Heirloom tomatoes have a romantic history of being bred for taste rather than productivity or resistance to disease. Many seeds are of unknown origin, and some are thought to be passed down through generations of family members.
Heirlooms generally have a shorter life, a slower growth to maturity on the vine, and a tendency towards a lower yield thus heirloom prices are higher than hybrid tomatoes. Despite this, our customers can’t pass our display of heirlooms at market. They know they will have a “heavenly pleasure” with a simple raw slice of tomato dressed with nothing more than a pinch of salt.
What’s exciting about heirlooms are their distinguishable differences-not just from mass produced tomatoes-but from each other. From blushing pink, white, green striped, pear shaped, ribbed sides, round, purple/black, yellow, and red, you can be adventurous. Choose colors and varieties that may be unfamiliar to you.
We will provide as much information as possible about our heirloom tomatoes, however, the history of each variety varies from one group to the next. And what a history some have!
We encourage you to taste them all; it will be an exciting adventure!
Church Tomato
This heirloom tomato was a favorite of the late Chuck Wyatt and it still delivers an exceptional harvest of superior fruit. An heirloom from the Church family of Hot Springs, Virginia, it produces whopping big fruit with a wonderful fresh tomatoey flavor. Slow to fruit, but worth the wait.
Marianna’s Peace
Our top seller. Voted the “Best Tomato in the United States” in 2006. This big, beautiful irresistible 1-2 lb. deep red fruit is the talk of the tomato world. It is perfection. Marianna was from a family of farmers in Bohemia, Czechoslovakia. During World War II, in May of 1945, when she was 17, Russian soldiers came to her school and forced all the students into a truck to be taken to Siberia.During the journey, she and a few others escaped by jumping from the moving truck, but Marianna was shot in the leg just as she crossed the Czech border. She lost all contact with her parents and brothers for the next ten years, but after a long and diligent search with the aid of The Red Cross, she finally found them in 1955.
Before he died, her father gave her a little bundle of tomato seeds. Marianna married, and in 1957 moved to Washington state with her husband and four children. The legacy of these seeds reaches back to the early 1900’s and year after year the tomatoes continue to be treasured for their outstanding taste and beauty.
Incredibly sweet, creamy, with dense red flesh, rich and luscious, reminiscent of the finest of those “old-fashioned” tomato flavors. For those who want the best!!
Riesentraube Cherry Tomato
Long grown in Europe, Riesentraube was actually available in Philadelphia in the mid-1800. Meaning “giant bunch of grapes” in German, this plant produces astonishing long clusters of 30 to 40 little one ounce deep red fruits with a pointed tip and superb taste normally found in the larger beefsteak types.Each ripe cluster looks like a giant bunch of bright red grapes. Flavor is so rich, it is used to make tomato wine. A great tomato to leave out on the counter for a quick snack!
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One of our favorite tomatoes!! This tried-and-true heirloom from Germany is one of the few early tomatoes that have the kind of flavor normally associated with beefsteak tomatoes. The globular red, quarter pound fruits are so sweet it is hard to resist eating the whole thing!
Great White Beefsteak
Gleckler Seeds Co. originally offered this lovely tomato in the early 1990’s. Gleckler’s customers often sent seeds from their own garden that they were proud of and hoped that the company would later introduce to the public.In 1987 or 1988, a woman sent Gleckler seeds of an orange and yellow ox heart tomato from her garden for them to try. Gleckler grew them out and amongst the plants was one that proved to be a white beefsteak, which as it turns out, the woman did not have in her garden.
So it was assumed the plant was the result of a natural mutation. Great White is typically considered the finest and largest of the white tomato varieties. When ripe, these creamy colored tomatoes typically have a yellowish hue on the blossom end. The tomatoes feature a mild, sweet flavor and have a lot of juice, yet few seeds. Beautiful in a sliced tomato salad.
Green Zebra
A J&B favorite. This jewel of a tomato was developed by Tom Wagner of Bakersfield California and released by his “Tater Mater Seeds Company” in 1983. It was the result of over 25 years of breeding selection by Wagner, who has bred tomatoes since 1954. Wagner reports that four heirloom varieties made up the composite of his breeding to establish this great tomato. The fruit is a rich golden green with forest green colored stripes and has a tangy, original, well-balanced taste.
