Tag Archives: Tomatoes

Tomatoes, Warm Season Crops

New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 — Part 4 — Heaven Oregon Tomato

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With the big cross-country eclipse coming up in April and all the exciting things happening with Space X lately, I though it might be fun to try out some space-themed tomato varieties to release this year. Two tomato varieties in particular did not disappoint. Here is the first of the two space-themed varieties Grow Your Health Gardening is releasing this growing season:

Heaven Oregon

Heaven Oregon Tomato is an open pollinated variety and a favorite in 2021 by other growers and I can see why. It is an unusually shaped tomato. It is primarily red with a globe-shape that comes to a point at its base like a tear-drop and has purple shoulders. It has a hint of orange flecking and shading on the lower half near the purple shoulder on the skin (see photo below), but the interior flesh is bright red throughout. Its flesh is watery and best for slicing. Heaven Oregon tomato is about the size of a golf ball and looks so pretty on a plate!

Heaven Oregon has a tear drop shape and is about the size of a golf ball (1.75" around)
Heaven Oregon Tomato has a tear drop shape and is about the size of a golf ball (around 1.75″ in circumference.)
Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening.

This is an indeterminate tomato and needs support as it grows to around 70 inches tall. I enjoyed watching it ripen on the vine. As you’ll see from the photo below, the Heaven Oregon tomato as a whole is green with dark purple shoulders while it is growing. It slowly fades to red as it ripens. She’s a no-fuss tomato with no disease issues or cracking. The hard part for you as a grower will be to be patient enough until it reaches that deep red indicating it is ready to enjoy!

One tip I want to offer is to harvest the whole cluster and keep the vine that holds the cluster attached if you want it to hold a couple of days indoors. Do not put these in the fridge. They’re best enjoyed harvest to table in my opinion. They are especially lovely roasted whole and added to any dish — especially pasta (yummmm)!

Our line of seed for sale comes from Oregon Heaven Tomato plants that were grown hydroponically / aeroponically in zone 7B Atlanta, Georgia, so unlike the line of seeds that come from the NW, we’ve adapted this variety to grow hydroponically in hot and humid conditions as well. As we have discussed in the past, research has found that plants can store 5+ years of environmental survival conditions in its DNA for future generations. Our seed will be adapted especially for hydroponic growers, but soil growers should also have no problem growing it.

Heaven Oregon hangs on the vine to ripen a little bit more.
Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening.

I tried to track down the back-story on this pretty tomato. One grower said it was developed by Dr. James “Jim” Ronald Baggett, a professor for 30 years who in 1973 became the head of the vegetable breeding program at Oregon State University OSU.1 I could not find anything that supported that claim. Baggett has been credited for developing Oregon Eleven tomato, Oregon Spring, and Oregon Star, so it’s quite possible Heaven Oregon might be part of his work given the similarity with naming (even though it doesn’t seem to start with Oregon?) As a side note and nod to another great variety to try, Honey Boat Squash was also bred by Baggett’s program.

For now, I am not going to attribute Heaven Oregon Tomato to him until I get confirmation. For now, Heaven Oregon Tomato’s history remains unknown to us. If you happen to have a source to show Baggett should be attributed as the breeder, please feel free to share with our community in the comments below.

This is a chef’s delight and perfect for the home grower alike. You definitely won’t find this as a seedling start at any big box retailer garden center as a start, so it’s best to grow from seed. You also won’t find it in the grocery store where produce is bred to last 10+ days from harvest (yuck old food!) Grow this beautiful tomato and enjoy it at home knowing that you get to try what most folks miss out on!

Get Heaven Oregon Tomato seed for your own garden here >
(while supplies last)

Heaven Oregon Tomato cluster in a bowl. Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening.

Check back here to 
continue reading Grow Your Health Gardening’s 
Part 5 of New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 >

Footnotes:

  1. http://www.saveseeds.org/biography/baggett/index.html ↩︎
Garden Planning, hydroponics, Outdoor Gardening, Plant This Now, Tomatoes

New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 — Part 3 — Kellogg’s Breakfast

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Today, we continue sharing about our favorite tomato varieties and what we are releasing for 2024. If you want to catch-up, you can read part 1 here and part 2 here.

Remember, all of the varieties mentioned in this article can be found on our store.growyourhealthgardening.com (and if you sign-up for our newsletter on our store, you’ll get a 15% off coupon to save money on any $15 seed order. Remember, we always include a free package of seeds with every order!)

As you may recall, I shared previously how Craig Schaaf, a grower from Michigan who uses the Korean Farming Technique (KFT), had generously shared some of his favorite tomato varieties with me through a mutual seed swap. That brings us to our next favorite variety which also comes from Craig; Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato.

Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato is named after orange juice and Darrell Kellogg who submitted the variety to the Seed Savers Exchange.
Photo copyright Grow Your Health Gardening 2024

Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato

I have seen Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato listed in seed catalog after seed catalog and paid no attention to it — mainly in part because of my own bias against the cereal manufacturer. But, come to find out, the name of this tomato has NOTHING to do with the cereal company you might be thinking of right now.

Instead, according to the research I find, it is named after a humble gardener and a Seed Saver Exchange (SSE) member, Darrell Kellogg from Redford, Michigan who by trade was a railroad supervisor, but also loved to grow his own food. Darrell purportedly received this variety from a friend in West Virginia (name unknown) and saved the seed year after year. Darrell eventually shared his seeds with Bill Minkey who introduced the seeds to the Seed Savers Exchange in 1993.  The “breakfast” part of the tomato’s name is said to refer to the beautiful orange color of the inside of the tomato which is reminiscent of the color of orange juice—hence Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato.

I have grown and enjoyed many an orange tomato, like Olga’s Round Chicken Tomato, Apricot Brandywine Tomato, Big Rainbow Tomato, Pineapple Tomato (which is a bit more yellow than orange), and Orange Orangutane Tomato.

