Salad Tomatoes

     While I often put cherry tomatoes in salads (black cherry, sun gold and riesentraube are favorites for casual meals) somehow I think formal meals call for a little larger tomato. Moravsky Div and Pink Ping Pong average about 2-3 oz and have been very productive in my Zone 6 garden, and although I haven't tried it yet, Kimberley looks similar. Those are all reds, but looking for other colors I found Yellow Ping Pong and Bundaberg Rumball (a dwarf) which I might try next year. Does anyone have other suggestions for tomatoes bigger than a cherry but smaller than 4 oz?

     I was told that the correct term for a large cherry is Saladette. Lots of suppliers have tomatoes with this designation. Tatiana's Tomato Base alone lists over 200. Starting with her list and eliminating anything over 4oz (slicers) and under 1oz (that's cherry territory) as well as those primarily grown for paste or canning still left more than 150. I pared this down further by only considering those rated very good or excellent tasting and available from more than one supplier and finally ended up with 31possibilities.

     The well-known Jaune Flamée and Bloody Butcher were on the revised list, as well as my Moravsky Div (I discovered that this is a strain of Stupice), and Pink Ping Pong. Others I'm going to try are the dwarves: Bundaberg Rumball and the 3 Kangaroo Paws (Brown,Green,Yellow). That'll keep me busy for the next few years!

Good luck! I was going to recommend Money Maker but it's pink/red. Glad you found some that are different colors.

From experience, I suspect many saladettes have Roma-type backgrounds and are on the dry side. I have a Sungold/BC Willie cross that is making golf ball size, Sungold flavor, yellow tomatoes. Pics somewhere in last year's files if you are interested. I'm calling it Golden Willie for now. Skeptical about its future what with the uncertain genetics of Sungold but maybe it's a jackpot? Stay tuned to see if I can stabilize it.

I've grown Abe Lincoln, which is semi-determinate and smallish for me. Others report a range of sizes for this tomato. It was described as a saladette when Shoe gave me the seed. There are varying online hypes of this tomato's size which seems to have a confusing background. I've got seed if you are interested.

Angora, which I think was introduced to us tomato plebes by Carolyn years ago, and shared during a visit with Shoe, grows small tomatoes for me. I didn't love it. Carolyn's picks seem geared for colder weather and don't stand up well to our summers. Even though I am growing in the foothills of Appalachia's cooler summers, the tomatoes of the NE are a challenge. I grow a variety of Germans but they are late with some years exceptional and others a bust. Their deliciousness keeps me trying. :)

A DG Mainer sent me seed of a tomato called Moscow Early eight or so years ago. It is indeed very early and tasty. Unfortunately for me (with my long season) it is determinate. It's the earliest tomato I've ever grown and possibly a good one for your zone. Sadly I ditched all my seed a few weeks ago because it occupies space but croaks just when the tomato season is cranking up here. I'd definitely recommend that one for your zone.

     Lisa: Baker Creek says Money Maker runs 4-6oz, a bit bigger than the usual saladettes, but it sounds like it'd be good for hot summers.

     Laurel: I tried looking up Moscow Early and couldn't find anything, but there are several confusing varieties named Moscow (some attributed to Siberia, some to Utah, some to Idaho) carried by a few small suppliers who differ widely in their descriptions, from a 1-2oz or 3-4oz saladette or canner to a one pound beefsteak!
There is a VR Moscow developed by Utah State College which is definitely a midseason 3-4 inch red thick-walled canner with verticillum resistance developed by Utah State University, which doesn't sound like the variety you describe.
Others with similar names but different descriptions are Midnight in Moscow (6-8oz purple) and a Moskvitch (4-6oz red) variety. All very interesting, but evidently not Moscow Early. Anyway, thanks for the information!

I actually got my seeds from BC. Lol. The fruit has never gotten 6 oz for me, but your growing conditions are a lot different then mine. I just remember them as being bigger then a cherry but great for salads. I'll keep thinking...

Don, I tried to understand the available online information. Still scratching my head. The seed came from Cindy Hook. She probably marked the packet "Moscow Early" as a way of letting me know it was early. Yes, it was indeed two to three weeks ahead of any others including fast growing cherries. The plants were 3'-4' high and compact. Definitely determinate. My tomatoes get planted in April and the Moscows expired by July. I tried them two years in a row with the same results. Tatiana's description sounds similar but my fruit was in the 3-4oz. range. I was thinking of that particular variety because of your short season. Recollections of college visits to DD in Western MA, via Hartford, and snowstorms in April. Here, 4"-6" tomato seedlings planted in mid to late April start producing sometime in June. Most slow in August heat and pick up again in September. Those that stay healthy continue to produce until mid-November which is our first freeze.

