As soon as the weather permits and the ground has warmed up some, you can expect the same high quality Certified Organic tomato starts (as well as some new varieties) to be available at Berkeley Hort. Basic tomato care includes planting in a sunny location, avoiding overhead watering, a minimum of 6 hours mid-day sun, easy on the nitrogen fertilizer, and lots of compost. Tried, true, and dependable plants for production and flavor in our area are ‘Early Girl’, ‘Sungold’, and ‘Early Cascade’ to name a few. To perk up your taste buds you might add some new varieties. Some old and new favorites from Kassenhoff Growers are:

Black Krim* – Late season heirloom from the Black Sea region of Russia. Fruit is dark-purple black with a beautiful iridescent purple skin; dark interior with a juicy, meaty, smoky flavor.

Marvel Striped* – Late season heirloom from Oaxaca, Mexico. Producer of large red and yellow heart-shaped beefsteaks with intensely sweet flavor. Looks beautiful sliced. Our grower’s favorite from the Farmer’s Market. Best for inland area gardens with lots of heat and a long growing season.

Paul Robeson – Late season Russian heirloom; bears dusky deep red fruit with excellent flavor. One of the best producing beefsteaks for our Berkeley/Oakland climate.

Orange Banana – Late season orange paste. Vigorous plants yield many tomatoes. Several plants almost overran a co-worker’s garden last year much to his pleasure. Great fresh, in salads, salsa and sauce.

Martino’s Roma – Late season red pear roma. An heirloom on the meaty side with few seeds and not much juice. Delicious fresh or cooked. This determinate type is great for containers.

Speckled Roman* – Late season paste. Large red fruits with jagged orange and yellow stripes. Very meaty with great tomato taste.

Blue Beech* – Late season paste. Produces large red elongated fruits with green shoulders. Makes a richly textured sweet sauce.

Sungold – Early season orange cherry is a must-have. Very sweet and fruity flavor. Large vigorous vine is very prolific. Ours here at the nursery grew in a bag of Harvest Supreme all year and still looked good into January.

Snow White – Late season cherry with a sweet and fruity flavor. Great in salads. This indeterminate plant should produce well into the fall.

Northern Delight* – Very early season small round red tomato excellent for containers. This open-pollinated determinate variety is very prolific. Produces 1-2 inch sweet tomatoes with a touch of acidity.

Zapotec Pleated* – Late season heirloom from the Zapotec Indians of Mexico. Squat fruit is heavily ribbed and dark pink with a very sweet mild taste.

Cosmonaut Volkov – Early season, large red fruit with sweet, rich full-bodied flavor. An open-pollinated variety from Russia that does well even in areas with cold summers. Unusually large tomatoes for an early season variety. Very prolific indeterminate vine.

Anna Russian – Midseason large pink meaty ox-heart (Our grower’s favorite pick for flavor). Another heirloom from Russia. Don’t be put off by the wispy foliage on these plants—fruits can average a pound each. Juicy and sweet flavor. Highly recommended and definitely worth trying if are a tomato lover.

Odoriko – Midseason medium size pink tomato with rich, sweet yet tangy flavor. This hybrid was developed in Japan and is a hit at our neighbor, The Monterey Market. Resistant to Verticillium Wilt, Fusarium, Nematodes, and Tobacco Mosaic Virus.

–Barbara      

* new varieties for 2003