But to be honest, I only grew this variety because Craig recommended it to me. My bias kept me from trying a great variety and I almost missed out on it. That’s something to keep in mind as you explore what you want to grow this growing season. Be adventurous and curious. Be willing to try something new — especially if you can’t find it at the grocery store produce aisle or at a big box nursery. And share your favorites with others to keep the variety going and adapted to your growing region.

“Be adventurous and curious. Be willing to try something new — especially if you can’t find it at the grocery store produce aisle or at a big box nursery. And share your favorites with others to keep the variety going and adapted to your growing region.”

— Erin C, Grow Your Health Gardening owner and soil/hydroponic grower and coach
Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato, sliced and shown above next to a red variety for comparison. It’s so juicy and tasty off of the vine!
Photo copyright Grow Your Health Gardening 2024

Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato has become quite popular among fans that like to try different tomato varieties and has won honors such as:

  • Gary Ibsen’s annual “Best-Tasting Tomato” at the Carmel TomatoFest Event
  • Dr. Carolyn Male, the author of 101 Heirloom Tomatoes, and who has raised more than a thousand heirloom tomatoes, presents 100 consistently top-performing varieties for North American gardeners and in her book she lists this variety as “one of her favorites”
  • Voted one of the “best tomatoes” by Sunset Magazine

Not only is Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato good tasting, but it also has health benefits such as tetra-cis-lycopene, a healthy anti-oxidant found especially in some orange tomatoes. According to research done by New Zealand non-profit, Heritage Food Crops, the Kellogg Breakfast variety scored a 3.42 level of tetra-cis-lycopene in their lab tests. We will do a deeper dive on orange tomatoes in another article, but for now, just know that these are nutritionally beneficial to the human body (having protective effects even) and a good variety to choose beyond taste and adding fantastic color to any plate!

“Tetra-cis-lycopene is a highly beneficial bioavailable form of lycopene, and exhibits a golden-orange or tangerine tomato color. But not all tomatoes with this color contain tetra-cis-lycopene, as this color can also be expressed by beta-carotene. Hence it is necessary to chemically analyse each tomato variety to verify whether or not it contains tetra-cis-lycopene.”

— Heritage Food Crops

The yellow/orange nature of this tomato also is important as it contains Beta Carotene. Beta Carotene is converted in the body to vitamin A (retinol). Vitamin A is an important nutrient in maintaining healthy eyes and eyesight as well as a critical role in cell growth within the heart, lungs, kidneys and other organs.1

Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato, when pruned and given ideal growing conditions,
may produce 1-1.5 lb tomatoes on the vine that measure 3-4″ across in diameter.
Photo copyright Grow Your Health Gardening 2024

This seed stock comes from the northern region of the United States (Michigan) and Craig adapted it grow earlier in the season and ripen in cooler conditions. We’ve taken his Kellogg’s Breakfast seed and gone the opposite direction and have grown it in a hydroponic system here in the Southeast. That means it has already adapted to a hot and humid environment for one growing season while also maintaining that DNA of surviving colder climates grown in soil through epigenetics.

We enjoyed this tomato so much that we can’t wait to offer it to you in Craig’s honor. We are thankful for the opportunity to grow such a wonderful variety and think that you’ll enjoy it as well.

Get Kellogg’s Breakfast Tomato seed for your own garden here >
(while supplies last)

Continue reading Grow Your Health Gardening’s 
Part 4 of New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 >

Footnotes:

  1. https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-beta-carotene ↩︎
Garden Planning, Tomatoes, Warm Season Crops

New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 — Part 2 — Chocolate Stripes Tomato

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This is part 2 of what we’ve trialed in new tomato varieties as we continue to bring you our fav’s! If you missed part 1, you can read it here, otherwise, let’s keep cruise’n and share the rest of our new tomato variety releases for 2024 highlights!

All of the varieties mentioned here can be found on our store.growyourhealthgardening.com (and if you sign-up for our newsletter on our store, you’ll get a 15% off coupon to save money on any $15 seed order. Remember, we always include a free package of seeds with every order!)

Chocolate Stripes Tomato

I had first listened to expert market grower, Craig Schaaf, on a podcast where he was being interviewed by Alabama market grower and homesteading pro, Noah Sanders. (I love how Noah shares his passion and wants to help others through the Well Watered Garden Project.) In the podcast, Craig shared his experience growing warm season crops early in the season in his cold Northern climate and how epigenetics played a key role in why he saved his seeds season-after-season. What he shared really inspired me to dive deeper into epigenetics and to keep on my path of saving my own southern soil and hydroponic-adapted seeds every growing season.

Fast forward to the following year when I was bedridden with Covid… I entertained myself doing research for the upcoming growing season on my computer. It was then that I happened-upon Craig’s videos through social media and recalled his interview with Noah. I decided to reach out to him and I was thrilled when he responded! It was great to have him connect me with other like-minded growers on his social media channel. I enjoyed learning more about the Korean Farming Technique (KFT) method he uses to grow his own crops. (Craig has a heart to help others learn, so I encourage you to check out his videos on Gab @Schaafcraig which are chalk-full of experienced growing tips if you haven’t already.)

All that to say that Craig and I exchanged some seeds last year as he was interested in testing some micro-dwarf tomato varieties. I sent him my fav’s and he sent me his tomato fav’s. One of his choices he liked was Chocolate Stripes tomato. I couldn’t wait to test Chocolate Stripes Tomato in our Tower Garden aeroponic / hydroponic system and she did fantastic! I have to agree with him that it is a wonderful homegrown tomato variety. It reminds me a lot of Cherokee Purple and Paul Robeson. It looks beautiful when sliced due to its striped coloration. I enjoyed how it tasted so much that I wanted to offer the next generation from his shared seeds here (he gave his permission of course.)

But don’t just take our word that it tastes wonderful! Chocolate Stripes tomato was also voted as one of the “Top 3” “best tasting” tomatoes by TomatoFest attendees along with the event’s “tasting panel”. It was also voted on by thousands of TomatoFest customers purchasing seeds. This is a sure win as a great BLT sandwich tomato as well as to add to salsa’s and salads for full flavor.

