TOMATOES (Lycopersicon lycopersicon) Tomatoes (originally called tomatl) were a curiosity to the early Spanish settlers in Mexico who sent them back to their homeland. By the 16th century, tomatoes had traveled widely throughout Europe, to Africa and the lands of the Moors (Arabs) . Their odd names give you an idea just how Europeans viewed tomatoes when they first encountered them: Wolf Apple, Pomme d'amour (apple of love), Pommo d'oro (yellow apple). They were even considered an aphrodisiac. Thomas Jefferson, my personal gardening hero, grew tomatoes first as an ornamental in 1781 and later grew them for food. Since the rise of hybrid tomatoes in the 1950's, hundreds of heirloom varieties have unfortunately been lost.
I never fully understood why the tomatoes tasted so much better when I travelled. I can still vividly remember my first "Greek" salad served in a small taverna, in the neighborhood called Anaphiotika, which lies truly at the foot of the Parthenon in Athens. Just slices of the best tomato I had ever eaten, some Greek salty feta cheese, some sliced onion, a few olives and drizzled with olive oil. I did not realize then that I was eating my first "real" tomato, an open pollinated heirloom, not the awful cardboard hybrid ones served in America. It was heaven.
I needn't mention that Italy has made an art form of tomatoes in their cuisine. However, my first pizza in Bologna, Italy did throw me for a loop. There was not the red tomato sauce I was accustomed to, but garlic, olive oil and seafood, including mussels still in their shells on top. I was even at a loss as to how to eat it.
All food in Italy is adored and prepared lovingly. It is scrumptious everywhere from the cheapest little cafe on up. I loved the little tubes of tomato paste that looked just like toothpaste. Italians buy their food fresh, it is never refrigerated in their homes. Every Italian town and city has colorful outdoor markets exploding with produce, always eaten seasonally. In Venice housewives travelled far by water to get to the little markets so they took haggling over food prices to a new level! Italians take freshness, high quality and seasonally grown food very seriously. Like many travelers to Italy, I literally ate my way through the countryside.
When I travelled to Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal, and the former French colony of Guinea in West Africa, I encountered a French/Arab influence in the cuisine. Meals began with fresh sliced tomatoes and other vegetables spread out on plates, never in bowls like we eat salads, prior to the entree. Familiar French cooking was improved upon with African spices and unusual produce and grains.
Tomatoes originated botanically, it is believed, in the mountains of Mexico. They are so indigenous, that I sampled tomatoes in more meals than you can ever imagine, in each country I visited in South America. Peru really had the most varied cuisine but I also ate tomatoes in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru and Mexico. The only place I didn't get to eat them was in Tierra Del Fuego, which barely supports any life much less gardening, since its only 800 miles from Antartica.
I hope you will enjoy the many rare heirloom, unusual and classic tomato varieties I have to offer on this and my other tomato pages which are listed by color. Be sure to have a look at the Belarusian/Ukrainian/Russian Tomato page as well for more Red selections.
All seed packs are $2.50 each
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AMISH CANNER TOMATO ~BACK AGAIN FOR 2010 ! ~ - Here is another great tomato I got in a tomato trade with N.M. my southern tomato collector friend. When I told him I was especially interested in genuine Amish and Mennonite heirlooms, he came up with the original seeds of this super tomato. When we say canner, the operative word here is slightly acidic (or "tart”) for best canning quality. Also, you need prolific harvests of perfect tomatoes all the same size. Well, this one has it all. A good old fashioned "tomatoey" taste, great attributes for canning and preserving as well as all purpose fruit. You can happily eat this one out of hand, cook with it, and use it in salads as well as for canning of course. Perfect orbs of red fruit, no cracking and great disease resistance as well. I can't recommend a better processing fruit than “Amish Canner". 10 of my own organically grown seeds.
