OK everybody, I am determined to grow nice luscious organic tomatoes this year in my garden. What varieties taste best and actually do well in the Vancouver BC area? Something that will be delicious, sliced, salted and peppered...
If you are looking for heirlooms, try the family run greenhouse on 232nd ave in langley (on the north side of fraser hwy)... I picked up 16 varieties of seedlings for 75 cents a piece (well cared for and huge!!!) I love the Black Krims for Beefsteaks and the Yellow Pears for Cherries... Good Luck!
Thanks! I have all I need this year, but will definitely go there next year for my seedlings! The best place I found around here was the Westham Island Herb Farm. They start a lot of flowers and vegetables from seed every year, always interesting to look at. This year I planted (in my flower borders as they are my sunny spots): Angora Bali Brandywine Clint Eastwood Rowdy Red Duchess Early Anne Mortgage Lifter Siletz Super Fantastic Valencia Sweet 100 Sweet Million Yellow Pear
I trialled about a dozen different varieties a few years ago, seeds from Saltspring Seeds which has oh so many heirloom sorts to choose from. I came away amazed at the huge variety of fruits possible from this one species, but also reminded what a poor tomato growing area we're in. Grown outside many types split and rot, and then succumb to blight before much fruit is harvested. You may find Sweet Million rather thick skinned, tho it is therefore more split resistant than the Sweet 100. The Siletz was a fav here before we broke down and put up a greenhouse...this is a nice big tasty fruit that ripens early before the blight takes the plants down. Now I just grow Brandywine (for a slicer) and San Marzano (esp. for salsa but really excellent allround in my estimation). You'll find Brandywine pretty pointless outdoors here, it is late maturing and splits easily. Grows huge and tasty in the greenhouse tho, real classic tomato flavour. Hope for one of those rare tomato summers for those growing outside here...it can happen but only a couple times per decade in my experience. Of course you're luckier in sunny Tsawassen :-) Don't forget to pop in a few basil plants, for those tomato sandwiches, aaaaah....
My favourite is Basketvee. I tried Brandywine a few years ago and was not impressed, they didn't split but they were not very tasty compared to the Basketvees. From someone who refuses to buy grocery store tomatoes I am very exacting in my requirements LOL. Basketvee produces meaty fruit, not really juicy but just right for sandwiches and salads.
I deeply appreciate the tomato expertise. I am lucky that I have huge, south facing flowerbeds in my front yard, but tomatoes are....dicey....in our area. Some years we get none, between cold summer weather and blight. A greenhouse....mmmmmmmm. On my list of things for retirement, for sure! If I put one in our present yard, it would be hard to find a sunny spot, which I take it is essential? I will certainly put BasketVee on the 2009 tomato list....
The last couple of years haven't been great around here either, too cold at night. Great for sleeping for not so great for the tomatoes LOL. Last year we had some close to zero nights until mid June, it was crazy.
I used to lose my crop just as it was going well, from fall blight. But one of the Italian guys in our area has built a wooden structure over which he drapes plastic that covers his entire side yard - he's on 21st just west of Dunbar if anyone cares - and in past years he has grown great crops forever, so last year I tried a simple version of that: a few 8' 2x4's screwed to my 5' fence, with a 3' arm cantilevered out at the top, and then two 10' 2x4's on top of the arms running parallel to the fence, then I drape plastic over the top and down the front (the fence takes care of the back side, the ends are open). Last year I was picking good tomatoes until some time in November. My tomatoes are about 3' high and growing well. Not bad for this year in Vancouver. The plastic has to be lifted up on sunny days: it reached 28 C under the plastic today. But boy do the tomatos love it, and since the plants do not get rained on they are never blighted.
Hello soccerdad, Thanks a lot for the insight, would it be possible for you to post a picture of it, so that other denizens could learn from your success... Do you know of ANY cultivar, that does not get the tomato blight?? G1
Hi gardener1...not sure what happened to the variety "Legend" that came out several years ago. Supposedly resistant to blight, the seeds were sold by Territorial back then, but haven't noticed them since, nor any plants for sale anywhere. Anyone know the deal on this variety...did it not pan out in this area?
Thanks for the Legend info; I have not seen them for sale either, but the seeds are readily available (I googled Legend Tomato), and I will add that cultivar to the 2009 tomato seed buying list!
I will post a photo of my primitive set up. I have this year been leaving the plastic in place during most days. In the last few afternoons it has come close to 40 C - about 95 F. I was concerned that they would expire, although they are well watered each morning via my automatic sprinkler system, but they are thriving. This makes me wonder: what max temperatures do tomatos like/tolerate? I suspect that there is little variation in that regard between varieties.
Well, they are indigenous to some pretty hot places! I know California is a huge tomato growing center, and there in an unshaded tomato field on a high summer day it must easily reach 100-110 F. No worries then for us here on the refreshing western Canadian coast...