Besides the fantastic taste and ease of growing, here’s the thing that makes this seed stock special… Craig said he would start this seed in early spring and be the first to market using his growing techniques in the northern region of Michigan where he lives. (I think he has a video on his technique on the channel I mentioned earlier in the article.) This seed stock has been adapted to grow in colder conditions according to Craig, yet it also grew beautifully for me in my hot and humid growing region of Atlanta, Georgia (zone 7b).

For those of you who have been following GYHG for awhile, you probably recall me sharing that seeds can hold 5+ years of survival traits in their seed DNA so that the next generation can thrive all the more. That means that our seed from this variety will be especially suited in either soil northern conditions all the way to the south where it gots hot and humid. Furthermore, if you grow hydroponically, your seed will be right at home and produce better for you than the first generation — that’s why we call this seed “hydroponic adapted”.

When I was doing some research online to find out more about its history, it appears that it has come from the Seed Saver Exchange (SSE). I did find some detailed information from a European blogger:

The ‘Chocolate Stripes’ tomato variety was bred by Ohio American John Siegel and was created in the early 2000s by crossing ‘Shimmeig Creg’ with a pink beefsteak tomato. Between 2006 and 2007, the new variety entered the seed bank Seed Savers Exchange (SSE) via Al Anderson, an association for the transmission and preservation of seed-resistant varieties. ˈChocolate Stripesˈ promptly won the award for one of the top three flavors at the Carmel TomatoFest event that same year and the following year. 1

— Jardin-Planète, European Blog

My plants were grown in an aeroponic / hydroponic Tower Garden and I had no problems with cracking or fungal diseases. If you see this in photos online on other pages or videos, it’s either the seed stock is not strong and/or growing methods. This tomato grew beautifully for me and I will grow it again.

Again, you can’t find this variety as a seedling in most big box garden centers or definitely in the produce aisle of your grocery store. This variety is best started from seed and harvested going from garden to table. It’ll keep a little while inside once harvested, but I really think it’s best enjoyed straight from the vine as you’ll get all those good nutrients it offers the closer to harvest you eat it.

Just looking at these pics from last year’s harvest makes my mouth water! I can’t hardly wait for tomato season to be here again!

Get Chocolate Stripes Tomato seed for your own garden here >
(while supplies last)

Chocolate Stripes Tomato variety, seed stock comes from Craig Schaaf.
Chocolate Stripes Tomato seed stock comes compliments of Craig Schaaf. Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening.

Continue reading Grow Your Health Gardening’s 
Part 3 of New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 >

Footnotes:

  1. https://en.jardin-planet.com/17827544-chocolate-stripes-tomato-things-to-know-about-the-striped-tomato ↩︎
Garden Planning, hydroponics, Tomatoes, Warm Season Crops

New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 — Part 1

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We’ve trialed new tomato varieties and are bringing you our seven fav’s over the course of a week we will release more information about each one. So much of why I grow the food I do is because I cannot find these amazing tasting varieties at the grocery store. They are just best enjoyed from garden to table and so worth the time and little effort involved in growing them at home.

All of the varieties mentioned here can be found on our store.growyourhealthgardening.com (and if you sign-up for our newsletter on our store, you’ll get a 15% off coupon to save money on any $15 seed order. Remember, we always include a free package of seeds with every order!)

Without further adieu, here are our new tomato seed varieties we have home grown and offer to our customers:

Aunt Ruby's German Green Tomato
Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato. Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening

Aunt Ruby’s Green German Tomato

My husband loves to try out barbecue places across the southeast and whenever we go to any barbecue restaurant there are two things we always try if they are on the menu: banana pudding and fried green tomatoes. So, for the past 20+ years we have taste-tested our way across the southeast and I wanted to pair that knowledge with testing varieties at home to find the perfect green tomato variety to make our southern favorite, Fried Green Tomatoes! And I am officially declaring that Aunt Ruby’s German Green tomato did not disappoint! (It’s also a great addition to any salsa verde!)

Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato variety has been listed in the top 10 tomatoes by many chefs and home growers alike as well as won several taste tests.1 Slow Food USA ( slowfoodusa.org ) nominated this tomato to the Ark of Taste Program. This is also one of the 100 varieties described in Carolyn J. Male’s book “100 Heirloom Tomatoes for the American Garden“. In fact, Chuck Wyatt, Seedsmen Hall of Fame and long-time grower and fan of vintage tomato varieties had this to say about Aunt Ruby’s German Green;

“Excellent flavor and texture, good slicer, or for salads. THE OUTSTANDING GREEN VARIETY. If you have never tried a tomato that stays green when ripe, you should try this one, This is the biggest surprise I have ever experienced in tomatoes,”2

— Charles Atwood ‘Chuck’ Wyatt, “A Grower of Vintage Tomatoes” and Seedmen Hall of Fame Recipient

According to my research, Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato is a family heirloom from Germany. It purportedly was first introduced in the Seed Savers Exchange (SSE) 1993 Yearbook by Bill Minkey of Darien, Wisconsin. According to Tatiana’s TOMATObase, Minkey received the seed from Nita Hofstrom of Clinton, Wisconsin. Hofstrom’s Aunt Ruby E. Arnold (1915-1997) lived in Greeneville, Tennessee, and had grown it for years and according to Aunt Ruby, the seed originally came to the United States with her German immigrant grandfather. Aunt Ruby had simply called it ‘German Green’. Minkey asked Aunt Ruby for permission to rename this variety and he called it ‘Aunt Ruby’s German Green‘ after Ruby Arnold.3 You should know that I couldn’t find anything on the SSE’s web site to confirm or deny this account, but we have reached out to them for comment as it contradicts another account given by Victory Seeds Co.