TESS'S LAND RACE CURRANT TOMATO- Lycopersicon pimpinellifolium ~~BACK FOR 2010! ~~ If Fairies grew tomatoes (and who is to say they don't?) this would be what they would look like. They were strangely appealing to wildlife I noticed, or were those tiny bites I saw from the Fairies after all? Teeny, tiny wee little fruits grow on many, many clusters or sprays on long vines that tumble all over your fence. (The best way to grow them). Plus you get several pretty colors: mostly dark crimson red, some pink and some golden. The Currants are a different kind of tomato, and usually tend to fall off the vine, but not these babies. They stayed tightly on and were perfect for cutting in little bouquets of fruit to use as garnishes or to give to your children for the perfect healthy snack. Market gardeners and chefs will appreciate this cut spray quality too. Brett Grohsgal of Evenstar Organic Farm on Maryland's southern shore did the breeding work. Deep, intense flavor is the bonus for all this superbly attractive cuteness. 10 of my own organically grown seeds.
"CHALK'S EARLY JEWEL" RED TOMATO- ~BACK FOR 2010- Scarce- ~ 60 days in Zone 6A- This was a super very early tomato that grows 3 to 5 fruits to a cluster or spray. Short stature makes this one good for small gardens. It was the earliest to ripen in my garden this season even overtaking the proverbially early Russian sorts. It also kept up all season long producing its perfect deep, red crimson, 3 to 4 inch round fruits. Also, one of the last of my tomatoes to keep producing this cold dry summer here in Amishland. James Chalk of Norristown, Pennsylvania developed this tomato in 1899 as a cross between "Hubbard's Curled Leaf" and "Perfection”. It was commercially introduced in 1904 by the Stokes Company. When ripe it has a tender buttery texture, just bring your salt shaker to your garden! A hint of spiciness with some acidity gives it its remarkable flavor. William Woys Weaver, famous foodways author, likes this tomato with steamed crab. This is one of the few great tomatoes listed in the “Slow Food USA Ark of Taste". To my knowledge, I am one of the only commercial sources of this tomato in the USA. 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
RIESENTRAUBE TOMATO - (sometimes spelled "Riesenstraube”) Heirloom Grape Tomato ~BACK FOR 2010~ LIMITED QUANTITIES~ ORDER EARLY~
- I have always loved this great (formerly East) German heirloom tomato and hadn't grown it out in a few years, so I tried it again this season. How could I have forgotten how fantastic this little baby is? Riesentraube is documented to have been offered for sale in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the mid 19th century. William Woys Weaver, the foodways expert and author says it also may have been grown by the Pennsylvania Dutch (Pennsylvania Germans) as early as 1855. The evocative German name "Riesentraube" translates literally as "giant grape", but what is surely meant is "Giant Bunch of Grapes". That is truly what these trellised fruits really look like. Riesentraube has the unique feature of the huge quantity of flowers produced per cluster (up to 350 flowers!). So it is truly decorative even earlier in the season. These crimson, cherry-sized tomatoes weigh approximately 3/4 oz. and are about 1-1/2 by 1-1/4 inches in size. You may get as many 50 or more little fruits per spray! Absolutely no other tomato fruit in the world looks like this one. They have a very strange, for lack of a better word, “nipple" shape on the end. Nice full, somewhat lemony flavor, more like a larger beefsteak taste. It doesn't get any better for snacking or salads. Prolific doesn't even begin to describe how many fruit you get per vine. You will need only one plant! An excellent choice for market gardeners as well, for the grape tomato market, much more flavorful than what is usually offered, and travels well. 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
KITTEN KATASTROPHE TOMATO DUO ~BACK AGAIN FOR 2010!~ -
