

[Shortcut Slim]

The first time I tasted a GWR tomato I was sold. That was a Malachite Box that I was able to grow several years ago. Since then, it seems the Malachite has been hit or miss. I bought some Aunt Rubys German Green to trial, but I think it got crowded out and didn't perform well. I have limited space and have a tendency to try to pack 10 lbs of "stuff, in a 5lb bag,and then everything suffers.

So, I'm asking anyone who has grown both,what your experience was.

I'm not opposed to trying something different, but I already have seed for both varieties,but I lack sufficient room to grow both.

All opinions welcome.

[MissS]

One huge lesson that you will learn on this forum is that how a tomato performs and tastes varies a LOT on your location. One tomato will perform just great here in Wisconsin but fail miserably down in Alabama. So given that, it would be a great help to people trying to answer your questions if they knew your location. You can add your location to your profile so that we will know where you are growing. Here is a short tutorial on how to do that.

image.png

[Shortcut Slim]

Thank you @MissS for the help.

[PlainJane]

I have tried both in N. Florida and neither did well. I’ve tried Malachite Box 3 times and ARGG twice. Low productivity and very disease-prone.
Green Giant did ok for me, though not very prolific. This year for beefs I’m doing Green Gables (2nd try, new seed source), Pilot Knob Green and for cherries I’m trying Green Doctors Frosted and Green Bee.

[habitat-gardener]

I love Green Gables and Green Bee!

[Shortcut Slim]

@PlainJane and @habitat-gardener , I'm going to have to look at Green Gables.I don't have much extra space,so I want to make smart choices. I don't do many cherry types,but when I do it's Tommy Toe, so probably wouldn't try the Green Bee (although it sounds great)..

[Mark_Thompson]

My friend up the street loves Malachite Box, and ARGG was delicious but not productive for me, so that’s my vote

[PlainJane]

@Shortcut Slim Green Bee is very different and you have to be ready for that. It’s consistently the last ripe tomato from my garden and I personally love the crunchy texture but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

[Shortcut Slim]

I share your neighbors affection for Malachite Box @Mark_Thompson The wife and I both loved the flavor. If I could just get it to fruit reliably,I'd be happy. I'm considering a burnt offering in hopes of getting some reliable fruiting as, I've tried everything else I can think of.

That Green Bee sounds really interesting @PlainJane,but I can't keep up with the cherries,and if I could, it would be Tommy Toe as I just love that plant. The wife always requests Black Cherry. If I were to grow Green Bee or Tommy Toe,then I would have to grow Black Cherry or incur her wrath. I'd end up with too many cherries.

[Shule]

The first time I tasted a GWR tomato I was sold. That was a Malachite Box that I was able to grow several years ago. Since then, it seems the Malachite has been hit or miss. I bought some Aunt Rubys German Green to trial, but I think it got crowded out and didn't perform well. I have limited space and have a tendency to try to pack 10 lbs of "stuff, in a 5lb bag,and then everything suffers.

So, I'm asking anyone who has grown both,what your experience was.

I'm not opposed to trying something different, but I already have seed for both varieties,but I lack sufficient room to grow both.

All opinions welcome.

I have a friend from northern California who really seemed to like ARGG (not sure of her seed source; TomatoFest is a good guess). She tried Malakhitovaya Shkatulka (tr. Malachite Box; she used seeds from Baker Creek) after that, and she seemed to prefer it quite a bit to ARGG.

She said ARGG tasted great, but wasn't prolific (now that I look back on our discussion). Malakhitovaya Shkatulka produced well.

[Shortcut Slim]

I appreciate the information @Shule I'll try running the Malachite Box again, and be sure to give the ARGG a good trial too. I found my Amana Orange seed that is only 8 yrs old that my Daughter gave me. That seed produced an Orange tomato with a sprightly, spicy, flavor similar to Malachite Box.

Keeping my fingers crossed for at least 1 seed germinating.