We have not tested the pH level on this particular tomato, but according to tomatoabout.com, green tomatoes tend to have a high acidity level with a pH range of 3.5 – 4.2 pH.4 If you’re not sensitive to the acidity in tomatoes, this one will help support healthy stomach acid which you want to break down food easily in your stomach.

One of the advantages of growing your own homegrown green tomatoes is how you can control when to harvest tomatoes. By allowing them to fully ripen on the vine, you can increase sweetness and reduce tart green flavors while also getting the most nutritional benefit from your homegrown tomatoes, because it is not sitting on a store shelf somewhere aging. You also get THE BEST green tomatoes to make Fried Green Tomatoes or salsa verde and this variety is worth growing if you like either of those sides.

The seed stock we sell comes from plants grown hydroponically on a Tower Garden. They are open-pollinated and our parent plant produced multiple large beefsteak green tomatoes (see photo below) weighing 10-16 oz or more each. With proper pruning and timed fertilizing, you could reach 1 pound or more.

Plants do vine, so you will need a strong support cage. It typically ripens late in the season taking around 85 days to be ready for harvest after transplanting outdoors when overnight temps are a consistent 64ºF. This variety you’ll want to start from seed as it is typically difficult to find starts of this tomato from local greenhouses or big box stores.

You can find and purchase Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato here
(and if you sign-up for our newsletter on our store, you’ll get a 15% off coupon to save money on any $15 seed order. Remember, we always include a free package of seeds with every order!)

And if you have a favorite Fried Green Tomato or Salsa Verde Recipe, feel free to share with the GYHG community in the comments below!

Here's a look at how abundant Aunt Ruby's German Green Tomato is on the vine. The darker yellowish green is how you know when the fruit is ready to pick and enjoy.
Here’s a look at how abundant Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato is on the vine.
The darker yellowish green is how you know when the fruit is ready to pick and enjoy.
Photo copyright 2024 Grow Your Health Gardening

Continue reading Grow Your Health Gardening’s
New Tomato Variety Releases for 2024 >

Footnotes:
  1. https://fafard.com/americas-10-best-tasting-tomatoes/ ↩︎
  2. http://www.saveseeds.org/biography/wyatt/index.html ↩︎
  3. https://tatianastomatobase.com/wiki/Aunt_Ruby%27s_German_Green ↩︎
  4. https://tomatoabout.com/are-tomatoes-acidic-or-alkaline/ ↩︎
Warm Season Crops

Grow a Record Breaking Tomato: 28 Tomato Cultivars that Produce Really Big Tomatoes

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If you’re looking to grow really big — I mean REALLY BIG — tomatoes… the kind you might even break a state record size of tomato, you’ll need to start with good seed DNA. There are certain tomato varieties that tend to grow to a larger size when given proper nutrients, pH, and pruning.

Pomodoro Farina Gigante is a great tasting BIG tomato slicer that is reputed to break records from Italy.

At the time of publication, the current 2021 Guinness Book of World Records for the heaviest tomato was grown by Dan Sutherland (USA). His monster tomato was of the “Domingo” variety and weighed 10 lb 12.7 oz (4.896 kg) when measured in Walla Walla, Washington, USA, on 15 July 2020. The achievement was authenticated by the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth (GPC).

It had a circumference of 33 in (83.8 cm), contributed to by a number of outgrowths on the fruit known as “dingleberries” — something that can be common among giant tomatoes. This is the second time that Sullivan has held this Guinness record. He grew a 3.906-kg (8.61-lb) tomato in August 2016. According to Guinness, “the mother seed for this new record-breaker was derived from the previous record plant.”

No matter if you’re wanting to grow a record breaking monster-size tomato to win titles or simply wanting a nice big tasty slicer for your summer time BLTs, these are the varieties that typically grow larger in girth.

Pomodoro Farina Gigante heirloom tomato is a variety known to be record breaking in Italy. You can find seed in our seed shop here.
Pineapple heirloom tomato is a beautiful bi-color slicer.
Goatbag Tomato is a large oxheart tomato full on meaty tomato flesh with very few seeds. It makes a good slicer but also fantastic tomato paste.
VarietyWeight
Domingo10 pounds
Big-Zac (hybrid)8 pounds
Daho8 pounds
Delicious7 pounds
MegaZac6 pounds
Clementz5 pounds
MegaDom5 pounds
6-Pound Giant4 pounds
Phil’s Fantastic4 pounds
Slankard’s4 pounds
Spaziani4 pounds
Cuostraleé4 pounds
Big Wixom4 pounds
Monster3 pounds
Italian Sweet3 pounds
Mong3 pounds
Beef Steak, Old Fashioned3 pounds
Florida Pink3 pounds
Orenberg Giant3 pounds
Verna Orange3 pounds
Chocolate Stripes3 pounds
Burpee Supersteak (hybrid)3 pounds
Big Rosy3 pounds
Pomodoro Farina Gigante2 pounds
Big Red2 pounds
Lithuanian2 pounds
Omar’s Lebanese2 pounds
Zogalo2 pounds
Brianna2 pounds
Todd County Amish2 pounds
Pineapple2 pounds
Believe It or Not2 pounds
Giant Belgium2 pounds
Neve’s Azorean Red2 pounds
Dinner Plate2 pounds
Champs of New Jersey2 pounds
Persimmon2 pounds
Garden Monster Leader2 pounds
Jerry’s German Giant2 pounds
Brandywine, Sudduth Strain2 pounds
Mortgage Lifter, Red2 pounds
18842 pounds
Mexico2 pounds
Aussie2 pounds
Provenzano2 pounds
Great White2 pounds
Large Pink Bulgarian2 pounds
Watermelon Beefsteak2 pounds
Polish Giant2 pounds
Ponderosa Pink2 pounds
Goatbag2 pounds
German Red2 pounds
Big Rainbow2 pounds
Hillbilly2 pounds
Big Rainbow Heirloom Tomato is a great producing bi-color slicer. As you can see, she produces thick stems to easily handle the weight of big fruit in clusters of 4-6 buds.
Great White Heirloom Tomato is a low-acid tomato that produces big slicers almost 5″ wide.
Apricot Brandywine Tomato is a large slicer producing not only great tasting tomatoes but a good crop of them. This particular variety produced the most weight overall when compared to our other cultivars.
Eggplant, Hot Peppers, Sweet Peppers, Tower Garden Tips

