For some reason I thought that the actual berry could change? , but if the plant can be affected by cross pollination, doesn't that about equal the same thing? What changes? Would a different variety of fruit result if the plant was propogated? Clearly, I am unfamiliar with the science here. So if these plants are left to grow amongst each other (or at least in beds that are relatively close to each other (red, black rasp and blackberry), and the new shoots are dug up, will they be the same as the mother plant regardless of what happens pollination wise?

Just a guess - 300-400 over 40+ years. Have my tried and true regulars each year but usually plant at least 20-25 varieties and an average of 100-150 plants each year so each year has room for several new (to me) varieties. why I grow so many different kinds Because we do a lot of canning and canned tomato products, in any form, taste best when made with mixed varieties. We also do a lot of our own taste tests so summer meals commonly feature a big plate of mixed variety slices. Even a BLT with 2 or 3 different varieties on it tastes better than the same sandwich with only 1 variety on it. ;) Dave

Boy, do I know where you're coming from! I'm looking to branch out on all of my veggies but the tomatoes have been hard for me to narrow down as they all sound so darned good. :) This is what I plan to plant this year (by the way I purchase these at parkseed.com and victoryseeds.com). Also, I'm copying and pasting from my Word spreadsheet, so it contains info from the sites, which may or may not be beneficial to you: Park's Season Starter Hybrid~ 60 days from setting out transplants. F1VT. Determinate. Always grow the first tomato on the block with this super-fast determinate variety! It sets huge yields of juicy-sweet 6-ounce fruits -- and they taste as good as they look! Set plants 2 to 2 1/2 feet apart. Pkt is 30 seeds. Tomato Sugary~ The Sweetest Cherry Yet! So bountiful that you may have to prune the plant back in mid-season! 60 days from setting out transplants. Indeterminate. Many Cherry Tomatoes look great but taste like nothing, while others are flavorful but don't have the big, steady yields we all love. Well, award-winning Sugary has it all -- super-sweet flavor, a fun new shape, and huge, huge yields on plants that just keep growing up and up all season! Scoring a full 9.5 on the Brix scale of sugar content, these delicious little 1/2-ounce dark pink fruits are packed with sweetness. This plant is absolutely unstoppable. It sets huge clusters of fruit all season long, and grows so vigorously that you may have to cut it back in midseason just to keep it within bounds! Never fear -- it will keep bearing like crazy! Park's Whopper~ 70 days from setting out transplants. Indeterminate. Set plants 2 to 2 1/2 feet apart. Sweet Baby Girl~ 65 days to maturity from setting out transplants. ISI (intermediate short-internode). Our search for the Best Cherry Tomato in the World has come to an end. Sweet Baby Girl Hybrid is hands-down the finest for all kinds of good reasons: 1. It rarely cracks. 2. It grows on space-saving, manageable plants. 3. It yields HUGE numbers of fruit over a long season. 4. It has a great after-picking shelf life. 5. It is the sweetest, best-tasting Cherry Tomato ever! The fruit is small -- about to 1 ounce -- and arises in big clusters on intermediate short internode vines. Now, what this means is that the vines keep producing all season, but the space between each cluster of fruit is much less than on traditional vines. In other words, you don't waste garden space, water, and food supporting a massive vine with widely-spaced clusters of fruit! Sweet Baby Girl's vines just reach about 3 to 5 feet high and 2 feet wide, yet yield like nobody's business. Just how much fruit can you expect from each plant? Well, in our gardens they each offered up TWO POUNDS OR MORE PER WEEK at the height of the season. That's a lot of ½-ounce fruits! Resistant to Tobacco Mosaic Virus races 0, 1, and 2, Sweet Baby Girl sets fruit in giant clusters, but I recommend picking them individually rather than as a bunch. You'll get each at the height of ripeness that way, and maximize your harvest. Tomato Marcellino Hybrid~ 73 days to maturity from setting out transplants. Determinate; upright habit. Marcellino has incredible holding power, keeping fruit fresh up to a MONTH after ripening! It's determinate, so it sets its enormous harvest all at once -- dozens upon dozens of clusters of fruit, each with 20 to 25 little tomatoes dangling alluringly! There has simply never been a Tomato of any size and shape with this kind of holding ability. This plant is upright rather than vining, reaching about 5 feet