My smart new kitten, Duke, "fetches”, just like a dog. I threw him his toy mouse while I was working bagging up my dried tomato seeds from their drying trays on the kitchen table. First mistake. So of course he “retrieves" it right back to me, and landed on 2 trays. Yep, you guessed it, seeds all over the place. So some of my wonderful super rare ”Chalks Early Jewel" tomato seeds got totally mixed up with the great old fashioned " Amish Canner" tomato seeds. I could have cried, all that work! But, when life hands you lemons- make lemonade they always say. So I am giving you the opportunity to try this unique duo at a discount. If you take the time to sort them, the smaller seeds will be for the “Chalk’s Early Jewel" and the larger ones will no doubt be the “Amish Canner". The photo you see is of the “Amish Canner". Both are red fruit and both are prolific. Here are all the details on these 2 individual tomatoes as I wrote them;
AMISH CANNER TOMATO - NEW FOR 2009 - Genuine Amish Heirloom. Here is another great tomato I got in a tomato trade with N.M. my southern tomato collector friend. When I told him I was especially interested in genuine Amish and Mennonite heirlooms, he came up with the original seeds of this super tomato. When we say canner, the operative word here is slightly acidic (or "tart”) for best canning quality. Also, you need prolific harvests of perfect tomatoes all the same size. Well, this one has it all. A good old fashioned "tomatoey" taste, great attributes for canning and preserving as well as all purpose fruit. You can happily eat this one out of hand, cook with it, and use it in salads as well as for canning of course. Perfect orbs of red fruit, no cracking and great disease resistance as well. I can't recommend a better processing fruit than “Amish Canner".
"CHALK'S EARLY JEWEL" RED TOMATO - NEW FOR 2009- Scarce- - 60 days in Zone 6A- This was a super very early tomato that grows 3 to 5 fruits to a cluster or spray. Short stature makes this one good for small gardens. It was the earliest to ripen in my garden this season even overtaking the proverbially early Russian sorts. It also kept up all season long producing its perfect deep, red crimson , 3 to 4 inch round fruits. Also, one of the last of my tomatoes to keep producing this cold dry summer here in Amishland. James Chalk of Norristown, Pennsylvania developed this tomato in 1899 as a cross between "Hubbard's Curled Leaf " and "Perfection”. It was commercially introduced in 1904 by the Stokes Company. When ripe it has a tender buttery texture, just bring your salt shaker to your garden! A hint of spiciness with some acidity gives it its remarkable flavor. William Woys Weaver, famous foodways author, likes this tomato with steamed crab. This is one of the few great tomatoes listed in the “Slow Food USA Ark of Taste". To my knowledge, I am one of the only commercial sources of this tomato in the USA.
I will send you 20 of my own organically grown fresh seeds in this duo, it’s like 2 for the price of one!
AMISH RED OXHEART TOMATO BACK AGAIN FOR 2010 !-~VERY LIMITED QUANTITIES~ ORDER EARLY~ - When I wrote the article on "Saving Amish and Mennonite Seeds " for Farm & Ranch Living magazine in 2007, I received a number of phone calls and letters from plain people all over the United States. Many offered me their family's heirloom seeds. This is another great addition to my collection. The sender, P.P., of my original seed stock, sent me seeds of 2 oxheart (heart) shaped tomatoes, this red one and a yellow one with splashes of red. (Also listed on my website in limited quantities). She called it “Amish Pink Oxheart" but it grew out red for me. She is also the sender of my favorite new addition, the “Amish Mayberry Cherry" tomato. I’m sorry but I don't any other information or history from her about this tomato. This is the difficulty with saving seeds. Most families don't value the wonderful history they have in the palm of their hand and so it goes, the history is lost forever. But at least we have the great seeds and the super tomato it grew out. I grew this tomato, among many others, in the historic 4 square raised bed Pennsylvania German demonstration garden I help with. It is located at Historic Scheafferstown Inc., a farm museum right over the county line in Lebanon County. The 90 acre farm and farmhouse date to 1736 and we have tried to make the gardens as authentic as possible to that time period of the Pennsylvania Germans who lived there. I donate nearly all the historically correct seeds grown there. This tomato was a real standout in the very dry and extra cold summer we experienced this season. It was super meaty with large, bright red 9-12 oz fruit. Perfect for a paste cooking tomato or for eating fresh out of hand, or salad use. A great all round tomato. It was extremely prolific. The fruit were all perfect with great resistance to disease and bugs (although the huge striped garden spider that had a monster web attached to the plants all summer may have had a hand in that! She was so large she scared the visitors when I gave my historic garden tours at several museum events.) Be the first to try this great heart shaped beauty. It warms my heart to save it from being lost; hopefully it will warm yours too. 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
