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Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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Posted by mmqchdygg Z5NH (My Page) on Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 8:51
| So I found the Tomato Fest people, and I'm looking at certain traits, knowing that I screwed up this year and planted ones that really were way too late for my growing season. I'm "determined" to rectify it this year.
Anyway, bad puns aside, I see that TF offers "cool season" varieties. I don't know if I am "cool season" or not; I'm certainly not as far north as our Canadian friends, but I'm in NH Zone 5, and wondering if I would be better off to choose these types. Is there a difference between shorter DTM ones and ones that have the "cool season" label? Or are all short DTM ones considered "cool season?"
I have had success with "Early Girl" in the past, but now I'm confused about the subject in general. I had great success WSing them using Fran's (littleonefb) schedule this year, but again, because the ones I WSd had such a long DTM, late blight got 'em before they had a fighting chance (or maybe that's not a correct statement- that long DTM has nothing to do with whether they've got a worse chance of getting hit w/it? Although wouldn't it stand to reason that late blight wouldn't be an issue if they were ripe before late blight started coming around? Dunno...have to ask over on the tomato forum, I suppose. No need to get into that depth of conversation here.)
My other question is: has anyone used these 'cool season' varieties, and if so, do you find that flavor is sacrificed? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by trudi_d 7, Long Island (My Page) on
Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 10:32
| Hi MM, The problem with Late Blight this year is that it came on early in the season--it was on contaminated plants that were distributed and sold from stores like Home Depot or Lowes, the entire northeast of the country was effected. This is the same blight that caused the Irish Potato Famine. Cool season usually refers to two different locations in the country though it will help you in the northern climate. The Pacific NorthWest is very slow to warm up in the Spring and then has a mild summer climate--cool season tomatoes work there. For the deep south, say zones 8b and warmer, they have to start growing their tomatoes in early spring before the summer heat, and then a second crop in autumn into early winter because high heat has a detrimental effect causing flower drop--and without flowers you don't get a fruit. So, because of the heat they're limited to sowing and growing during cool seasons. The same varieties that work for the PNW and the deep south should work for you to because of their shorter DTM. You should be choosing varieties which have a 70 DTM or less, 75DTM will probably also work out for you, but you're looking at fruits ripening towards the end of your season. Late Blight is hard to control. You can't stop it, but you can delay it. There are numerous sprays and powders avaialbe, I think daconil is one of them. I use a organic product called Serenade. You need to have these 'curatives' on hand when you buy your plants and transplant your seedlings, and you have to start your spray program before problems show up, and the spraying has to be done regularly. Hope this helps, T |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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| i don't get blight or that other thing with the spots on the bottom. i use 5 tums in the hole that i plant the tomato plant in, then i put 2T of epsom salt around the tomato plant then water really well. i never have a problem. **big smile** ~medo |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by trudi_d 7, Long Island (My Page) on
Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 16:03
| Medo, Diseases are regional. I live on an island with the Long Island Sound to the north and the Atlantic as close and due south. It's warm and drizzly today and I can smell the ocean. I'm glad we're at end of season because when it's warm weather and I can smell the ocean my garden turns into a fuzzy wonderland. Ick. |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by remy 6WNY (My Page) on
Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 20:58
MM,
As a tomato grower, I have never heard the term "cool season" for varieties before. I think Gary is making things up again, lol. There are short season varieties and there are hot climate varieties.
I went and did a quick check of his site. I saw a lot of Russian varieties for the cool season list. In Russia, they use green houses to get a jump on the season until it is warm out so to automatically say that because a variety is Russian it will do well in your area not true though it may do very well. Also the temps of your summer do not adversely affect tomatoes. Tomatoes do very well in mild summer weather. Tomatoes originally come from Peru which has temps similar to your area. When temps get too high, they often will not set fruit so this is worse for tomatoes.
I know Trudi already said this, I'm agreeing that you need to worry about DTM(days to maturity.) You have a short season. You can not really every say exactly how long it will take a plant to have mature fruit, but some are reliably early.
About Late Blight, no tomato, early or late maturing, hybrid or heirloom, is immune to it. If conditions are right and the spores are about in the air, the tomatoes will get it and die. Also, don't confuse this with Early Blight. Tomatoes can get early blight and survive. So you sometimes will read people saying they got late blight and their plants survived. They are confused. Late blight(looks like fuzzy mold) will kill a plant right quick turning it into black mush. Early blight cause oyster shell spots on the leaves and yellowing. Oh and no type of tomato is immune to that either.
Remy |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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| so then i got lucky in the region i live in? is it because we are kinda dry? we get humid sometimes, but we do dry out, i don't understand the blight i don't think, i always figured i just did a good thing with the tums and the epsom salts. i also read a thing about putting dry milk in and around the plant and mixing the milk in with the dirt and repeat the step like 3 weeks later i think. a guy up north uses the tums and doesnt get the blossem end rot, that's the thing i was trying to think of earlier! **grin** he swears by it, he sells HUGE beautiful tomatoe's! i can't wait for wintersowing so i can get the tomatos' started, EG (engineeredgarden)started his tomatoes in dec and had his tomatoes in feb, i think it was, he's usually in the square foot garden. i'm going to put some inthe green house to start ~medo |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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| Tina, I tried Matina last year and really liked them. They produced lots of tasty small fruit early and have a 58 DTM. Karen |
Here is a link that might be useful: Matina from tomatogrowers.com
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by trudi_d 7, Long Island (My Page) on
Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 23:01
| Waving hi to Remy! I second Karen's suggestion of Matina--that is a fine tomato, early and very good cropper. It's one of the first heirlooms I grew. I haven't grown it in a while but I don't recall it being big, it's actually kinda small-to-medium size, fruits about 2" across. One of its charms is that for an early tomato it tastes good, this is a nice mater. 
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RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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I have never had an early tomato myself, being up north in Canada, but recently someone in our Zone 3a recommended these varieties for cold climates:
Sub Arctic Plenty
Purple Prince
Visions
I plan to try one or two of these next summer if I can find them.
Northerner. |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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| Oh, Trudi, that's a real summer pic to drool over! What great colors. |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by trudi_d 7, Long Island (My Page) on
Fri, Nov 20, 09 at 10:01
| Northerner, that's a good list, I would also add "Cold Set". |
RE: Trying to choose tomatoes for 2010
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- Posted by remy 6WNY (My Page) on
Fri, Nov 20, 09 at 19:32
| Hi Trudi ~waving back : ) Medo,
Yes, the dryness helped you. Being cold and wet for too long(like much of the east had this summer) is party time for Late Blight. Early Blight likes humidity. I get that all the time. Fortunately, it can be controlled organically or chemically.
Of course feeding and caring for your plants like you do is always a good thing!
Remy |
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