Love Apples

SOMETHING TELLS US THIS MIGHT BE THE MOST POPULAR PAGE AT THE GARDEN PARTY. Tomatoes were the first veggie in America to earn the trendy prefix “heirloom.”  Many people still believe that an “Heirloom Tomato” is one single variety.  We all know the stories by now…people were so tired of the tasteless styrofoam tomatoes in grocery stores that they started seeking out seeds that had been passed down in families from generation to generation. “Tomatoes that taste like a tomato” was the guiding principle. Hard to believe things had ever gotten that bad, isn’t it?

What many people don’t know is that Landreth Seeds was the first seed company to offer tomato seeds commercially to the general public – in 1820, to be exact. They were known as “Love Apples” at the time. The public was wary. Tomatoes had long been considered poisonous due to their ancestry as members of the Nightshade family. One story claims that a soldier in Washington’s army committed suicide after he realized that he’d unwittingly served tomatoes to the General. We thrown some dubious dinner parties ourselves, but that seems a little extreme.

Landreth also later perfected the first yellow tomato offered on the market. We’ve got a lot to thank them for. To do so, we think we ordered nearly every variety of heirloom tomato seed they offer. (Not really. Not even half of them.)

The varieties we chose for this year are below. Below the photos we hope you’ll tell us which unique varieties you’re salivating over in your seed catalogs. We’ll trade with you.

CHEROKEE PURPLE TOMATO – This deep purple tomato was believed to have been grown by the Cherokee Indians in Tennessee in the nineteenth century. A very sweet and rich tomato.

BRANDYWINE – One of the most famous of the heirloom tomatoes, this Amish heirloom was introduced in 1885. It comes from the collection of the late Ben Quisenberry who collected hundreds of tomato strains from 1910 to the 1960′s.

YELLOW PEAR TOMATO – This is one of the oldest recorded varieties of tomatoes, dating back to the 1600’s. Not planted in home gardens until much later.

DR. CAROLINE (cherry) TOMATO– A rare “white” cherry tomato, has an extremely fruity taste. It is a sport of Galinas, a Siberian tomato, and is named for Carolyn Male, author of 100 Heirloom Tomatoes for the American Garden. Vines may grow to a height of 6-8 feet and fruit is produced prolifically in clusters of 8-10 tomatoes.

BONNIE BEST TOMATO –  Good Northern tomato. Bright scarlet. 6 oz. fruit.

KELLOGG’S  BEST TOMATO–  This is probably the best of the large, orange heirloom tomato varieties. It was introduced by Darrell Kellogg of Redford, Michigan. The 1 lb. fruits have a rich, intense tomato flavor. They grow in clusters of 2 or 3 on the indeterminate plants.

MARGLOBE TOMATO – Scarlet, flattened, 6 oz. globes with delicious flavor.

WAPSIPINICON PEACH – “Peach” tomatoes are named for the light fuzz that covers its skin.  These creamy yellow fruits are supposedly the sweetest of all “peach” varieties.

RUTGERS TOMATO – Bright, blood red, 5 oz. globes. Old time flavor.

GREEN ZEBRA TOMATO – This tomato is a visually distinctive fruit with dark green stripes set against a light green to yellow background. The flesh is a very bright green. The taste is slightly acidic, but sometimes sweet. The 2-3 ounce fuit grow in clusters of 4-6. The vines grow 3-5 feet in height.

PINEAPPLE TOMATO – Beautiful inside and out. Deep orange with yellow shoulders, it has a sweet flavor as pretty as it looks.

WHITE WONDER TOMATO – A “white” tomato, with a high sugar content.

GREEN GIANT TOMATO – A huge tomato, sometimes producing 2 lb fruits, with brilliant green shoulders and a lime green body when fully ripe.

STRIPED ROMAN TOMATO – Banana-shaped, pointed red fruit with orange stripes make an excellent, sweet tasting paste. Very distinctive.

BLACK CHERRY TOMATO – Still quite rare, these dark purple cherry tomatoes are possibly the best cherry tomato on the planet.

GERMAN RED STRAWBERRY TOMATO – Uniquely shaped,  with sweet taste and lovely fragrance. Originated in Germany.