RED POTATO LEAF TOMATO ~BACK AGAIN FOR 2010!-~
I don't have much information about this tomato since it was not as labeled. This was supposed to be the “Amish Canner” and was in those seeds. (I am also listing, new for 2009, the true variety of “Amish Canner”). This often happens with seed trades, some of the seeds in the pack show up as a different variety altogether. But this was just so wonderful and prolific (did I say prolific? It was just outstanding, and I only had 2 plants! ) I just had to share it with you. Perfect 8-12 ounce (oz) globes of rich crimson with not a mark on them. We had a severe drought here in Amishland and very cool weather to boot. So when a tomato beats the odds and still is beautiful and pumps out all summer long up to frost, I say bravo, bring it on! This one has that old time flavor I remember from the tomatoes in Mr. Gunther's garden. Mr. Gunther, wherever you are, I want to belatedly, truly apologize! My mother was raised in the tropics and had never seen a groundhog (or grundsau as they say in PA Dutch.) She was a sucker for all baby animals, so when I brought home a cute, tiny baby groundhog of course she let me keep him. She didn't know what it was. My father didn't want to break my heart. So the little guy got bigger and thrived. When a neighbor informed us it was “a varmint- we shoot those" she broke into tears. When little Gunther (named after our gardening neighbor) got too big to keep indoors, we did a midnight foray into Mr. Gunther's garden and let him loose amongst the cabbages. We knew Mr. Gunther never used a gun, so we assumed he'd be fine. And that was only one of my many unusual pets. More tales later.... Anyway, this is what I call a typical old fashioned tomato, big round, red, sweet-tart. It did have potato leaf foliage but that is the only identifying factor. Try this good ole boy, you won't regret it 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
LARGE MENNONITE HERITAGE TOMATO TOMATO ~BACK AGAIN FOR 2010! ~Genuine Mennonite Heirloom-SCARCE- Limited Quantities -Order Early! ~ - I got my original seed stock of this rare tomato via my southern tomato collector friend, N.M. He was not provided with any historical information on this one, nor have I been able to find out a thing. The red color fruits do ripen over a long time and may have some green on the shoulders. This one would be great for sauces, salsas and canning. Good old time flavor, slightly acid (tart) which is why it’s so good for canning. I have only found one other commercial seed source of this rare heirloom tomato. 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
NEW RED BRANDYWINE TOMATO ~Scarce Local PA 1889 Heirloom~ -
I am totally amazed at the extensive history and information that Amy Goldman's new book The Heirloom Tomato gives for so many rare tomatoes .I have tried for years to find more history and now after 5 years hard work she gives it and in so much detail . She devotes 2 entire pages to the " Red Brandywine" tomato. One with extensive history and a truly spectacular photo on entire facing page. At any rate I will condense a bit of the most pertinent information. I highly recommend anyone who is into tomatoes to purchase this fine tome. It is without a doubt the best gardening book I have ever read, after William Woys Weaver's ( out of print) Heirloom Vegetable Gardening.
" Red Brandywine" or " No. 45" as they called it, was introduced in 1889 by Johnson & Stokes, Philadelphia, PA. It was named after the Brandywine Creek , on the suggestion of a friend and grower ,Thomas H. Brinton of Chadd's Ford, Chester County, PA. The incredibly long list of synonyms for " Red Brandywine" that Amy Goldman gives attests to its high regard and popularity right from the beginning. For much more detail on this tomato please turn to pages 106-107 in her new book.