How to ensure you have Germinated Seed Every Time whether Growing in Soil or Hydroponics

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I like to know if a seed has germinated before it ever goes into soil or a piece of hydroponic Rockwool. There’s an easy way to know if you have viable seed and that is through a technique that simply requires a sheet of paper towel, a container with a lid, water and a consistently warm location 72ºF-76ºF. You can learn more about how to set up these pre-germination conditions on our blog here, but if you’re already familiar with this method, here is a quick visual of what you’re looking for with pepper seeds and when to transfer them to either soil or Rockwool (Rockwool is used for soilless hydroponic / aeroponic growing systems).

Example of seed that is ready to transfer to Rockwool or soil

The seed that is circled in green is ready to gently transfer to soil or Rockwool using a sanitized tweezer. (To sanitize your tweezer, simply clean with rubbing alcohol.) The seed circled in yellow shows swelling and indicates that you should probably check it the next day as the root is getting ready to emerge.

The other seeds are slightly swollen showing that they are still in the process of germinating. Do not give up on seeds that are slower to germinate — sometimes they can take up to 10 days even when you are providing ideal conditions. Check moisture daily and if paper towel smells funky, swap out for a new paper towel and rewet and put back into germination chamber container.

Below is a photo showing germinated seed that has been placed into Rockwool (see number one below). If you are growing in a hydroponic growing system such as a Tower Garden or Aerogarden, you’ll want to place your seed in Rockwool instead of soil. (Coco Coir is also a good alternative growing medium for hydroponics or aeroponics assuming it has support to hold material together such as in a mesh net.)

I like to cover my seeds with vermiculite. Some hydroponic growers insist that this step isn’t necessary, but I like to make sure my seeds receive adequate moisture throughout these early stages of growth especially. Strong healthy seedlings, make for strong healthy plants. I use this process for pepper, tomato, and eggplant seeds and any seeds that are not super small. Remember, some seeds need light to germinate (like lettuce), so be sure to reference our cheat sheet before starting seeds to know if your seed needs light, no light, or if it doesn’t matter.

How to transfer pre-germinated Seed to Rockwool or Soil

Rockwool is a fantastic growing medium as it has air pockets and is good at holding water. Keep moist, but not sitting in water.

Hope that helps! Remember, we have a great assortment of hydroponic-adapted tomato and pepper seed available in the seed store. Be sure to check it out!

Happy growing,

Erin

watering can
Uncategorized

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Star Seller Second Consecutive Month-in-a-Row

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Grow Your Health Gardening (GYHG) Seed Co. has been identified as February Star Seller on Etsy for the second consecutive month of 2022 and received a perfect score of 100 percent in every category for exemplary customer service. 

To achieve “Star Seller of the Month” status, orders had a perfect score offering on-time shipping guidelines 100% of the time (a one day turn-around with USPS tracking on every order), communication response within 24 hours was 100% of the time, and Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Co. received 100% 5-Star Ratings from customers who received their seed orders. We provide the same wonderful service on our online store! (Which is our primary store.)

Grow Your Health Gardening receives Etsy Star Seller of the Month Award for February 2022

Here’s some of what our customers are saying about Grow Your Health Gardener Seed Co.’s service and quality grow with organic methods seeds: 

★★★★★ 
“These small seeds arrived in great shape. I planted just a few of them right away. They are already coming up! I am so happy with these rare tomato seeds!” — Sully

★★★★★ 
“My seeds came perfectly marked with a lovely thank you note and a helpful chart of past repelling plants. I could not be happier with my purchase and cannot wait to plant my little seeds with my kids and watch them grow. Thank you!!!” — Crystal

★★★★★ 
“Got here really quickly! Would buy form again! Can’t wait to start growing ^_^!” — xstiney

★★★★★ 
“Wonderful seed company with lots of information that comes with your seed order. Also check out the website. They have tone of wonderful seeds and information on it.” — Royal W

To purchase hydroponic-adapted seeds and seeds grown in the soil in the Southeast Zone 7B, you can order on Etsy.com or better yet, for the latest updates and product releases visit Grow Your Health Gardening‘s online store.

Live screenshot of Etsy Star Seller Dashboard for Grow Your Health Gardening

The Star Seller badge is Etsy’s way of recognizing sellers with a proven record of providing a great customer experience. To become a Star Seller, your store must meet certain criteria for messages, shipping, ratings, orders, and sales. If these core fundamentals of delivering great customer service are achieved, a shop may receive a badge that shows buyers that a shop has consistently provided an excellent customer experience.

Outdoor Gardening

Our 10 Most Productive Slicer Tomato Varieties from Last Season

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{We shared this info with our followers via email at the end of December, but wanted to share on Grow Your Health Gardening as well. If you want to get our emails (where we share information first on new releases and other tips first) you can do that here: https://store.growyourhealthgardening.com (page down just a little bit and you’ll see the spot to enter your email.)}

The results are in! Last season (2021) we counted and weighed every tomato that came off the vine and was harvested. Totals reflect equal number of plants per variety. If you’re looking for varieties that produce a multitude of blossoms and tomatoes, then this is YOUR LIST to grab. We will also include links to each tomato variety if you’re interested in getting homegrown seed grown using organic methods. All of this tomatoes were grown hydroponically meaning the tomato plants received the perfect pH level and ideal nutrients throughout the season.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below. (But remember, our data is propiertary and we cannot share specific weights.) So here we go… ready? And the top ten biggest producers out of 75+ varieties (by weight) are…

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Green Elf aka: Wagner's Lime Green Salad Tomato: Number 10 most productive variety from 2021

#10 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
GREEN ELF
(AKA: WAGNER’S LIME GREEN SALAD

Green Elf Tomato (also known as Wagner’s Lime Green Salad Tomato) is one of Owner and Lead Grower of Grow Your Health Gardening, “Erin’s Top Tomato Picks” Seed Collection from the 2021 growing season. In fact, Green Elf Tomato was #10 in highest production by weight of ALL slicers varieties in our 2021 trails!

