Minnie Moose F2

This is the F2 of Pink From Syracuse. Due to the passing of a family member, I have renamed it in honor of her family nickname, Minnie Moose. She was an avid gardening her entire life and loved home grown tomatoes. While bedridden, she was able to start one last crop of tomatoes in peat pods. This fruit came off of one of the plants she started.

There will be some work in the next four years stabilizing this line. In the process, I suspect I will find other tomatoes/lines also worth stabilizing. Out of eight plants, this was the only one to produce beefsteaks with the other seven plants producing saladette and roma-type tomatoes.

Taste was mostly balanced but slightly acidic which makes it pair well with cream cheese on a bagel.

This particular fruit was from a megabloom, hence the catfacing. Still sliced nicely though.

Fruits of Labor

Pink From Syracuse F1

From Syracuse, NY. This is an inadvertent cross between Black From Tula and an unknown pollinator. I should have known something was up when the plant was one of the largest in my garden and was producing a multitude of flower buds. Black From Tula has a modest growth habit and a fairly modest fruitset. Large regular leaf plants produce a heavy fruitset of medium round fruits with the occasional beefsteak thrown in. There is some persistent green on the shoulders, much like Black From Tula and it has the same soft texture. Flavor has just a hint of smokiness but is overall sweeter. A nice fruit for topping a bagel but I generally prefer meatier tomatoes. Will be interesting to see what happens at F2.

Demimonde F2

Bred in the United States from Angeles City Native and Speckled Roman. We see an interesting divergence at F2. Both varieties maintain a dimpled blossom end but other than that, we have two very different tomatoes.
       One is a cherry with a slightly acidic tomato flavor. Very productive, large plants with fairly stiff regular leaf foliage.
       The other variety is a paste tomato that has almost the exact same skin and shape as Speckled Roman but is considerably firmer and instead of a protrusion at the blossom end, has a recess. Foliage is also like Speckled Roman in that the plant looks perpetually sickly with wispy, drooping leaves. Flavor is ok but this is a very dry fruit and is more appropriate for cooking as a sauce or salsa.

Jabucar

From Serbia. Large, very robust regular-leaf plants. The main stalk was very thick and the plant would hardly require staking except for the fact that it bears a medium to heavy fruitset of large beefsteaks. I am a big fan of eastern European tomatoes and Jabucar (translated as "apple") is no exception. Healthy plants, great size and meaty with a nice balanced flavor and good texture. A choice for limited space gardens.

Limachino

     From Italy. Large, robust, regular leaf plants bear a medium to heavy fruitset of large, ribbed tomatoes. Fruit contain four or more partially empty locules. Flesh is soft and taste is balanced but mild. A good, all around tomato. Its relatively dry nature makes it a good choice for salsa and sauces but it has far more flavor than the average roma or paste tomato.

......and one more gratuitous tomato porn shot....

Vesuvio

From Italy. Medium sized regular leaf plants produce a medium fruitset of elongated paste tomatoes with two locules and some empty space inside. Taste is rather bland and flesh is somewhat mealy. Prone to blossom end rot. Probably a good choice for sauces and salsa where a dry tomato is needed and there are other flavors present. I would be more likely to grow again if I didn't lose half the fruit to blossom end rot.