Well, we all know how wonderful the Brandywines are and this is another winner in another color. Unlike the other colors of Brandywine this has regular leafed foliage, not potato leafed. It is not, as many believe, an Amish Heirloom. This is the taste we crave in tomatoes : mellow, creamy, rich, and sweet. The absolutely perfect balance of sugar and acid. It is rumored to have been saved from extinction by the late, great tomato collector Ben Quisenberry. The fruit are blemish and crack free for a beefsteak. I have gotten a lot of ranges in size from 8 ounces or more to 3/4 of a pound. If you are a Brandywine lover ,( and I believe we all are ) then you must add this to your collection. Of all the Brandywine Varieties I have gown this is the most consistantly prolific. 10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
NEW GLICKS 18 MENNONITE TOMATO Genuine Mennonite Heirloom~ Scarce~ -
I got my original seeds in a seed trade after I put the word out that I am always looking for genuine Amish and Mennonite ( religious sect similar to Amish) Heirlooms. I don't have much history on this one. I did find out that I. N. Glick started Glick’s Seeds at Smoketown, Pa, near where I live and his seeds were from local sources. This was a pleasant surprise , a nice extremely prolific tomato that out produced just about any other tomato in my gardens. I had scores of perfect , firm, round midsized 10-12 ounce tomatoes of that peculiar orangeish red that you hardly see anymore. I believe this may have been a canner sort as these had more tartness or acid than most these days, and were quite juicy. Just a great all round tomato that kept on pumping out flawless fruit thru thick and thin and never stopped. I yanked the darn plants out still producing in mid November! If you want lots of tomatoes , especially for canning, juicing and processing , then this is the one for you. Get this great old Mennonite heirloom , don't bother with those so called improved new tomatoes out there. I was giving these away by the boatloads. You can't go wrong with this old fashioned beauty. My friend Mike L. up in Vermont is always asking me for " tawt (tart in Vermontese) tomatoes." Mike, this one is for you!
10 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
Riesentomate aus Siebenbürgen Tomato- translates from German as “Bunch (large) tomato from Siebenbürgen (Transylvania)" BACK FOR 2010 ~Rarest, Weirdest Tomato of All! ~ Looks Like Red BRAINS! - -synonyms: Pocketbook Tomato, Travel, Voyage--NOW MORE SEEDS PER PACK IN 2010! -
- I absolutely guarantee you have never seen a tomato like this, ever! I had seen a photo of the fruit some years ago and have searched for it ever since. I finally got lucky and was able to acquire 5 seeds of this amazing and nearly impossible to find tomato in a seed trade from Germany. I grew it out and it was absolutely show stopping and truly bizarre. Everyone who saw it wanted (demanded) it immediately! The fruits look like a mad scientist's experiment to make a brain that is red. They are one fruit covered in these lumps that you can twist off and eat like cherry tomatoes. But it is just one fruit all stuck together all over with these round protuberances. This is the hardest to describe tomato I have ever grown. The only other information I could find had only this to say about it (my bad translation from German): "Riesentomate aus red Siebenbürgen -OP- so tortured Fruit that you do not know what is the umbilical point of the stalk. A true futuristic sculpture. Fixed variety".
I researched Siebenbürgen on Wikipedia and found out it translates as Transylvania. You can read tons more fascinating information about all that on their site. Wow, how cool is that, a Dracula Tomato? So this tomato may actually be from that fabled, spooky region. Reisentomate translates literally as large tomato. (although some translations say Reiesen means "bunch”) This is NOT the Riesenstraube (“bunch of Grapes") tomato, which is an East German heirloom which I also carry. Concerning its history, I did find a bit from famed gardener and writer Amy Goldman. Goldman gives a write up of the "Riesentomate" in her just published book The Heirloom Tomato. She quotes Barbel Schmidt (of the Institute for Plant Genetics and Crop Research in Gatersleben, Germany): “The Indians of Central America include another unusual and very large type of tomato in their diet, one they refer to as a traveler tomato. The fruits are irregular and lobed and consist of many individual cavities that can be torn apart. This tomato can easily be torn apart without the use of a knife".
