hi, I'll try to answer your questions in reverse order.

1# "How do I find out what all disease resistance letters mean? VFFNTAS"

the v stands for verticillium (thats misspelled) wilt it is a systemic disease that blocks water movement in the plant. F is for Fusarium wilt which is similar to Verticillium except it needs a warmer climate not sure what the second F is for the N is for nematodes which are microscopic worms that attack the roots of the tomato. T stands for tobacco mosaic virus which effects not only tobaco but all members of the nightshade family. Not sure about the A or the S.

#2 " I saw some Goliath seedlings today. What is your opinion on them?. "
it is a good tomato in general I personaly have not tried enough tomatoes to make any kind of recomondation.

#3 question what would be a good Thrip resistant plant?
I have tried many varieties and its hard to beet early girl IMHO.

Thrips are a tiny flying insect that sucks the sap of plants. they also spread a tomato virius but I'm not sure what it is. I would dare to say that there isn't really a resistant variety maybe something that tolerates the virius but not something that isn't effected much by thrips. a healthy plant will be able toi fight of problems better though. you can try using alluminum foil or reflective mylar as a mulch it is supposed to deter thrips. there are also lots of organic and synthetic controls out there.

#4 "question.. Do I use all new dirt or move it too.? and if I use new What do I do with the old dirt?" if you have had a problem with a soil borne disease or a pest that over winters in the ground even a maijor weed problem don't reuse the soil otherwise sure use the old soil and add a little bit of new compost too. if there is a soil borne disese throw the soil in the trash other wise soalr- rise it and reuse it.

hope this helps

Thrips pupate and overwinter in the soil so new soil is a good idea. As mentioned, the Tospoviruses they vector can be destructive.

They are good at hiding in blossoms and the feeding can cause deformed or misshapen fruit.

I will try to locate some good garden soil.. Not always an easy task. Mine is very good. With a little compost it would be great again this year. Yes I have much experience looking at these thrips.. The first year I tried to be nice and use insecticidal soap.. That was a failure and I lost most of my mid summer production as the blossoms dropped off after the thrips took their meals. The thrips seem to prefer to snack near the blossom node junction. I wish I could figure out how to cook all that dirt. I'm afraid even if I bagged up the 3 cu yds I don't think it would get hot enough in the sun in time to plant early like I like to do.
I am going to plant a 40 seedling pinyon & cedar tree forest this spring so I could use that dirt to help there and find some new soil. This seedling Forrest would be from 20-120 yds away from the garden area. Would the thrips still find my toms?

#4 How do I find out what all disease resistance letters mean? VFFNTAS

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The definitions are given in the TGS catalog and at the website and in other places one can find by Googling, but here's an answer:

V= Verticillium, a systemic disease found in the south and and the north, but not one of the most destructive ones.

F, there are three different races of Fusarium and no overlapping protection, so you should know which races are present in your area and races 1 and 2 are the most common since rqace 3 is presently confined to just certain areas..

F= tolerance to race 1, FF to both race 1 and 2, and FFF to all three races.

N= tolerance to root knot nematodes ( southern ones), found in the south where the ground doesn't feeze at all or deeply, and they can build up to destructive populations most quickly where soils are sandy b'c they move from sand grain to sand grain via the water shell on each grain. Found along the East Coast from maybe GA down to FL and along the Gulf coast up into CA, primarily.

T= tolerance to Tobacco Mosaic Virus, which is no longer a major problem in the US except as transmitted manually in large greenhouse operations. TMV tolerant strains of tobacco have been grown in the US for at least 20 years, but turkish tobacco products are still suspect.

CMV ( cucumber moasic virus) can mimic the symptoms or TMV, and is much more common in the US as a cause of infection than is TMV.

A= tolerance to Alternaria

S= tolerance to Gray Leaf Spot caused by Stemphphyllium solani which can easliy be confused with fungal foliage infections such as Early Blight ( A. solani) or Septoria LEaf Spot.

So most of the tolerances are found in only certain regions and areas so you have to know what's possible in your own area before thinking that the more alphabetical abbreviations after a variety name equates with tolerance.

And I prefer the word tolerance b'c no tomato variety it totally resistant to ANY tomato disease.

Carolyn

the nursery guy was quite excited and sure that this new snake oil would work. He sold me some Paraffinic Oil today.non synthetic.. can apply as much as needed and the day you pick the fruit. Stuff made by Master Nursury called Pest Fighter year round spray oil?? 19$ for a hose end bottle makes 25 gals. Nuke em I say. He even thought It would be good to oil the soil before during and after moving and tilling in the compost.

Yuck!
Been a battle for me the past couple of years :(
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Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus

Tospovirus

Symptoms:

Young leaves show symptoms as turning bronze and many small, dark spots. Tips may dieback and stems may be streaked. Stunting usually occurs with drooping leaves and wilting. If infected early, no fruit will be produced, and if fruit is produced, there will be symptoms of chlorotic ring spots (Figure 8). The concentric rings on green fruit are faint becoming more obvious as the fruit ripens.

Favorable Conditions:

Since this virus has over 800 hosts, the optimal conditions for TSWV are weedy fields with a high thrips population. ÃÂ (Thrips are an insect that carry the disease from plant to plant as they feed. )

Control:

Once infection has occurred, plants must be removed. Control weed populations and use reflective mulches to repel thrips. Insecticides are ineffective against thrips.
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http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/B1285.htm

So this year, out of 115+ varieties, some with TSWV "resistance" are going in "bad" places and new ground is being broken elsewhere.
Look for BHN 444, Amelia, Sophya, Mountain Glory etc ...
I may end up with cardboard 'maters from this spot but I hope to end up with 'maters!
I tilled the area up in the fall and planted winter wheat so hopefully that will help.
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In Georgia, TSWV and thrips vectors have had a tremendous negative impact on the yield of various crops including peanut, tobacco, tomato, and pepper, causing an estimated $100 million in losses annually across all of these crops. In tomato, TSWV can often reduce marketable yields by 50% besides greatly increasing the incidence of irregular-ripened tomatoes. The thrips species primarily responsible for transmitting this virus in tomatoes are western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), tobacco thrips (Frankliniella fusca), and others (for example, Frankliniella bispinosa and onion thrips, Thrips tabaci).
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http://wiki.bugwood.org/Thrips_and_Spotted_Wilt_Management_in_Tomato

Serious stuff :(

elkski, I control thrips with alternate sprays of Spinosad and Bifen.
It works.
One week Spinosad, the next week Bifen with a wetter.
Gets a lot of other bad bugs while you're at it too.

Corrie