It was originally bred by Tom Wagner and is a determinate variety. It only gets a couple of feet tall and needs only a little support making it ideal for containers and small space gardening. It grows nicely in 5 gallon felt containers or Bato Bucket systems and is a heavy producer — boy does it produce blooms! Wowza! If you plant this variety every two weeks in the first part of the growing season, you will have a bushel load of tomatoes that can be used for slicing, salsa, salad, sandwiches, canning, drying, Fried Green Tomatoes… you name it! This is one I can’t wait to grow again!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Big Rainbow Heirloom Tomato: Number 9 most productive variety from 2021

#9 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
BIG RAINBOW TOMATO

We were drawn to this tomato for it’s beautiful coloration when sliced open! Big Rainbow Tomato is a beautiful bi-color slicer tomato variety with early tomatoes weighing 2+ pounds with very little cat facing or deformities. It has good resistance to foliar disease and is an indeterminate.

Big Rainbow Tomato variety will ripen with color shades showing green on the should, yellow in the center, and red towards the bottom. When cut open, it will have bi-color shading of yellow and red making it a beautiful slice on the plate or sandwich. It has more flesh than seed ratio, so also serves well for using to make sauce.

We have adapted this seed to grow in a hydroponic system using organic methods and so even though it will grow in soil just fine, it is especially suited for hydroponic home growers using a Tower Garden, Bato Bucket system, or the Farmstand.

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Thornburn's Terra Cotta Heirloom Tomato: Number 8 most productive variety from 2021

#8 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
THORNBURNS TERRA COTTA HEIRLOOM TOMATO

Thornburn’s Terra Cotta Heirloom Tomato is a joy to grow! Not only does it taste wonderful, but it’s color looks beautiful mixed in with other sliced standard red tomatoes. It’s outer skin and inside flesh of the tomato has a most unique color — it’s a mix of a chartreuse green and terra cotta — some call it a honey-brown shade, but our trials seemed to be more colorful than that.

If you especially love history, you’ll want to grow this tomato to preserve the seed for future generations because it is now 129 years old! It was originally introduced in Thornburn’s 1893 Seed Catalog. This is one easy slicer you won’t find in the grocery store aisle and will want to try!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Pomodoro Farina Gigante Heirloom Tomato: Number 7 most productive variety from 2021

#7 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
POMODORO FARINA GIGANTE TOMATO

In all fairness to Pomodoro Farina Gigante Tomato, we were pruning this plant to get an exceptionally large tomato, so the overall weight for production may have been affected as it didn’t put out as many blossoms as it would have normally produced. With that said, this cultivar still weighed in making the Top 10 and is definitely a BIG TASTY classically robust Italian tomato!

This line of Pomodoro Farina Gigante Tomato seed DNA comes from the work of Mario Quattrocchi from Cuneo, Italy and originally from Remo Farina, a retired truck driver originally from Bleggio, Italy. Mr. Farina holds the record for the largest tomato in Italy and worked tirelessly for years to acheive his record breaking tomato. Our trials produced a 2 pound, 6 ounce tomato and others that followed ranged from 1.5-2 pounds. If you want to grow a large tomato, then this variety is the one to try!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Paul Robeson Heirloom Tomato: Number 6 most productive variety from 2021

#6 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
PAUL ROBESON HEIRLOOM TOMATO

Paul Robeson Heirloom Tomato is a nice slicer variety with a low seed count making it ideal for BLT sandwiches or it can even be used for making tomato paste. It has less acidity than traditional past varieties and a mild sweetness to it (though not as sweet as Cherokee Purple in our opinion). If you love Cherokee Purple, then you’ll enjoy this very similar, but more productive tomato variety. (At least grow the two varieties side-by-side and decide for yourself which one you like the best and share your opinion in the comments below.) Want to learn more about who Paul Robeson was in history? Click here

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company German Johnson Heirloom Tomato: Number 5 most productive variety from 2021

#5 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
GERMAN JOHNSON HEIRLOOM TOMATO

German Johnson Heirloom Tomato is a highly productive and excellent tasting pink heirloom. It is slightly smaller than a Brandywine and it has a deep acidic classic tomato flavor. It is a gorgeous tomato on and off the vine! This is a regular-leaf strain which can tend to come in earlier and is more productive than the potato-leaf strain. Can be used as a slicer or as a paste tomato. Very versatile and one of our favorites from this past growing season!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Nostrano Grasso Italian Heirloom Tomato: Number 4 most productive variety from 2021

#4 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
NOSTRANO GRASSO ITALIAN HEIRLOOM TOMATO (RARE IN THE U.S.)

Nostrano Grasso Italian Heirloom Tomato is a very rare heirloom from Italy and mainly unheard of in the United States. It produces medium-sized tomatoes and is duo-purposed as a smaller slicer, but also a great sauce tomato. It has superb tomato flavor with a hint of sweetness. It just kept pumping out the tomatoes and didn’t get flower drop even in higher Hotlanta summer temps here in the Southeast. If you’re looking for authentic Italian flavor and a good producer, this is your tomato! Such a pretty tomato on the vine and on the plate!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Costoluto Genovese Italian Heirloom Tomato: Number 3 most productive variety from 2021

#3 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
COSTOLUTO GENOVESE ITALIAN HEIRLOOM TOMATO

This variety pleasantly surprised us as well with it’s consistent production and final weigh-in totals. Costoluto Genovese Italian Heirloom Tomato is popular with chefs and a standard in Italy for both eating and preserving and we can see why! It has beautiful ruffled ribbing, so when it’s sliced, it looks pretty on the plate. Classic intense Italian tomato flavors. It was productive all season long no matter the temp. Definitely a keeper!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Olga's Round Chicken Tomato: Number 2 most productive variety from 2021

#2 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
OLGA’S ROUND CHICKEN TOMATO

Olga’s Round Chicken Tomato is a heavy producer of almost perfectly round globe-shaped tennis-ball sized tomatoes. Not only does this tomato variety have a funny name (which truth be told is what drew us to explore and grow it), but it’s also super tasty and looks great diced in salsa or sliced on a sandwich!

