Been growing these for years mainly for the "wow factor" when folks stop by to visit, but it does produce an abundance of early fruit. I started the plant indoors last March from saved seed. Tomato plant is an unknown, probably crossed, small fruited, indeterminate variety. I received the seed in a GW trade long ago, all I know is that it is not the variety that the person said it was. By my reckoning it is not a true cherry type, more of a very small beefsteak type (if that makes any sense or is even possible) because of the way it sets fruit.

Plant is still growing strongly, blooming and setting fruits way up at the top. Its days are numbered as we are now past due for a killing frost.

Container is a tad undersized...

-Tom

My plant puts out sweet, red, thin peeling, thick walled, 1.50 to 1.75 inch diameter tomatoes in five count clusters. I am usually able to start harvesting them by mid July. I do not consider them excellent, just interesting.

During summer I occasionally water using a water soluble fertilizer that is mixed at half strength. Have never seen the need to use full strength, just seems a waste of money to me. Last time this plant was fertilized was early August.

As far as I am concerned the big secret to growing successful container plants is to use correct pot size (too big is far better than too small), to water plants using captured rainwater only, and to water plants frequently, as required, being careful to avoid over-watering.

Note one of my rainwater collecting barrels right behind the plant...

This tomato plant needs to be watered twice per day, takes two gallons of water each time. I mulch the soil surface with dried lawn grass clippings to aid in moisture retention. I acquired a container for next year's plant that is five gallons larger, should also help with moisture retention. I have been wanting to wrap the pot in white reflective material to see if that would help but I never get around to doing it. It would definitely help to space the pot off the concrete in high summer but this time of year the concrete acting like a heat sink helps keep the soil and roots warm overnight.

I have lots of fresh seed from this plant. For anyone interested, I occasionally do online seed trades and giveaways but not until winter when the busy gardening season is over. I am not responding to emails at this time, too much of a distraction for me. Look for me over on the GW Seed Exchange as I poke around there quite a bit during the winter off season, or email me sometime in January.

I may skip this variety next year and try a Sun Gold instead. Am getting kinda bored with it, time to try something different.

Happy Gardening!
-Tom

Voice over: Tom has no one to keep him company except this one tomato plant . . .

Voice over: Tom has no one to keep him company except this one tomato plant ..." - I don't care who ya are, that's funny right there. (I know I am in trouble when I start quoting Larry the Cable Guy.)

Thanks a lot - now I have that jingle stuck in my head, "Tomatoes only dot commmm." LOL

I do talk to my plants - is that a bad sign?

This plant is trellised using rebar and PVC. Some of the PVC horizontals are visible towards the top. The plant is in this location so that it is sheltered from the winds to keep it from blowing over, and the porch roof and the building keep it from falling in those two directions. Last year I ran a wire tie from a planter hook under the porch fascia to one of the rebar rods, but neglected to tie it this year.

Drew51 - I am jealous. I harvested only one crate, tomatoes were terrible in my area this year. My plants got crippled from flooding, neighbors lost all theirs to blight. Local markets had few available for sale. Last week I traded a couple bushels of apples for an equal amount of tomatoes with a friend of a friend who lives an hour and a half away. That is how desperate things got.

-Tom

I talk to my plants too. I think it's a sign of brilliance. :)

Many in my area had a bad year too, I used a cold frame and got an early start. The spring was cold, and the frame helped protect and raise temps. Although I can only fit so many in the frame. I'm still harvesting, just about done. I went out Monday and picked any showing any blush of color, time to bring them in. Not many left out there anyway..

Following is a photo showing tomatoes that I got from a friend a couple of days ago. Their tomato plants have not been hit by hard frost yet.

My container tomato tree is still healthy and growing, no hard frost up by the house yet. It is now approximately 12 feet tall, 13.5 feet tall with pot included.

My gardens are done, now doing cleanup and prep for fall garlic/shallot/potato onion planting. I consider fall planting the start of the next growing season, which makes me happy. Only catch is that I have to put up with that "slight" delay called winter.

They start out looking so innocent!

Zen, yes that plants looks like it talks! Yikes! It has lips!

I keep notes and descriptions on all the varieties I have. Here they are for the two mentioned. Note though Russo is inderterminate for sure.

Rosso Sicilian -
Maturity midseason
Growth habit indet.
Leaf type regular
Fruit color red
Fruit shape hollow, ribbed
Fruit size small
Fruit type stuffer, paste
Variety type heirloom
Country Italy
(aka Russo Sicilian Togetta) Italian heirloom brought by a Sicilian man
to the U.S. in 1987; given to Ann Fuller of Mitchell, Indiana, who said
its slices look like red-petaled flowers (rosso means “red”). Striking
crayfish red costoluta (ribbed) fruits weigh up to 6 ounces. Firm pithy
flesh is perfect for making tomato sauce or paste. Thin skin bruises
easily. Determinate. 70-90 days from transplant.
Purchased From Seed Savers Exchange

Costoluto Genovese sel Valente
Maturity midseason
Growth habit indet.
Leaf type regular
Fruit color red
Fruit shape irregular, ribbed, beefsteak
Fruit size medium
Fruit type slicer
Variety type open-pollinated, heirloom
Country Italy
VF Indeterminate. A vigorous, high producing plant with brilliant red
fruit of 8-10 ounces. Fruit are somewhat flattened and have pronounced
ribs and excellent taste. This selection has resistance to fusarium &
vert. wilts. Also makes a very good sauce. A good mid-season tomato
(75-80 days).
Purchashed from Seeds From Italy

In the first photo from the other day that tomato is probably Costoluto. Here is a photo fo two Russo's. They are in general smaller than Costoluto. Some are more ribbed than these, they vary a lot. Much more symetrical than Costoluto. I would grow both plants again. Both produce well.

Some other photos from this year's harvest, Not all Costoluto's are symetrical, see the one on the right.

Drew51 - Thanks for the information. Can I assume that if those two varieties are thin-skinned a person does not have to remove skins as part of the processing?

Yes I would be interested in a trade sometime this winter. I am always on the lookout for varieties that would impart a more robust flavor for my sauces. Modern hybrid types such as are in that last photo I posted are wonderful for their production and uniformity, but I find their flavor to be quite bland and insipid. Not that I am complaining about getting free stuff...

I use modern hybrids as well as my own oxheart paste types that I have been developing as bulk ingredient for processing. I add heirlooms for flavor. Seems to work. The meaty and dry/hollow oxhearts and large pastes really cut down on processing time regarding evaporation/thickening of sauces.

What I am always on the lookout for are varieties with above average concentrated flavor. I am starting to think it logical to seek out authentic Italian varieties.

As for naming that tomato variety, I never get around to thinking about that, plus for all I know it already has a name and I just do not know it. It does get old having reference names such as "Unknown Tall Indeterminate Cherry Type that Produces 1.75 Diameter Fruit that Compare Better to Beefsteaks than to Cherries, Grows Well in Containers". LOL

Just for fun, how about the name "Icarus"?

-Tom