If you like to show off in the garden than you need this baby. Exceedingly prolific all season long and just so darn much fun. Be the first to astonish your neighbors and get bragging rights for sure with this tomato! I loved to see people's faces when I put these out on a plate. Remember what the Scarecrow said in the Wizard of Oz: “If I only had a brain”. Well, with this tomato, now you do! To the best of my knowledge I am the only commercial source of this tomato seed in the USA. There is one other source for the tomato called “Voyage" which I also sell, and seemed to me to be a different tomato as it had so much larger fruit. However, Amy Goldman says "Voyage" is a synonym for “Riesentomate". I am still keeping and selling the seed separately for these 2 tomatoes.
Extremely Rare- sorry, only 5 fresh organically grown seeds per pack.
VOYAGE TOMATO BACK FOR 2010! ~ NOW MORE SEEDS PER PACK!~super rare- Looks like Red Brains~Almost identical to "Riesentomate aus Siebenbürgen" Tomato
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I got the original seed of this tomato also in a seed trade. Except for being slightly larger in size this seemed to be exactly the same as my other " brain tomato" . I had no info on this one either , other than a description which led me to believe it might be the holy grail of tomatoes, the elusive "Riesentomate aus Siebenbürgen" , which I had been searching for, for years. I grew it out and they turned out to be nearly exactly identical. Here is some of what I say in my description of the "Riesentomate":
"I grew it out and it was absolutely show stopping and truly bizarre. Everyone who saw it wanted ( demanded ) it immediately! The fruits look like a mad scientist's experiment to make a brain that is red. They are one fruit covered in these lumps that you can twist off and eat like cherry tomatoes. But it is just one fruit all stuck together all over with these round protuberances. This is the hardest to describe tomato I have ever grown
This is NOT the Riesenstraube ( "bunch of Grapes") tomato, which is a relatively common German heirloom to find these days. I don't know another darn thing about its history. But I do know you will want ( need) this baby. Exceedingly prolific all season long and just so darn much fun. Be the first to astonish your neighbors and get bragging rights for sure with this tomato! I loved to see people's faces when I put these out on a plate. Remember what the Scarecrow said in the Wizard of Oz: " If I only had a brain" . Well, with this tomato, now you do!"
The only difference was the size of the fruit was slightly larger and the vine was slightly shorter. So it may be another tomato altogether. I am just not sure. Order both and you too can do a comparison growout.
NOW 10fresh organically grown seeds per pack .
AMISH SALAD TOMATO (Cherry Type tomato) -
With a company name like "Amishland Heirloom Seeds" , how could resist the chance to grow a genuine Amish heirloom like this darling cherry tomato? Each fruit was round and all were simply perfect. Every single fruit was a glistening pinkish red color. The plants were literally smothered in fruits, about 2- 3 ounces each. See photo to see the size. These tomatoes kept pumping out all season, and like all the cherry types were extremely prolific. The have good firm flesh. These would be a market grower's dream as they would travel well and are oh so pretty plus deliciously sweet to boot.The vines don't get out of hand, growing maybe 6 feet tall. You can easily pick a half gallon or more fruits per day off of each plant.
10+ of my own fresh organically grown seeds.
ANGORA SUPER SWEET TOMATO SORRY SOLD OUT FOR THE SEASON!! RARE!!! - also called " VELVET RED" This might be the most beautiful ornamental vegetable you will ever grow! Guaranteed to turn heads! The unbelievable foliage of this rare tomato is a fuzzy silvery gray color. They truly look just like the plant dusty miller, honestly. No matter how many photos I took, I wasn't able to really show you how very silvery and fuzzy they actually looked. The one inch ( 1" ) red cherry fruit are also covered in a slightly fuzzy silver "fur" as well.
