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digitS'
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Do You have a Long-Keeper?

Here is mine. I'm just a tad bit embarrassed by its small size. Thessaloniki isn't really a 3 ounce tomato. The plants just had a hard time their last few months.

This tomato isn't from the garden that had a frost in early September. This IS from the garden I covered with a layer of ice from the sprinklers, about 3 weeks later! The tomato plants survived and between those cold spells, there was quite a bit of warmth. Later on, it stayed cold.

There were a few plants of different varieties here in the backyard yard under a tree. Those were covered. I hosed them down. I coddled them way longer than I did things in the open garden. But, this is the last of the Thessaloniki, picked green. The fruit is usually about 6 to 8 ounces and one long keeper.

Steve
IMG_20141120_094431_kindlephoto-8798401.jpg
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tomc
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If by Long keeper you were meaning Burpees old offering by that name (which they have stopped selling) it is an orange skinned-red fleshed tomato that when I collected them before frost, would still be about two weeks away from being ripe.

I liked that tomato. It stored under beds in New England residence from St Johnsbury (VT) to Tilton (NH).

Stored out of sunlight, on trays, would last till March.

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digitS'
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It sounds like you no longer grow that one, TomC.

Have you found a replacement?

I really like some varieties which couldn't possibly be around for weeks on the kitchen counter. Whether I'd like to have them fresh or not, they get ahead of me with ripening and end up as sauce or soup, just like many of these Thessaloniki.

Steve

imafan26
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Actually Burpee is offering long keeper tomatoes for 2015.

tomc
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Long keeper IS an open pollinated offering. Seed for it has stayed in seed savers hoards between then and now. I'm glad they (Burpee) have offered it again.

I'm sure there are other storage tomato(es). Just remember to not store it in sunlight (like on the counter). seed inside fruit will tend to germinate, making it taste funky.

imafan26
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Actually, I was never much of a fan of tomatoes until a few years ago. My family had always bought store tomatoes that were pretty much on the green firm side and kept them in the refrigerator. I did not mind so much the taste but I hated the mealy texture.

I only learned a few years ago that tomatoes should not be stored in the refrigerator at all, but should be kept in a cool place instead. That is a challenge in Hawaii in the middle of summer when it is hotter in the house than outside.

I started growing my own tomatoes and what a difference it made to let them ripen (I did have to pick them sooner if the birds and snails started going after them). So much better than a store tomato.

I don't like sour, so I do not like the high acid tomatoes and I don't mind a bland tomato as long as the flesh is meaty not seedy and firm.

I've tried a few varieties, some I chose because of disease resistance, which is a requirement here, and some I just tried. Pretty much if the bush was full of red tomatoes and the birds left them alone, they were pretty much tasteless, even for me. If the birds started going after them green then those were the best tasting.

I guess the black cherry tomatoes are pretty good, the birds aren't leaving me many.

I remember growing a variety called Oregon Spring a long time ago and someone did an experiment and was able to keep that tomato on his counter in good condition for 3 months.

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digitS'
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Oregon Spring!

Well, I won't be able to keep any until spring but that probably is not even close to what the name was intended to suggest. I grew one of Jim Baggett's varieties for several seasons including the one just past. The OSU originator of Oregon Spring, and a bunch of other things, is really a Legend in vegetable varieties. That's what I have grown, his Legend tomato :).

Siletz is another but I know where Siletz, Oregon is and it's a good deal different climate than here. Maybe, I'm taking these names too seriously, hmm?

Here is another Thessaloniki from the 2011 season. This was right at 7 weeks off the vine.

Image

Steve

xtgold
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Location: CT USA Zone 6b

garden peach,which is a yellow tomato with fuzz like a real peach.
As they get ripe they get streaks of red and you swear it looks like a peach.
They last for a long time after picking even with a lot of handling by friends and neighbors.
Makes a great conversation piece.Definitely growing them next year.The plants will reach well over 6 feet.Probably equivalent acid wise to other yellow varieties.Usually 4-6oz range.



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