Radiator Charlie’s Mortgage Lifter
Radiator Charlie’s Mortgage Lifter Tomato is a 1940’s non-commercial tomato breeding development of Mr. Marshall Celts Byles of Logan, West Virginia. Byles didn’t much appreciate his given name, so he was known locally simply as “Radiator Charlie” as he operated a small auto repair shop at the base of a steep hill that was notorious for making trucks overheat. Naturally he did pretty well for himself by having a regular line of customers in need of radiator repair work due to the hill.As a result of working hard through his childhood, Mr. Byles had no formal education or actual plant breeding experience, however, he would create a most remarkable variety of tomato. Sometime during the early 1940’s, Radiator Charlie decided he wanted to develop a very large tomato, so he set about trying to locate the largest tomatoes that he could find.
He soon located four varieties of very large tomatoes: German Johnson Pink, Red Beefsteak, an unknown Italian variety and an unknown English variety. From these, he grew ten plants, which he cultivated, in a very unorthodox, very unique fashion. He planted nine of the plants in a circle and then planted a German Johnson Pink in the center of the circle.
Byles then cross-pollinated the German Johnson’s flowers with pollen from each of the nine plants in the circle and saved seeds from the resulting tomatoes. The next year, he planted the seeds and selected the best seedlings. The very best of these again went to the center of a circle, while the remaining was planted in a circle around them. Again the plants in the middle were hand pollinated with pollen from those in the circle. Byles repeated this process for the next six years until he had created a stable variety that met his needs. After that, he never had another type of tomato on his place.
The resulting variety became known as the Radiator Charlie’s Tomato and can average 2 1/2 pounds each, but it isn’t unusual to have a 4-pound fruit. Gardeners from as far away as 200 miles came to buy their tomato seedlings from Radiator Charlie, which he sold for one dollar each. Mr. Byles sold so many tomato plants over the next five or six years that the profits of his tomato enterprise paid off the $6000 mortgage on his home.
Ever since then, it has been a very desirable tomato. Very meaty with few seeds and a mild, delectable flavor. The tomatoes are slightly flat, have a very thick flesh with few seeds and are a brilliant pink color. Excellent choice for those who can’t eat really acid tomatoes.
Rose De Berne
This is a delicious Swiss heirloom variety of dark pink tomatoes with soft, meaty flesh. Beautiful quality looks and taste. Pink, round and uniform. Discovered in a market in Arles, France from a farmer growing a number of old tomato varieties. With a very rich flavor, and sweetness, it is simply excellent. Our customers love this tomato for its sweet “true tomato” taste!
Ananas Noire
The Ananas Noire Tomato, also known as the “Black Pineapple Tomato”, was developed by horticulturist Pascal Noreau. This wonderful Belgium tomato is a true gem as it features extremely smooth fruit that is a genuine kaleidoscope of colors, which alternate between jade green, a stunning purple, and bright yellow. When the tomatoes are sliced the tomato reveals a bright green flesh with deep crimson streaks of color. Everyone loves the superb flavor that is outstanding-being both sweet and smoky with a hint of citrus.
Southern Night
This outstanding heirloom is a rare, old traditional Russian variety. When sliced, the flesh is blackish-red with a very rich, sweet, yet acid flavor. This variety is round, slightly flattened and about 4 inches in size. Southern Night has been a steady, best seller for us. It is beautiful when served on a platter with Rose de Berne and Great White slices. Our customers love the unusual color, its sometimes “weird look” and wonderful flavor!
Lillian’s Yellow Hair
A family heirloom from the Bruce family of Manchester, Texas, this tomato is a pale yellow beefsteak often blemished and misshapen. However, their creamy flesh and unmistakably sweet citrus flavor makes them a favorite with tomato lovers. The flesh is yellow, low acid and very few seeds. Great on BLT’s!
Yellow Pear
This famous pre-1800’s tomato variety is also occasionally known as Beam’s Yellow Pear and is similar to the Red Pear tomatoes, except that it differs in color. These unique little tomatoes feature a very sweet, mild and fresh flavor. Their excellent color, unique shape and luscious taste make them an ideal tomato for salads, relishes, or by the handful off the kitchen counters. This tomato is a great choice to introduce your children to eating fresh, healthy vegetables.Tomato
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