While these tiny fruit are not nearly as fuzzy as the peach type tomatos I sell like " Jaune Peche", they do have a noticeably grey coloration over the red due to this fuzziness. You will love growing these tomatoes to show off to your neighbors and entertain your children. It is like growing little Angora cats in your garden. These tomatoes drew the most comments, stunned looks and questions of anything I grew out this past season. Plus, the name "Angora Super Sweet" says it all taste wise.
SORRY SOLD OUT FOR SEASON
BACK AGAIN for 2010 !- BLOODY BUTCHER HEIRLOOM HERITAGE TOMATO - Ready to eat in only 55 days! I just love the name! I figure this must have been a popular old time name for red veggies. This is a fabulous multi-purpose tomato. It is very early , fully a month earlier than anything else I grew this year except for my super early Ukrainian tomatoes. ( see my "Ukrainian and Russian Tomatoes Page" ). These are very prolific and high-yielding. They have a good strong tomato flavor. The fruits are set in clusters of round, 4 oz. fruits that are a deep, dark red inside and out.These are fast growing, large potato-leafed plants that need staking. I had more tomatoes than I could possibly eat and I was bringing baskets of them to work. The plants kept on pumping out these small red jewels all season. I have been told these are an heirloom tomato but have found conflicting reports of their history, so rather than give out false information, I will just leave it at that- it is an heirloom, heritage tomato, possibly from England.
10 of my own fresh organically grown seeds
ZOGOLA POLISH HEIRLOOM RED TOMATO - SOLD OUT FOR SEASON! - I got my original seed in a seed trade. Marvelous, abundant and prolific, my Zogola out performed all others in my garden this wet, rainy season. Each 1/2 fruit was flawless. This Polish heirloom is amazing! Tangy, rich, strong flavor in perfect fruit. Great for slicing , salsas and eating right in the garden. Luscious deep red color with fruits that are nice and meaty. This was my easiest performer, making alot of fruit fast and furiously all season long. I can't say enough good things about this rich red tomato. Just tons of fruit on disease resistant plants! SOLD OUT FOR SEASON!
MULE TEAM HEIRLOOM RED TOMATO--BACK FOR 2010! - - This is a real "workhorse" of a tomato. I had heard a lot of old timers speak longingly of this 'mater, so I decided to grow it out again this season. Good sized medium bright red (8-10 ounces or more) tomatoes have that elusive "old time" flavor like you remember. Sweet with thick flesh, this is the kind of tomato you may remember your grandmother growing. You can use this as a main crop all purpose tomato for whatever use you want, great canned, fresh or cooked. Expect abundant harvests of fruit with excellent texture and old fashioned flavor. Very uniform in size and production. This one has just enough "zing" to make it right for those who want a slightly "tart" tomato, but not too acidic.
10 fresh organically grown seeds.
"LANCASTER COUNTY" PASTE TOMATO- ITALIAN? - BACK AGAIN for 2010 !- I did a seed/plant trade with a friend, and this was supposed to be a large fruited, ruffled sort of variety of Italian tomato. But this pretty paste tomato is what grew out instead. It had marvelous, very prolific amounts of strangely square shaped paste type tomatoes. The plants were compact but not determinate, maybe 4 1/2 feet high. The fruit each weighed about 5-8 oz and were very uniform in size and shape. These bright red babies really pumped out all season, until I was just plain tired of picking them! They had very little gel, and were a tiny bit hollow inside. The tomato walls were very thick, solid and firm. This made them especially good for cooking down into rich tomato sauces. They were sweet, rich and very intensely red. I have researched every single Italian type paste tomato, I could find, but none came close enough in looks to positively identify these. But, I guarantee you will love these easy to grow, prolific bearers, and love their ability to make a superb sauce. They also hold up very well to being chopped up for a delicious fresh salsa. If you think you can help me positively identify these probably Italian cuties, please email with your thoughts.
10 of my own fresh organically grown seeds.
