Anyone grown these tomatoes

[PaulF]

Come on Rainbow, live a little. Get off the red round kick. After retiring to my little village eight years ago and grew the tomatoes I do, I shared the bounty with the local folks by taking a box full of heirloom/OPs to the Post Office for them to take home. The first several boxes had the red, round ones removed first because they were "real" tomatoes. The pinks, purples, blacks, oranges, bicolors, tricolors, green when ripes, yellows, etc. etc were left until last.

People stopped me on the street and asked what those strange looking things were mixed in with the tomatoes. Some wondered if the dark ones were rotten or if I did something with chemicals to make those tomatoes look funny. Little by little people tried the "funny looking" ones. They were such a hit, requests started coming in to bring more of the funny ones and even got told,"Don't bother with those boring red, round ones any more.

In the spring, now the requests are for heirloom/OP plants so the gardeners can raise their own. The local cafe advertises that they use locally grown "real" heirloom tomatoes. I am not the supplier of all the tomatoes they use, just the instigator. There is, however, one old grump of a man who still refuses to grow or even eat any of "those new-fangled funny looking tomatoes." New indeed! All he grows and eats are the latest red, round, tasteless hybrids just like what you can buy at the grocery store in the winter. One of these days I will even get him to realize what he is missing.

Try 'em Rainbow....you'll like 'em.

[digitS']

Paul, I am just imagining what would be the reaction if I showed up at the Post Office with a box of tomatoes in this patriotic corner of the country.

I think I'd lucky to get out without being arrested and the county weed board would probably have to come in to spray the lobby!

You know, it may be that folks have to start with a tomato that is just a little different from round or just a little different from red. I was like that puppy poking at something with his paw. It took a while.

It was also a surprise for me to learn that I had been growing a few varieties that were heirlooms when I didn't even know it.

Steve

[rainbowgardener]

Yeah, it took me a long time to even try growing any heirlooms, because I was so scared about the lack of built in disease resistance. When you only have room for 4-5 plants, you really don't want to lose any! But I have grown some heirlooms the last couple years and they have done fine.

[Juliuskitty]

Rainbow, just try Cherokee purple. It is a great one to get your feet wet with. I just know you won't be sorry.the taste will knock your socks off.

[PaulF]

Steve: One of the good things about living in the dull small town mid-west is that we can get away with showing a little kindness to our neighbors without being hassled for doing it. Ten miles away in the "big city" of 3000, the box would be thrown in the trash or the local kids would use the tomatoes to pepper cars or store windows.

Fifteen years ago when making the switch from my father's bigger, better, best, boys and girls to tomatoes with personality there were warnings about disease resistance. Hybrids gave me nothing but trouble and there never was a year without losing those plants midway through the growing season. After "discovering" heirlooms, as they were called back then (now most call them Open Pollenated), I have had almost no disease problem. A little wilt at the end of the year was the worst and by then I was ready to let them go anyway.

Whether it was due to better and stronger plants or that I took care of my tomatoes better than when I was growing hybrids, I can't say. Even in the few times since I have tried a hybrid, it was a disease magnet. This is not an attempt to be a convincing argument, just my story and I'm sticking to it.

[gixxerific]

Red and round are boring, just saying,

[gardeningwithe]

Maybe if one doesn't have much room give one heirloom plant a try? Of course, I always enjoy putting something new and different in my garden- it gives me something to look forward to!