And the “Other Slicer” winner is…

Although this season has been quite the challenge for gardening plants in general, the tomatoes have been the best producers so far this season. I was lucky enough to have planted some tomato plants in the old Inwood garden after the Master Gardeners annual plant sale. My son has been the keeper of the Inwood garden, and he has been doing a great job with watering and watching everything grow. The tomato plants that went into the garden were primarily the ones that I forgot to label, and I had no clue what the outcome would be. Although, there was a few that did have a label, but I felt were too sad for the plant sale. In the end, the tomato plants bounced back and we had two varieties that came out on top.

Top two producers… and a close second

The top two early producers in the garden were the Yellow Pear (cherry tomato) and the Red Zebra tomato (small to medium slicer tomato). A close second was the Orange Icicle tomato; however, there were not enough of them to go into Tomato Fest. However, there were enough to go into my belly! This was my first time growing them, and I was quite surprised on how good they taste. The Orange Icicle has sweet taste. Some say it has a citrus overtone, but I could not really tell. This tomato is lower in acidity, very low in seeds, and has a beautiful sunny orange color. I definitely recommend trying to grow Orange Icicle tomatoes next season. I purchased my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company.

The Yellow Pear tomato is one that I had to bring back from last season. They are also low in acidity, which yellow and orange tomatoes typically are, and they are perfect for snacking! Beautiful yellow color in a pear shape (hence the name). These tomatoes are very sweet, but have a mild flavor. They may not be a favorite for most, because folks tend to want a more vibrant tomato flavor, but these are one of my favorites. I believe I also purchased Yellow Pear tomato seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company. This year, I saved the seeds from some over ripe tomatoes, so I will not have to purchase any more next year. I can keep growing them year after year. To learn more about saving tomato seeds, go to the Grow with Me Shop for a free download on Saving Tomato Seeds.

The Red Zebra tomato is so fun just on appearance alone. This tomato is striped like a zebra, but in red and orange. The Red Zebra has a nice sweet flavor. Do you sense a theme with my “sweet” tomatoes? The Red Zebra are a little more acidic than the other two tomatoes mentioned, but you will love them!

My son said that he really liked the flavor of these tomatoes, and so did the public! My Red Zebra tomatoes won best in the “Other Slicer” category at Tomato Fest. I am so proud of all the hard work with growing this tomato from seed. Thank goodness for the old garden. I was lucky to have planted when I did. Best of all, I was happy to have taken them to Tomato Fest to share with public. Does my heart good.

Check out the Martinsburg Journal news article on Winners of the BJEMG Tomato Tasting announced.

I have saved Red Zebra tomato seeds this year, so I will grow them again next season. I originally saved my seeds from the previous year’s Tomato Fest from an over ripe tomato that could not be sold. Baker Creek had them on their website; however, they are currently unavailable. If you would like a Red Zebra tomato plant next season, please reach out to me, and I will let you know when tomato plants are available for sale.

Planning for next season

There are always lessons to be learned from each growing season. This year was to plant the tomatoes much earlier. This season was rough on everyone. By the time Tomato Fest arrived, many of the Master Gardeners still had very small and very green tomatoes. Next season we will plan much better and get those tomatoes in the ground earlier. Or, we may push Tomato Fest out a month to allow for more different variety of tomatoes to be available. Either way, I look forward to another growing season with even more varieties of heirloom tomatoes.