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company Apricot Brandywine Heirloom Tomato: Number 1 most productive variety from 2021

#1 MOST PRODUCTIVE 2021 SLICER TOMATO VARIETY:
APRICOT BRANDYWINE HEIRLOOM TOMATO

I can see why Brandywine cultivars are a favorite among many tomato grower enthusiasts! They consistently produce big slicers through high heat when other cultivars wane. Apricot Brandywine Heirloom Tomato is a wonderful yellow-orange beefsteak type of slicing heirloom tomato. It has a leaf that mimics a potato leaf and produces beautiful apricot-colored tomatoes that weight a pound or so. This variety is perfect for sandwiches and has a fantastic aroma as well! It’s a gorgeous and tasty tomato that produces all season long. Check out what the inside of this tomato looks like in the video below:

If only we could also let you taste it! If you want a lot of big juicy tomatoes, this is one to try!

And that’s how the slicer-type tomato trials went last growing season! We will tuck away this data and refer back to as we continue to grow out and adapt other cultivars in growing seasons to come.

If you like trying unique tomatoes you can’t find in any grocery store or Farmer’s Market, we’ve put together a collection and discounted it for our customers. Be sure to check out “The Tomato Lovers” Collection and as well as “Erin’s Top Picks” in the shop! Which new variety will you choose to grow this coming year?

Grow Your Health Gardening Seed Company's exclusive line of homegrown seed using organic growing methods.
Grab several varieties of heirloom and open source tomato cultivars at a discounted price compared to purchasing individually with our Grow Your Health Gardening Tomato Lover’s Heirloom Seed Collection pack.
Plant Nutrient Deficiencies, Plant This Now, Teaching Children to Grow Food

Which one will perform the best? 1) Worm castings, 2) Activated Charcoal, 3) Both 4) Neither?

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I’m scheduled to give a “Tomato Talk” to a local group of community members who are interested in growing their own tomatoes from seed in the next 10 days and in the process for preparing for this talk, I thought I’d do a little soil test for what makes for a strong seedling and share it with y’all as things grow so that you can grow your health through gardening and learn tips for what I learn along the way. 😉

I took four (4) 4-pack planting trays and used the same batch of sifted soil for all four packs. The control 4-pack is straight up soil only. The second 4-pack I amended the soil with worm castings only. The third 4-pack I amended the soil with activated charcoal from a company I heard about and am trialing their product before bringing it to sell in our store and online. The fourth 4-pack soil is amended with the same ratio of worm castings as the second 4-pack as well as the same ration of the third 4-pack of soil with activated charcoal (so this final 4-pack has both amendments in it.)

A glimpse of our current seedling test subjects.

I then repeated the same amendments in another batch of similar soil, but put it in a soil block and amended certain soil blocks with worm castings only and activated charcoal castings only and a mix of both worm castings and activated charcoal. I also included rock wool just to compare growth of seed in this substrate as well. The rock wool will need to have kelp diluted and added to it as the seedlings grow as the rock wool is pH neutral and is devoid of nutrients.

For plants, I chose seed that was from the same lot, same harvest, same parent plant. All seed is our homegrown line of seed that we’ve saved and developed season after season, so I am confident that we have good strong seed stock to run the test. I chose to plant microdwarf tomatoes, because we are in the middle of winter here in Atlanta, Georgia and I can grow micro-dwarf tomatoes indoors under lights and evaluate results before our busy season of the summer harvest begins. We selected different micro dwarf tomato cultivars including Florida Petite Microdwarf Cherry Tomato, Rosy Finch Microdwarf Cherry Tomato, Aztek Microdwarf Cherry Tomato and Venus Microdwarf Cherry Tomato.

Rosy Finch Micro Dwarf Tomato Seedlings pop out of the soil ready to reach for the light.
This is a Fiskars Soil Block that is a plunger style and easy to use. You can make soil blocks of four or one larger soil block.
Setting the first soil block with the other four 4-pack trays already finished and planted.
Small bits of Activated Charcoal in equal parts and mixed thoroughly in each 4-pack of soil as well as equal parts of worm castings mixed well in 4-packs of soil keeping things as consistent as possible. We are testing to see if the activated charcoal makes any significant difference before carrying a product in our store. Stay tuned!

To gauge results, we will weigh all produced fruit and count the number of blossoms and the number of final fruit set by each tomato plant. I will do my absolute best to give equal amounts of water by first measuring what each plant is given and offering the same amount to each plant.

My hypothesis is that the air pruning action of the soil blocked starts will produce stronger seedlings for transplanting in the long run because when that root hits the air, it will signal to the plant to produce roots on the interior of the soil elsewhere. More roots will mean the plant has more opportunities to take up moisture and nutrients in the long run. I also think the soil block with BOTH worm castings and activated charcoal will perform the best because the worm castings will further any biological activity that may be happening within the soil and “cling” to the activated charcoal which the plant can tap as it needs.

That’s my best guess, but I could be wrong! We shall see what plays out in our little science experiment. What do you think will perform the best and why? Tell us in the comments below!

Happy Growing!
Erin

Garden Planning, Warm Season Crops

Erin’s Top 9 Tomato Varieties to Grow

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Happy New Year! As we look forward to the year ahead, it’s time to start thinking about what kind of nutritious food can be grown!

We’ve wrapped up our trials from 2021 and data and out of all the many cultivars grown of tomatoes, I’ve settled on these being my favorites to try in 2022.

