Old Vine Tomatoes

CBS morning show this morning had a great guest from Cleveland, he a is a Chef from a restaurant called (if I remember correctly) Fahrenheit. He went on about tomatoes the way people go on about wine. I could swear he mentioned an old vine tomato. Is this possible? Mine die every year, is this a cool climate thing? Can they live and produce for years in warm climates?

[Robin Garr]

Ed, tomatoes aren't perennials no matter whether they live in frost zones or otherwise.

My best guess is that this guy was just trying to come up with an original way to say "heirlooms."

Thanks Robin, I did a double take when I (thought) heard him say it. Perhaps I misheard. It was a nice piece, he spoke of acidic tomatoes and perceived sweetness and all sorts of stuff.

Dear Ed,
A tomato is one of those rare foods that can have the complexity and sometimes the balance of a decent wine, glad there is a chef out there looking for the best in tomatoes

In theory I guess an indeterminate tomato could keep growing and producing. I had a tomato plant while outside of L.A. that lived until the following spring, since there was no frost. The few tomatoes that came off it were unusual, overly sweet and mealy and tasting as if cooked.

Walt

Ed, like most other garden crop(s) tomatoes are annuals. When the cooler weather comes the plant turns toes up and dies and we rip them out. I think Robin is on the right track re heirlooms, but it is also possible that one could save seed from tomatoes and repopulate the same or a different garden site with the offspring of last years tomatoes that we thought were so good. My dad did this with watermelons when I was a lad. Ask and I'll tell you about that.

Ed, like most other garden crop(s) tomatoes are annuals. When the cooler weather comes the plant turns toes up and dies and we rip them out. I think Robin is on the right track re heirlooms, but it is also possible that one could save seed from tomatoes and repopulate the same or a different garden site with the offspring of last years tomatoes that we thought were so good. My dad did this with watermelons when I was a lad. Ask and I'll tell you about that.

Bob,
Here at Casa Redwinger we call them thar plants "volunteers". Every year we have some tomato fruit wich drops to the ground or is put on the compost pile when the frost hits. Invariably, we have many volunteer tomato plants the following year. Is suppose it would be even better if we went through the effort ot save the seeds, but we be just a lazy bunch here at the Casa,
Peace,
Redwinger

Bill, I have had volunteers too, but here in Kentucky we don't call anything that except Tennessee football or Basketball teams.

My dad always "saved" seed form his best melons, and he would always break the melon into 55 gallon drums and allow the fruit to ferment. (read that as to sour, or to rot) then when the fruit was good and stinky, he would remove the seed from the fruit and juice. Dad always had some of the best melons in the market, so I just figured he knew what he was doing.

Ed, tomatoes aren't perennials no matter whether they live in frost zones or otherwise.

My best guess is that this guy was just trying to come up with an original way to say "heirlooms."

I don't think that's so, Robin. I think the tomato is/was a perriennial in the tropics.

Here's just a little tomato lore:

http://www.uga.edu/vegetable/tomato.html

Ed, like most other garden crop(s) tomatoes are annuals. When the cooler weather comes the plant turns toes up and dies and we rip them out.

Heck... Mine are dying back now that the weather has turned hot and sunny. They did fine during the June gloom coastal fog season.

Bernard, I can not disagree with you about this current crop of tomatoes. In fact everything I have planted is having a dickens of a time. This year our weather is so darned atypical that the plants (I think) seem to be confused. I planted 3 tomato plants and two of them are all but dead. The third is a very healthy dark green but the tomatoes on it are not ripening. We had some 80+ degree days in march for gods sake, and some 20 degree nights in April. I was late in getting my garden out, but not so late that I shouldn't have tomatoes by now. Lucky for me there is a farmers market right down town. think I will go there today.

I think Robin is on the right track re heirlooms, but it is also possible that one could save seed from tomatoes and repopulate the same or a different garden site with the offspring of last years tomatoes that we thought were so good. My dad did this with watermelons when I was a lad.

Saving tomato seeds from hybrids doesn't work, though; the first year you can get tomatoes with the same characteristics, but each generation later strays farther and farther from the parent.

[Robin Garr]

I planted 3 tomato plants and two of them are all but dead. The third is a very healthy dark green but the tomatoes on it are not ripening.

Hard to believe we're only 85 miles apart, Bob. We've had similar weather here - especially the weird early spring followed by a record late hard freeze - but our eight tomato plants have been producing since the third week in June. We've taken probably 150 tomatoes off already and have at least as many more that should be ready for the picking within the next few days. We're giving them away to anybody who wants some. Back up the truck!