Knowing what tomatoes we grew this year and reflecting on how we felt about each variety at the end of the season helps us know how to plan for next summer’s garden.
We grew a total of 22 tomato plants this year, encompassing 8 different varieties. Most of them I grew last year but I didn’t take notes about how I felt about each one last year, so I grew them again and intentionally evaluated the production, taste, and use of each plant.
The 22 plants is more than double what I grew last year, which was double what I grew the year before that. I told Bennett we won’t have a yard anymore if we keep doubling. I’m only kind of kidding. We don’t have any more space for tomatoes but I want to get more varieties because I am in awe of all the different kinds of tomatoes that exist!
How can I learn about growing tomatoes?
For my birthday last year, Bennett bought me the book The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible by Edward C. Smith (no relation) and it is a great resource with tips and tricks for all of my gardening questions. That is where most of my information comes from but I’ve also gleaned information from friends and YouTube videos and random Google searches. I’m not even close to the expert I would like to be one day, but hopefully, this information helps you or at least encourages you to give tomatoes a try.
One of the best things I’ve learned about tomatoes is that they are such a forgiving plant. I have been a forgetful and at times neglectful gardener (I’m getting better at that though!) and no matter what, I always get tomatoes. There is a lot you can do to get a larger harvest but with very little effort, you can get at least some to start with!
What types of tomatoes should I grow?
The following is a list of the different varieties that we grew, how they are described, and our personal evaluation as to whether or not we would like to keep growing them. You’re getting insight into my garden journal, but just the part about tomatoes. If you’re interested in herbs, check out my other gardening post about the herbs I grew this year. Following the name of the tomato, I will list a brief description from my internet research, and then I will share my personal evaluations of each.
Brandywine Red:
Defined online as a large beefsteak tomato that is not acidic. It’s best served fresh, sliced with some salt or basil, on salads, and in sandwiches like a BLT.
This variety is beautiful. I love the size of the fruit, the color, and the beauty when we cut into it. Most of the tomatoes we got from this plant hovered just under a pound each. We planted two of these and that’s what I would like to do next year.
Money Maker:
Defined online as a medium-sized tomato but doesn’t have a deep tomato taste. It’s best served in salads or by itself. It’s disease-resistant and high-yielding.
This tomato isn’t my favorite. I don’t necessarily feel like it served any great purpose to us. It did produce a lot, but it’s the plant that got sick first both this year and last year. The size is relatively small but too big to be a cherry or grape tomato. It was nice for snacking in the garden though. We grew two this year but next year I am only going to grow one.
Old German:
Defined online as a multicolored beef steak tomato that is a great slicer. It has an odd shape but has a great tomato flavor. These often weigh more than a pound!
This tomato is gorgeous. The yellow and red of the tomato bleed together beautifully from the flesh to the meat. We got several that weighed more than a pound each. While I used these for all purposes, they are so visually appealing I would save them for dishes where the tomatoes are the star and don’t need to be cooked down. We grew two and I will grow two again next year.
Amish Paste:
Defined online as a medium-sized paste tomato that is great eaten fresh or used for sauces. Also considered a plum tomato and larger than most paste varieties.
Even though these are classified as medium, I would consider them large compared to all the other paste tomatoes we have grown. Several of these weighed over a pound each. They were fantastic for all our canning purposes. I grew it in a more shaded spot so it took longer to produce, so next year I will put it in more direct sunlight. I grew four this year and I will grow four or more next year.
Roma:
Defined online as ideal for sauces and pastes, not slicing. It’s a drier tomato with fewer seeds
This is just a traditional paste tomato. I didn’t find it to be anything spectacular in regards to production quantity or taste but I did find it very convenient for making sauces that I wanted to thicken quickly without simmering on the stove for too long. I grew four of these and would grow the same or less if I wanted to try a new variety of paste tomatoes next year.
San Marzano:
Defined online as a paste or plum tomato with an oblong shape. Minimal seeds and great for sauce, pastes, and freezing.
This tomato wasn’t spectacular in taste in my opinion but it did have a high yield. In regards to cooking and canning, this tomato performed identically to Roma. I grew four of these and would grow the same or less next year, but if it came down to this or Roma, I would choose San Marzano.
Black Beauty:
Defined online as a dark and meaty tomato. Has the same antioxidants in it as blueberries and blackberries.
I was given a few of these from a friend so they were planted later in the season which I believe affected how long it took for the fruit to ripen. We loved the taste and thought that it was visually one of the most stunning tomatoes we’ve ever grown. I grew two last year and will definitely grow two again next year.
Dr. Wyche:
Defined online as a tomato that grows to almost a pound, is a tangerine orange color, and has a tropical sweet taste.
These were also given to me and took longer to get in the ground. They took a longer time to grow fruit but produced a lot up until the frost. I used this tomato in a variety of ways but I did not enjoy the taste or smell of it fresh. It definitely has a tropical note to it that I couldn’t get past when I was just looking for a tomato taste. It’s a beautiful plant though. I grew two this year but next year I would like to grow one.
In Conclusion:
I am very grateful for the opportunity to try some different varieties of tomatoes. I grew up not knowing anything about them and not even really enjoying them, so this has been an awesome growing experience both skill-wise and literally!
Are there other varieties you have grown that I should try? I would love to read your opinions in the comments below!
Save it for later!
