Green Giant
($5.50) (E)
(B) 60-70 days.
Occasionally a
tomato comes along which deserves very special attention. This big, up to 2 lb.,
green when ripe tomato resoundingly stole the show August 27th at
Cincinnati's famous CHOPTAG
Tomato Taste Fest last year taking Best Of Show. We had the immense pleasure of tasting it
at TomatoFest in
Carmel,
California
where it captured the
hearts of tasters and garnered a great deal of attention. I have not been this
impressed by a tomato since discovering Goose Creek in the summer of 2004. On a
flavor scale of 1 to 100, Green Giant is a resounding 100.
Incredible. Unforgettable.
It
arose originally in the garden of Reinhard Kraft of Germany in 2000 when he
planted 30 seeds called 'Green Giant' from a friend in Canada. 29 of them grew
out regular leafed except for one which had big potato leafed foliage. Reinhard
cultivated that one, selecting the best fruit for several seasons, and continued
to save seeds. Yay, Reinhard. Seeds are not available commercially but I have
managed to secure some for the 2006 season from my buddy Cynthia Sandberg, owner of Love
Apple Farm in
Ben Lomond, CA.
Cynthia grew the magnificent Green Giant fruits we tasted at TomatoFest and
graciously let me use her photograph here.
Green Grape ($5.50)
(Ch)
60 days. These 1" by
1 ½" ripe fruits are yellow-green with an amber blush on the blossom end, and
lovely translucent pale-green on the inside growing on a small yet very prolific
plant. After tasting it again at TomatoFest this year I decided to include it on
the list for 2008. You will love it.
This compact
plant was developed by Tom Wagner who crossed Yellow Pear with Evergreen. Its
fruit has become wildly popular in restaurants and markets because of its unique
and very elaborate flavor, a certain tanginess balanced with just the perfect
touch of sweetness, stunning beauty and marvelous flavor--Green Grape really
stands out as great choice for the discerning tomato maniac.
NOTE:
How to tell
if a green-when-ripe tomato is ripe and not just a bitter unripe fruit?
Close your
eyes and feel it; if it's soft, it's ripe. Ripe green tomatoes are
sweet, luscious and a little tangy, just like a perfectly ripe red or
pink or orange tomato.
Green Zebra ($5.50)
(E)
72
days. Visually
enchanting, abundantly productive,
this 2-inch round fruit ripens to a beautiful amber gold with dark green
zebra-like stripes over the amber background. Inside, the flesh is beautiful,
sparkling green. Another wonderful
variety from Tom Wagner, it is gorgeous to
behold, tangy and deeply sweet with lingering flavors, like fine wine.
This exquisite tomato was chosen by chef extraordinaire, Alice Waters, for her restaurant, Chez
Panisse in Berkeley, California. In
my top 5.
Lime
Green Salad ($5.50) (VSM)
(D)
(E) 
52 days. This tomato has become one of my passions. I grew only one Lime Green Salad plant
the first season and
wish I'd grown 10.
This
petite plant, about 18 to 20" tall--great for small containers like 2 to 5 gallons, or in your main garden, produces early abundant harvests of
luscious tangy-sweet 3 to 4 oz. round lime-green tomatoes which literally burst
with intricate, sweet refreshing citrusy flavors when you bite into them. The flesh
inside is a gorgeous chartreuse, juicy...the flavor lingers. Unforgettable.
Go Back:
See available
varieties
Aunt Ruby's German
Green ($5.50)