MARTIN'S AMISH / MENNONITE TOMATO - I got this heirloom Pennslyvania German ( PA Dutch) tomato from an Old Order Mennonite neighbor, Mr. Martin about 8 years ago, near Reamstown PA. He said he got it from his Amish neighbors, so who knows if it is really Amish or Mennonite ( a religious sect similar to the Amish. The Old Order Mennonites also use horse and buggies and farm with horses, and are very conservative as well ). I have grown this out every few years and this season I grew it out for fresh seeds. So I am offering it for sale for the first time in years. Smallish vines are about 5 feet tall, which are kind of bushy. They throw out tons of perfect red, egg shaped meaty fruit, suitable for use as a paste type for cooking but with a great sweetness that is super just out of hand or in salads and salsas. Every single fruit is perfect and it is very resistant to disease and bugs. You can't get an easier to grow tomato or one that is more useful in so many different ways. I am the only one I know of with this special local variety of tomato. 10 of my own fresh organically grown seeds.
HOWARD GERMAN TOMATO ~VERY RARE~Local Pennsylvania Heirloom - The locals here in Amish country also call them "Pepper Tomatoes". I have never seen these exact same tomatoes grown anywhere else. Prolific harvests of 5-1/2 inch long, weirdly pointed paste tomatoes that weigh about 5- 8 ounces ( although this year they were huge and averaged more like 10- 14 ounces). These are very meaty with a good, rich flavor. They have virtually no seeds, maybe 6 or so per fruit. An old scarce variety great for canning, paste, or sauces. Also delicious right off the vine in salads. Just the best all purpose tomato I have ever grown. Very resistant to disease and bugs, as well. Still seen here in Amish country, but elsewhere it is a really rare tomato. 10 fresh organically grown seeds.
MATT'S WILD CHERRY TOMATO - If you have a "black thumb" or have never gardened before, this is the tomato for you to try. This will grow anywhere there is sun. It is called Matt's Wild Cherry because Teresa Arellanos de Mena, a friend of U.of Maine ag faculty members, Drs. Laura Merrick and Matt Liebman, brought seeds to Maine from her family's home state of Hidalgo in Eastern Mexico it's the region of domestication of tomatoes The original seeds were picked from plants growing wild. Therefore, this is a species wild tomato, which means it is like a parent of all the small tomatoes you ever saw. Very sweet, tiny cherries, huge yields, superb flavor, my absolute favorite small tomato. It has long, long vines, that do best when planted by a fence to ramble on. These babies have such a huge burst of luscious flavor when you bite into them. Absolutely everyone says "WOW" at the first taste, and they never stop at just one taste! You will get a huge amount of these delectable tiny fruits. And they keep on pumping them out all season until hard frost in my Zone 6A garden. These are so sweet (a high sugar content, 11 Brix on the sweetness scale) and flavorful that my neighborhood children "snitch" them off the vines. Not to worry, there will be more fruits than you could ever eat. Each tomato is about the size of a small marble. Unlike the other "currant" tomato types, these stay nicely on the vine until you are ready for them. I consider these a must have tomato. If you plant only one small fruited cherry type tomato this year, this is it. So prolific that they will self seed! I had self-seeded "volunteers" coming up in the early spring way before any other tomato could take the cold. You only need to plant this baby once, and it will happily come up year after year. I also highly suggest its sister currant tomato, my "White Wild Mexican Currant Tomato," found on the "Other Colors" tomato page. 15 FRESH ORGANICALLY RAISED SEEDS
TOGORIFIC HEIRLOOM IRAN-IRAQ TOMATO - RARE! Well, you may not be able to travel easily to either Iran or Iraq, these days, but at least now you can taste one of their heirloom tomatoes. I was not able to get much information when I acquired my original seed, but I do know that they are super little tomatoes. Each prolific vine produces scads of half dollar sized fruit. They are heavily ruffled or ribbed and a dark red color. Good sweet balanced flavor. Really pumped out these darling little babies all season. I doubt if you will find this tomato anywhere else in the United States. 10 fresh organically raised seeds.