Laurel:
After some more web searching, I think your Moscow tomato probably originated from www.seedstrust.com, who describes it as a 2.5" 3-4oz early red fruit. It also may be carried by adaptive seeds.com and traces garden.com, since one of them say they got it from seeds trust. I have enough red saladettes seeds right now to last me another 2-3 years, but this may help you if you run out. Even though I don't need them right now, it was fun chasing them down!
(P.S. Don't waste time looking at VR Moscow listings, that is definitely a larger and later tomato.)

I was suggesting it for you, Don. My preference is for longer lived indeterminates. In regards to Golden Willie, I saved seed from a Boxcar Willie two years ago and one plant grew golf ball size yellow tomatoes. There was a Sungold in the adjoining space. The only other yellows were beefsteaks and they were not nearby. So, I'm thinking Sungold is the baby daddy. I'm growing two plants of the Golden Willie and two of the Boxcar Willie. Be great to come up with a superior yellow saladete.

Sousa or tuba?

Golden Willie sounds very interesting. It must be exciting to grow out and stabilize your own cross! Keep us up to date on how it goes.

(And yes, I dig tubas as well as plant beds.)

Growing German Lunchbox for the first time this year. Said to about the size of a small egg and having excellent taste. Just began blooming, so I shouldn't have much longer to wait. Also trying Pearly Pink, but haven't set them out yet. Juliet and Coyote are some old favorites.

German Lunchbox sounds promising. I don't know Coyote and am not a fan of Juliet over any store-bought grape available during the same season. Ditto Campari where I participated in a de-hybridizing experiment here for four years.

Don, cool about the tuba. Lots of brass polish I guess. We have a contra bass player in the family. Quite a challenge to schlep around in a sports car but saved by a sun roof. :) I was sad when he abandoned the more reasonably sized, and to me melodious, cello.

Coyote sounds interesting. From the quotes about it in DG PlantFiles and Craig's book, people have a hard time describing the flavor. Can you tell us what you think it tastes like.?

This message was edited Apr 8, 2016 10:32 AM

Very strong tomato taste and leaning to sweet rather than acid. I personally love the taste but I'm not very good at describing flavors. Would never make it as a food critic.

Very nice critique. :)

Thanks! I'll have to try Coyote next year.

Some other ideas for saladette tomatoes that are different colors Moonglow, Green Zebra, Red Zebra and Porter. Porter isnt round and is pink but it produces like crazy and they taste great right out of the garden.

Is Coyote a current tomato? About the size of a pea...

Thanks for the ideas, Lisa. Moonglow and Porter especially sound interesting.

Just thought of another one....Garden Peach. They are fuzzy, like peaches,...

This is a follow up to my April 6th post in regards to an accidental cross. I saved seed from a Boxcar Willie two years ago. A Sungold was planted in the adjoining space. The supposed BCW seed produced ping pong ball-size yellow tomatoes with a Sungold flavor. I am growing out two plants from the next generation this year. Same good flavor. One has slightly smaller toms but more per cluster. I'm calling this tomato Golden Willie and including photo comparisons to Sungold. Also in the garden is a true Boxcar Willie with fifty one tomatoes set. It's a good tomato year. I'll get pics of both Golden Willies and BCW when I get back to Maypop.

Sorry I missed this thread earlier. I grew Lemon Boy (yellow) a few years back and it's a tasty heirloom, about tennis ball size or maybe a bit bigger in our zone (7). This may be bigger than you want. I really liked it and really don't know why I haven't grown it again recently. I experiment with a few new ones every year and probably will go back to some of my old favorites next year.

BTW I really prefer Sun Sugar over Sun Gold (less cracking & seem thinner skinned to me, and they taste about the same).

The skin on Sungold seems thicker if picked too early but perhaps cracking is a problem if you pick late. I've not had a problem unless they are on the vine overly long. Meanwhile, the second generation, natural hybrid, Golden Willies (2) produced twenty seven, ready to eat, 2-2 1/2 oz. tomatoes during the last five days. Photo shows the size comparison between Golden Willies and Sungolds picked an hour ago.



This message was edited Aug 21, 2016 5:55 PM

I agree with all of the above suggestions except Coyote and German Lunchbox (never grown those two, so I can't say either way). I would add Old Ivory Egg to the list. A lot of the online descriptions refer to it as "mild" or "sweet," which I generally take as code for "bland and boring." I've never been terribly impressed with plum tomatoes or most of the yellow to white varieties (Lemon Boy, Yellow Brandywine, and Sungold being notable exceptions). I wasn't prepared for Old Ivory Egg to be anything to write home about, but it's actually impressive. Plenty of acidity, but balanced.

Coyote's fruits are nickel to dime-sized.