Just FYI, the first season I grew tomatoes of ANY kind was fall/wtr 2007-2008. I grew only heirlooms (and still do, just because I like the challenge...), and the main varieties were Pruden's Purple, Black Krim, Cherokee Purple, Arkansas Traveler, Azoycha, Brandywine.
I grew them all from seeds (and still do, just because I like the challenge...). I had heard so much about the Black Krim, I had to try it. From the day I dropped the seed inside in a little pot, to the day I picked it off the vine was 150 days. I sweated every day it started to blush outside for fear that some two-legged animal would inadvertently decide it was the one to pick and eat, LOL!
The day I picked it, I had a taste testing sampler plate at my job. Thick slices of each variety I had grown. People needed convincing to eat tomatoes that didn't look like those on the shelf in their local stores....(duh). But, here were colors like orange, and green-black, and iridescent purple, and pink, and not a RED one in the bunch, LOL!
And, so we tasted. Blind tasted. And discovered flavors we had never known existed! And our pallets became fine tuned to tastes like salty, and smokey, and citrus-ey, and tart, and sweet, and earthy -- and it was a wonderful day, indeed. By the end, of the taste testing, folks were fairly fighting over who would get the last slices, LOL.
Well, the Black Krim I had heard so much about was absolutely fabulous to my buds -- until I tasted the Pruden's Purple -- it is just MY perfect tomato. Has everything I want in a tomato. That was my best overall season for growing that many different varieties of tomatoes. I've been trying to grow those again, but, I changed locations so that may have something to do with my fairly marginal success since then.
Last year, I tried the Japanese tomato "Momotaro". My seeds came from Kitazawa Seeds. This tomato takes much patience, because it seems to take its time and does what it wants to do. You can't really manipulate conditions for it like you might be able to do with other varieties. Also, many report its a very stingy plant, not giving up many fruits. Mine produced enough for me to experience a fruit that almost knocked my Pruden's Purple off the throne!
If you've got the inclination to fuss with it, give Momotaro a try. You won't be disappointed with the fruits you do get to taste -- and, that taste will send you chasing after it all over again!
P.S. Here in Texas, I've learned that if I want to grow long-season heirloom tomatoes (which I do):
►I MUST sow my seeds by December 20th.
►I MUST transplant the seedlings out no later than the 3rd week of February (which may or may not be the middle of our mild winter, here).
►And, I MUST have frost-protection contingencies in place for any freaky, sustained (longer than 2-4 days of freezing temps in a row) frosts.
I followed my guidelines last fall/winter season and had (for me) a bumper crop of tomatoes ripening by the end of May -- a full month ahead of my neighbors. I was ripping spent plants out by mid-June. My tomato seed-sowing date this year is December 20-21, 2014. My targeted plant out date is February 14-15, 2015.
Here's a link to my seed starting process:
http://garden.org/blogs/entry/...
Hugs!