When growing tomatoes, it’s always a good idea to think about HOW you plant to consume and use them. It will be a big help to you to evaluate this as it will determine what kind of tomato you should grow. And the BEST part of growing tomatoes is you can enjoy great taste as well that surpass anything that can be found at your local grocery store!

Here’s Erin’s tried and tested picks:

  • Casady’s Folly Paste Tomato (Sauce or Slicing)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “This variety is from tomato and potato breeder, Tom Wagner, of Washington State. It is a fantastic producer and beautiful on and off the vine. It is super versatile as well… you can slice it and add to any recipe that asks for a chopped tomato. It excels for making sauce. When compared to equal number of plants, it even out-performed 3.65x times the popular similar Speckled Roman paste variety. Casady’s Folly had more bud production and peaked in mid-July, but just kept pumping out the tomatoes until the end of September earning its spot as my top pick this growing season.”
Casady's Folly Open Source Tomato Paste Variety bred and developed by Tom Wagner Tomato breeder. Seed for Sale Hydroponic Adapted
  • Cancelmo Family Heirloom Paste Tomato (Sauce or Slicing)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “Cancelmo Family Heirloom Paste Tomato is a wonderful oxheart-type tomato variety. It steadily produces good size meaty fruit making it a wonderful option for great tasting sauce, but can also make a nice slicer for BLT sandwiches as the size fits a slice of bread well and has low seed/pulp ratio. Because doesn’t produce as many seeds, we may swap in another variety once we sell out of our inventory with another variety that also performed well, so grab it while it’s part of the collection while you can.”
Cancelmo Family Paste Heirloom Tomato Oxheart Type good for Sauces Seed for Sale Hydroponic Adapted
  • Charlie Chapman Heirloom Tomato (Slicing or Stuffer)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “I was originally attracted to Charlie Chapman Heirloom Tomato for it’s ruffled mid-size appearance and that it was touted as a good stuffing cultivar. I think part of the fun of growing food you can’t find in the store is using it in new ways in the kitchen. It’s a great way to add interest to what you’re eating and delights younger children as well. It did not disappoint and actually produced well throughout the growing season. This is a red tomato, but an orange-tinted red. I love how they look like miniature pumpkins.“
Charlie Chapman Heirloom Tomato Seed for Sale Hydroponic adapted
  • Cherokee Purple Tomato or Paul Robeson Tomato ((Sauce or Slicing)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “Cherokee Purple is one of our favorite tasting tomatoes. It’s not our biggest producer, but I chose this variety based on its flavor profile. Our seed comes from local stock and has been adapted over several generations. In fact, when I compared my seed to other seed providers, our seed was larger and more plump — these are traits that World Guinness Book Record holder, Charles Wilber, recommends looking for in seed with good DNA.“
Cherokee Purple Heirloom Tomato Seed for Sale Hydroponic Adapted
  • Wagners Salad Green Tomato (aka: Green Elf) (Sauce or Slicing)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “We love fried green tomatoes and this determinate variety just pumped out nice firm green tomatoes much to our delight. The multiple buds it produced and actually set was amazing. I did have to prune it a bit for the Southern climate and for airflow, but I loved the thick sturdy stalk it had and the amount of production we got out of it. It’s a versatile tomato that looks pretty when added to red varieties in diced salsas or topping tacos or salads as well. “
Green Elf (aka: Wagner's Salad Green Tomato) developed by Tom Wagner tomato breeder. Hydroponic adapted. Grown using organic method.
  • Nostrano Grasso Italian Tomato (Sauce or Slicing)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “I was drawn to this variety because of the rariety of it in the United States as an Italian variety. I also thought the slight ruffled look of it was pretty and it did not disappoint. The production was wonderful and the tomato taste true Italian tomato flavors rang through checking all the boxes for me for a fantastic cultivar to grow. “
Nostrano Grasso Italian Heirloom Tomato Hydroponic adapted seed for sale Rare variety in the United States
  • Blue Cream Berries Cherry Tomato (Salad Topper or Snacking)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “This is a most unusual tomato. It looks unimpressive on the vine, but I always love to share it with my guests that come to the garden, just to see their look of surprise when they taste it. Your mind thinks it’s going to tart, but it’s not. It’s unlike any other tomato I have tried to date and the fact that it is known to also have those purple shoulders containing anthocyanans, well, it’s a tomato we should all be enjoying on salads or for snacking. What’s interesting is that the second year of adapting this variety the first fruits that came on where actually bigger than the previous year. This will be one I continue to grow out and adapt through hydroponics in the Southeast.“
Blue Cream Berries Cherry Tomato hydroponic adapted grown with organic methods seed for sale
  • Black Cherry Tomato (Salad Topper or Snacking)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “Our entire family loves the Black Cherry Tomato variety. Cherry Tomatoes are also easier to grow in the Southeast, so it’s a good starter tomato for anyone who hasn’t grown tomatoes before from seed. Like our other cultivars that have been adapted through hydroponic growing conditions, Black Cherry Tomatoes were larger and super tasty — especially early on in the season. These can be used for snacking, salads, sliced for tacos, or even sun-dried. “
Black Cherry Tomato hydroponic adapted grown using organic methods seed for sale
  • + Bonus: Naughty Marietta French Marigold (Co-planting and other beneficial uses)
    Why Erin chose it:
    “I wanted to include a marigold to encourage new growers to think of co-planting beneficial plants near one another. The marigold is fantastic for keeping some pest pressure down. You can grow and place in-between and around your plants that are growing, but the real benefit will be if you harvest some leaves and petals and make a biological tea and spray on your tomato plants once a week as a pro-active pest deterrent. “
Naughty Marietta French Marigold beneficial flower seed for sale

If you want to learn more about this collection, feel free to click here. We wish you the best and a wonderful 2022 Growing Season! Be sure to let us know in the comments below what your favorite tomato variety was from your last growing season. We all learn from each other through sharing!

Erin's Top Picks Tomato Seed Collection