I got some PR seed in a trade. So far, very poor production, only 3 toms. The toms have been large, in the 1 lb range, all have been black with the green shoulders.

My experience with TGS has been very good as well.

Hi,

I am new to this sight. I have noticed the same thing with my PR tomatoes. I have 3 plants. One of the three plants has had about 4 tomatoes ripen on it. The last two were red and the first two were dark. The other plants have had very few tomatoes but all have been dark. I thought it was unusual the first time I saw it and checked the plant to make sure it was coming for the PR plant. It was to my surprise. I don't know why that is happening.

onegardengirl

Two questions for PR growers:

onegardengirl, did you buy seed from the same source as redness?

Redness, what was the flavor like for your PR describe it as best you can please?

Also, for both of you was there a taste difference in the two different colors?

The reason I want to know is because I was serious considering PR as a replacement for Black Krim next year. If this tomato has excellent flavor I wouldn't mind a color change in a couple of fruit as long as they all have superb flavor. Thanks. :)

I grew both PR and SGH from TGS seedstock, and both grew true to what they were supposed to be.

I grew a version called Robeson Angolan this year and the plants have been reasonably productive, maybe 10-15 tomatoes per plant. The fruits are absolutely beautiful - perfectly round and glossy with the best copper/brown color and so delicious. I think it's probably one of the best of the "blacks" I've grown and I'll definitely grow it again.
Lou

Lou, you left out one important feature about the PR Angolans... Size. These tomatoes avg. about 4 oz., similar to Black Prince or Nyogous. Therefore 10-15 fruits per plant is poor unless you are talking about weekly yield. I typically harvest 4-5 fruits per week from each of my PR Ang. plants. That still leaves room for improvement.

Flavor is pretty good on these but I'd still prefer Nyogous.

Did you get seeds from Sand Hill?

Hi Sunsi,

I purchased my seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I don't know if the red tomato tasted different than the dark one because I had a chicken get into my garden and eat most of the red one that was growing on a lower branch. The flavor was pretty good on the dark tomatoes. I am growing about 30 different types of tomatoes almost all heirloom. The PR was an early producer for me compared to some of the other plants I am growing. The earliest tomatoes I got this year in June was from Stupice. A really good flavored tomato, but small in size.

onegardengirl

Thanks, onegardengirl too bad your chickens admire heirlooms too. I agree Stupice is a wonderfully flavored and reliably early tomato.

Bmoser, Yes they are a little smaller. I got my first ripe ones last week and so far I have gotten around 12. There are a lot of green ones left. My seeds are from Michael Andersson (tomatsidan.se). I'm growing Cuban Black and Japanese Black Trifele for the first time this year and so far, I'm really enjoying them. Have you tried these? Lou

Hello sunsi-

Since you mentioned Black Krim. I ate a normal looking PR next to a Krim a few weeks ago and I liked The PR a tad bit more than the BK. I remember it tasting slightly sweeter and smooth with almost no tartness. The red fruits from the PR plant were tasty but not as good as the blacks, the reds were more tart and less sweet.
I wish I took pics they were completely red. And no more than 2 reds, both last year and this. I guess I don't have a pure PR but most look like photos of PR.
I think I'll try another seed source next year + I saved seed from the red fruit. I'll be planting a couple per year for a while, just to see what I get.

Lou, I haven't tried either. I think I have my hands full of black varieties although costomers at a local farmers market do show a preference for them. Can you recommend either of these varieties? Yield is fairly important to me. After spending the first half of the summer boasting about all the reasons why customers should try a few heirloom varieties I now find myself in the typical late summer position of a short supply of heirloom harvest amist a plentiful hybrid crop.

The Paul Robesons (not Angolan) have been especially poor performers as have been Carbon and Black this year. The Black from Tula and Black Krim have been moderate while I'm so far impressed by the Noir de Crime numbers. Too bad that these also have somewhat smaller fruit size than Black Krim.

Hi, Bmoser,
The Cuban Blacks are very productive for me this year, the Japanese Trifele only moderate. I was a little premature about the Robeson Angolans. They are turning out to be very productive. It looks like around 40 to 50 per plant. We end up growing way more than we can eat and give away loads, particularly this year. The most popular tomato that we grow actually turns out to be Black Cherry and it is phenomenally productive. The two plants I have growing are eight feet tall and just loaded with big long trusses of cherries. The most unusual tomato that I'm growing for the first time this year is something called Koritschnevaja. I've never seen anything like it before and the flavor is very good and concentrated. They're small, though, 2 1/2 to 3 inches, perfect ovals, glossy brown with dark green shoulders. It's VERY productive.

