QuiltingrandmafromMi

I do 1 favorite every year, and always add 1 new variety to see If there is one better. I always grow the Big Beef variety, and this year I am trying "Applause", it is supposed to have a lot of the diseases under control.

arimuse

next to fabric, seeds are my fav thing! I have the new Baker Creek Heirloom Seed catalog, www.rareseeds.com - I love all tomatoes! Try and get 1 pkt of seed in every tomato color: red, green, stripe, orange, yellow, white, and black! My SO works out of state and last spring I turned the kitchen into my greenhs! lol! Its good I don't mind microwave food! Just make sure you get tomato seed for your area. I live in a hot humid south now, so you want plants that can take the climate where you are. baker Creek sells a bucket of regular seed pks, 15 var of veggies 30 pks in all for 55$, and one of 25 type veggies, 60 full size pks for 99$ they send you these set up for north or south state plants. Since I garden, this yr I'm buying the big bucket - I spend at least that much and more on individual seeds, so I planned ahead and saved up the money and try it this way. (Oh, I think Brandywine tomatoes are great) Go online and look thru their site, thses are really nice people and they sell a wonderful seed, trying to save old time veggies and plants - no hybreds

catrancher

Depends on what you're using them for. For sauce, Romas. For eating, heirlooms. But I plant what grows in my area.

ckp11271

I usually stick with heirlooms - Brandywines are my favorite, because they are huge and have lots of flavor.

barbsmith

We love Mountain Fresh tomatoes. Great for eating and making tomato juice, and making salsa.

nycquilter

I grow several types, maybe cause I can't make a decision?? No, really, I grow cherry for out of hand eating and salads, roma or roma-type for canning/putting up, and a larger for sandwiches and such. Usually something like early girl. I have not had good success with the really large ones, though maybe that's due to my microclimate--too wet, not hot enough for long enough.

AndiR

We've gone to growing mostly heirlooms, because they taste like a tomato should! For eating fresh, Brandywines are delicious. For making salsa or tomato sauce, I like Amish Paste. They're a meaty tomato like Roma, but a lot larger so you don't have to peel as many to yield the same amount.

Daisydoodle

I usually try a couple of heirlooms each year and the traditional Roma, Lemon Boy, Beef Steak varieties. I buy mostly from Johnnies Fine Seeds, they have a web site and a great catalog.

Roberta

Since we have a fairly short growing period here in Maine I always get some 4th. of July tomato's from Burpee's and then for real flavor I get Prudence Purple heirloom. The 4th. of July up here is ready by the end of July and the Prudence Purple has the best flavor of any tomato I've ever had.

patmas57

Oh, it was painful to read about all the big tomatoes and varieties. Here in western Washington state, every year is iffy. This last year was about the worst for growing tomatoes that I've experienced in the 15 years I've lived here. A cold, wet spring that lingered into summer. Honestly, half the time last year I couldn't remember what season we were in. We had a few hot, sunny days in there, but hardly enough. Once the rains start up again in September, all the vines go black, no matter how full of green tomatoes they are. (And I've tried every method of "ripening" green tomatoes; nothing ever works for me.)

When I lived in So. Calif., where I grew up, I once kept a couple of Early Girl vines going for two years! When they were finally over, and I had to buy a supermarket tomato, I couldn't believe the lack of taste. I used to plant Sweet 100's (before Sweet Millions were available); six plants in 5 gallon pots, and I could barely give the tomatoes away, there were so many. I've always tried to garden in whatever dirt I had available, and in pots if nothing else, but this PNW climate frustrates me a lot of the time.

I actually felt better last year when I attended a King Arthur Flour demo in my city and learned that everybody in my area had a bad tomato year. Usually, others' misfortunes don't please me at all, but this time I felt at least that I'd done all I could.

So, each year I try something new and something that's worked. I rely heavily on the "date to maturity" because I've found that anything advertised as taking over 70 days is a waste of time in my climate (thus, none of the truly big tomatoes are possible); this includes, unfortunately, most of the paste-type tomatoes. And I also buy starts from Territorial Seeds in Oregon (www.territorialseed.com) because they have a good variety, I need the headstart, and don't have room for many plants. Also, I hate to start a lot of seeds and then have to "sacrifice" the little plants I can't give away. My mom always said I was too tender-hearted. LOL! Unfortunately, I've found more and more lately that a plant advertised in the catalogs as 65 days might show up with a tag that says 80 days.

Anyway, if anybody's still with me, I try not to suffer envy when I hear about your beefsteaks and heirlooms, which also mostly take 80 days or more, but wish me some sunshine this summer!