First Tomato 2017

Here it is! The first tomato of the summer! The plants that I started indoors while snow was still on the ground are now loaded with fruit. The first variety to offer a ripe tomato is Beaverlodge Slicer.

Beaverlodge Slicer was bred at the Beaverlodge Research Farm in Alberta, Canada and is one of the earliest maturing tomato varieties available, listed at 54 days. The tomato is one of almost 80 varieties of fruit, vegetables, grains forage, trees, flowers and berries developed at the Farm. Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2017, the facility was originally established to meet the needs of early settlers in the short growing season of northern Alberta. It is located west of Grande Prairie, Alberta. Another tomato developed at the Beaverlodge Farm is Sub-Arctic Plenty, which was introduced in 1972. I have grown Plenty several times.

I picked the first sun-warmed tomato today and gave it my taste test. Slicer is a juicy tomato, and has a very mild flavor. I think I may prefer the flavor of Sub-Arctic, but in the end, the best tomato is the one on your plate!

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Tomato Taste Test: Persimmon

Hard on the heels of ‘Black Sea Man’ is ‘Persimmon’, a medium to large orange tomato. This is a very pretty tomato, a glowing golden orange. The vines are indeterminate, meaning that they keep on growing and producing flowers as long as weather allows.

‘Persimmon’ is reputed to be a very sweet tomato, and RailGuy and I agreed that it is the sweetest of the three we’ve sampled this year, with a very pleasing taste. It is a meaty tomato without a lot of gel or seeds. As the citric and malic acids that give tomatoes their tang is stored in the gel, you would expect a tomato with less gel to be less acidic as is the case here. (That said, taste is derived from a complex combination of compounds.)

Last year, I grew ‘Nebraska Wedding’, another orange variety, which I liked very much. I think ‘Persimmon’ may be a bit sweeter but ‘Nebraska Wedding’ is a determinate tomato, so if space is an issue, it might be a better choice. Either makes an attractive addition to a salad or serving plate.

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First Tomatoes, 2011

Wheeeee! The first tomatoes are ripe! After the blooming of the daylilies, the first tomato is probably the most celebrated event in my garden. It’s something I wait all year for, that first taste of a real, honest-to-goodness, store-free, garden fresh, sun-warmed 100% delicious tomato! I picked the first beauties on Thursday August 18th. Last year, I was slow getting my little plants into the ground in the spring, and didn’t start to harvest tomatoes until the beginning of September. I did a bit better this year.

These nicely-shaped round tomatoes, not too big, a bit smaller than a tennis ball, are Jaune Flammé (also known as just Flammé). This is an heirloom variety that originated with Norbert Perreira of Helliner, France. Flammé deserves full marks for appearance, with a pleasing globular shape and bright orange colour. The fruits grown in clusters of six or eight. I brought several into the kitchen and sliced them up. Then…that first sublime taste. Wonderful! Not just a pretty face, the Flammés have a very pleasing flavour. They are nice and juicy and a satisfying balance between sweet and tart. I would grow this variety again.

Still in waiting in the garden are four more heirloom varieties. Can’t wait to try them too.

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