I have to qualify everything with the fact that this has been a phenomenal growing season here. Everything has just fallen into place perfectly, as it rarely does - rain, sunshine, temperatures. We garden organically and sometimes the yield is poor and there is a lot of foliage disease. This year I had a big load of organic compost brought down from the Vermont Compost Company. I planted the seedlings in deep holes filled with their compost. I have to think that this had sometime to do with the enormous size of all the tomato plants this year and the amazing yield. I shared the load of compost with my buddy, an elderly Indian guy who has been gardening around here for decades. He also had terrific results.
Lou

bmoser Quote:
"The Paul Robesons (not Angolan) have been especially poor performers as have been Carbon and Black this year. The Black from Tula and Black Krim have been moderate while I'm so far impressed by the Noir de Crime numbers. Too bad that these also have somewhat smaller fruit size than Black Krim."

I see Carbon being mentioned and this is another one that I dearly wanted on next years list. Ok, if I were not concerned about production or size but only flavor (superb, magnificant, outstanding flavor) would I find Carbon, PR and this Noir de Crime (?) acceptable candidates?

redness Quote:
"I ate a normal looking PR next to a Krim a few weeks ago and I liked The PR a tad bit more than the BK."

Thanks, redness that's reassuring because I haven't been real impressed with BK in that that they are very watery tasting regardless of withholding water.

Sunsi

My black krims out produced my PR's by approx. 20-30% in #'s of fruit and were a little larger than the PR's. But, again I liked the taste of the Robeson's better.

Flavor differences between all of the larger black varieties have been really hard for me to detect. One time I like one better, another tine not. I do suggest you compare fruits that are at the fully ripe stage which is sometimes hard to estimate with the green shoulders on many.

Since I pick so many different ones, the ones I can offer the best flavor testimony on are the ones with fruit blemishes or picking difficulties. For instance, I've eaten too many Purple Calabash fruits because many fruits will break apart in my hand rather than release from the stem. I haven't eaten one that I really liked either.

The Paul Pobeson (ang.) do tend to get some shoulder cracking and are good candidates for field sampling. They are usually full flavored and sweeter than most other black varieties.

Black Cherry is on my list for next year, Lou. My cherry market sales have been good this year and I attribute it to diversity. Many people will want a salad mix of different sizes, shapes and colors. Those that are just purchasing one box will usually eliminate yellow pear and Snow White Cherry pretty quickly but the diversity buyers want one of each. Therefore, Black Cherry is a logical choice and I know the flavor must be good. I was just a little concerned about yield.

I see Carbon being mentioned and this is another one that I dearly wanted on next years list. Ok, if I were not concerned about production or size but only flavor (superb, magnificant, outstanding flavor) would I find Carbon, PR and this Noir de Crime (?) acceptable candidates?

*****

I'll speak only to the Noir de Crimee.

This is Black Krim in French but is not exactly the same as Black Krim. I received seeds in a huge trade with a Frenchman in 1992 and listed all of them, including Noir de Crimee in the SSE Yearbooks.

I like it much better than the regular Black Krim b/c of higher production, darker fruit color and better taste, at least for me.

I've grown Paul Robeson, years ago when it was first introduced by Dr. Jeff McCormack at Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, and I like Noir better than PR.

I haven't grown Carbon.

I've moved ahead and am not growing so called black types, other than my fave Black Cherry, but am now preferring to grow the green when ripes, of which I've now grown maybe 10-12 different ones. One fad replaces another. LOL

Carolyn

Carolyn,
Of the green when ripes you're growing, which are your current favorites?
Lou

Carolyn,
Of the green when ripes you're growing, which are your current favorites?
Lou

****

Absolute tops now for several years has been Cherokee Green.

Others that are current faves are:

Green Giant
Humph
Green Doctors ( maybe, bad year here, 1st time growing it)
Green, aka Dorothy's Green
Grandma Oliver
Charlie's Green

.... for starters

Carolyn

So Carolyn, I take it that all the varities listed above outrate Aunt Ruby's German Green?

I can't remember if you list the others in your book but In know you have ARGG in there........I grew it this year and I liked it, but it was my first try at a green so if there's a better one (or six) out there, I'd like to know!

Thanks!
Bart