tall and 3 feet wide. Tomato Better Bush Improved~ 68 days from setting out transplants. ISI (indeterminate short-internodes). If you're looking for an old-fashioned-flavored tomato with the juiciness and distinctive "tang" you remember from vine-fresh tomatoes of the past, Better Bush Improved Hybrid is the best choice. These big, luscious, 4-inch fruits grow very densely on indeterminate 4-foot plants, thanks to shorter internodes. The central stem rarely needs staking (except during those "bumper crop" times!), and this plant begins early in the season and just keeps going! Resistant to Verticillium Wilt and Fusarium Wilt Race 1. Brandywine (Sudduth Strain) 80 days, indeterminate  Potato-leaf plants produce large (fourteen to thirty six ounce fruits) that are oblate in shape and pink in color. Excellent flavor. David Pendergrass sent us the seed. This variety originally is from the Ben Quisenberry collection who reportedly obtained the seed from a Mrs. Doris Sudduth Hill who said that it had been in her family since about 1900. Black Cherry 65 days, indeterminate  This is a new variety that is very productive with cherry shaped fruits that have the dark, purplish coloring of 'Cherokee Purple'. Flavor is wonderful, very rich and sweet. Red Grape 60 days, semi-determinate  This variety is modern and currently very popular in the fresh produce market. The fruits are bright red, weigh about an ounce, and are smaller than most cherry tomatoes (½ by ¾ inches). Since they are mouth-sized they are perfect for salads and garnish plates. Twelve to sixteen fruits per cluster. Marianna's Peace 85 days, indeterminate  Reportedly a family heirloom from Czechoslovakia dating back to the early 1900s. Potato leaf foliage. Fruit are deep reddish pink, good size weighing around a pound, good sweet / acid balance flavor, very meaty and a shy seeded variety like Brandywine. This variety has been rare, highly sought after since its introduction in about 2001. It is becoming widely available and finally affordable. LivingstonÂs Favorite - (90 days) Indeterminate, 6 to 10 ounce smooth fruit with exceptional flavor and color. Introduced by Livingston in 1883. Originally developed for canners, they withstood shipping over long distances and had desirable market qualities. LivingstonÂs Magnus - Indeterminate, potato leaf with six to eight ounce oblate, pink fruit, excellent taste. Introduced by the Livingston Seed Company in 1900. "Livingston's Magnus is unsurpassed in quality and in the production of fine, large fruits. While well adapted to main-crop planting, it also takes first rank for early market purposes. The form is perfect, uniform, large and attractive; quite deep through from stem to blossom end. The flesh is very firm. A robust grower, with short joints, setting its clusters closer together than most varieties, and is a very heavy cropper. It has broad foliage which prevents sunburn in hot sections. Ripens evenly, does not crack about the stem. For staking up in the open field, as well as for forcing in greenhouses, is fully equal to any for such purposes." Giant Oxheart 85 days, indeterminate  The 1933 catalog description of this 1926 Livingston introduction follows: "Oxheart is truly the giant of all tomatoes. Its attractive shape, large size and excellent table qualities has quickly brought it into deserved popularity among backyard gardeners. Market-growers are finding it in great demand. There is now great rivalry in gardening neighborhoods to see who can grow the finest Oxheart in shape and size. Three pound specimens are quite common. One customer sent us a five pound specimen. The Oxheart is smooth, thick, tender and almost seedless; frequently showing two inches thick without a seed cavity. The color is pink and it has that delicious mild flavor that every lover of this fruit likes so well. Rich soil adds greatly to its productiveness. Late variety." So, did I help or hurt? :) Stacie

Lobelia cardinalis, Lobelia siphilitica, Monarda didyma, Monarda fistulosa, phlox divaricata, salvia glutinosa, salvia nemorosa, dicentra eximia, penstemon digitalis, tradescantia ohiensis, podophyllum peltatum, myosotis sylvatica, sedum ternatum, symphiotrichum divaricatus, symphiotrichum novae-angeliae, symphiotrichum novi-belgii, coreopsis lanceollata, coreopsis tinctora, heliopsis helianthenoides, leucanthemum x superbum, leucanthemun vulgare, chelone obliqua, chelone glabra, narcissus poeticus, muscari botryoides, kalmia latifolia, silene latifolia, silene vulgaris, echinacea purpurea, eupatorium purpureum, asclepias tuberosa.... thats not even half of what i have. All but a few are pennsylvania natives, not too mention almost 50 bonsai trees( also mostly native).