The Yellow, Gold and Orange Tomatoes

 

Amana Orange ($5.75)    (BB) 80 days. This huge and beautiful late season heirloom beefsteak is named for Amana, Iowa. The light-orange fruits grow to 2 pounds or more. Amana Orange is full flavored and slightly sweet with an enticing hint of tropical fruit flavors and a lovely texture. My customers in the southern states, including Florida and Texas are reporting great success with Amana Orange in hot weather.

 

    

Azoychka  (Ah-ZOYCH-kah) ($5.50) 65 days.   (E) One of the first to ripen in your garden, this juicy, scrumptious, lemon-yellow, 7 to 9 ounce tomato has a rich, lingering sweetness with a fine touch of acidity. Ripening in only 65 days from planting out, it has a delightful yet subtle hint of citrusy flavor. A spectacular Russian heirloom, Azoychka has become a favorite of chefs and tomato lovers worldwide. 

 

Blondkopfchen ( Blond- koff-shen) ($5.50) 75 days. Easily the finest tasting cherry tomato in existence, the name of this marvelous German heirloom cutie means 'Little Blond Head or Little Blond Girl. The big leafy plant produces thousands of 1/2 " grape-size sparkling yellow-gold cherry tomatoes in phenomenal clusters of 30 fruits per bunch! Delightfully sweet with a citrusy finish, this is the one to try with children who don't think they like tomatoes. As Gary says, " Just put one in your mouth and try to keep from smiling!" No cracking, with great disease resistance, this little sweetie grows anywhere and produces right up until frost.

 

Brandywine Yellow, Platfoot Strain ($5.50) 85 days.   (B) From Gary Platfoot of Ohio, this magnificent big 1 to 2 pound brightly-colored smooth-shaped yellow tomato with marvelous complex taste is a special strain of Yellow Brandywine which has a higher yield than regular Yellow Brandywine and offers the same elaborate, delicious tomato flavor. Gardeners who try this variety continue to grow it in their gardens.  Disease resistant and very easy to grow. It's a classic. I love it.

 

 

Dagma's Perfection ($5.50) (E) 72 days. TOP SELLER

As described by Gary Ibsen, renowned tomato expert, gourmet, author, connoisseur, and owner of Carmel TomatoFest, who named this extraordinary tomato for his lady love. This vigorous and abundant plant offers a bountiful harvest of medium-sized, 3" 12 oz., light yellow beefsteak fruits with beautifully delicate red striping. Deliciously flavorful with lingering sweet overtones of tropical fruit and subtle hints of lime, it is firm, juicy and elegant in the mouth. An enchanting tomato...delightful and jewel-like, just marvelous.

Dagma's Perfection is a best seller.

 

 

 

 

 

Flammée aka Jaune Flammée($5.50)  (E) 70 days. Very prolific and stunningly beautiful, Flammé is an unforgettable tomato. Intensely orange with a reddish blush on the blossom end, these flame-colored 2 ounce globes have a rich, tangy and exciting flavor that literally bursts in your mouth. Cut open to reveal a red interior, this fruit reminds me of a blood orange with its spectacular contrasting colors. Fruits of Flammé appear to glow on the vine against a backdrop of deep green foliage. Just marvelous.

 

 

 

 

 

Gramma Climen haga ($5.50)   

This fantastic Canadian tomato has been a huge favorite of mine for years. With a luminous orange hue and brilliant, citrusy sweet flavor--it's perfectly balanced and delicious.  Grown by T. McIntee's grandma, it is easy to grow, a very reliable producer of 6 to 10 ounce meaty fruits, about 3" across, round and smooth -- a truly memorable tomato. Give Gramma a place in your garden!

 

 

 

 

Hartman's Yellow Gooseberry AKA Yellow Gooseberry($5.50) 75 days.    

This very old variety from the 1860's is a brilliant 1" to 2 " yellow cherry tomato with big sweet flavors that explode in your mouth with an elegant irresistible pop! Just try to get more than a handful into the house after picking them fresh and warm from the summer sunshine.  A rare treat. Huge harvests! Incredibly prolific. Probably the best tasting yellow cherry and you will have enough to give them away by the basketful.  A Laurel's exclusive.

 

Hartman's Yellow Gooseberry photograph courtesy of my good friend Lisa Von Saunder of Amishland Heirloom Seeds  www.amishlandseeds.com in Pennsylvania. Check out her website!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hawaiian Pineapple ($5.50) (B) 90 days. A huge, breathtaking and much sought after golden-orange beefsteak with fruit that grows up to 1-1/2 lbs. When fruit is ripe it has a luscious, very rich, sweet pineapple-melon like flavor and heady tropical fragrance. Add the unusually high production of this plant, and it makes my top 10 list. A real knock-out and a top-seller.

 

 

 

  

Hillbilly ($5.50) (BB)  (E) 78 days. This old time heirloom from the hills of West Virginia, growing to 2 lbs., has stunning yellow and red dappled skin with sunset-hued rainbow stripes inside; makes gorgeous slices. Very sweet. Another top vote getter at TomatoFest in Carmel, California. This one has sold out early every year.

 

 

 

 

 

Kellogg's Breakfast ($5.50)     (E) 78 days. Wow whatta tomato!  These big 1 to 2 lb. bright orange beefsteak beauties from West Virginia are exactly the color of orange juice. This terrific fruit with its sweet, buttery, ambrosial flavor with a perfect balance of bright tanginess is a favorite of gourmets and gourmands everywhere. Sliced open, it reveals a rich creamy bright-orange flesh, just bursting with juice. A top seller year after year. 

 

 

 

 

   

 

NEW FOR 2013  Lollipop ($5.95) Okay, get ready for some delicious fun! From Gary Ibsen at Tomatofest.com, "This big, bushy plant with wispy foliage yields huge amounts of 1¼ inch, almost translucent, creamy, yellow cherry tomatoes in clusters of 6-10, which hang on the plants like lollipops and have unique, fruity-sweet, lemony flavors unlike other cherry tomatoes. Produces fruit continuously, even under high temps. This is an excellent cherry tomato suitable for farmer's markets. Also great as a salad tomato, a snacking tomato or for adding to your culinary creations. Another winner for your garden!"

 

 

NEW FOR 2013  

Purple Smudge AKA Orange Fleshed Purple Smudge. ($5.95)  70 days. This wild looking 2 to 4 ounce, brilliant orange fruit has a very unusual purple thumbprint or 'smudge' on the shoulder as it ripens. One of the first tomatoes to show this true purple-blue color trait, the unusual pattern gets more prominent in hot weather.  The part of the skin that gets the most sunlight turns deep purple, while the shaded part stays orange. Wait for it to ripen and you'll be rewarded with a mouthful of sweet, yummy, tomato, bright and tangy at first bite, then the sugar kicks in and the sweetness lingers in your mouth.

My seeds come from fruits I bought at the Torrance CA Farmers Market from Elser's Country Farm Stand. The tomatoes were delicious and selling like crazy, having 2 big beautiful gel cavities. The gel cavities is where the tangy 'kick' of the flavor lives.

Be sure not to overwater!  Many of these rare, unusual varieties need very moderate watering or they become mealy or watery. Hold back the watering as they begin to change color for a real taste treat and a big harvest. In fact, that goes for all of the heirlooms: too much water makes them crack and end up watery.

Photograph of Purple Smudge the property of Baker Creek Seeds and used here with their gracious permission.

 

 

 

Sun Gold ($6.25)     (EE) (H) 55 days. This is the one of the best cherry tomatoes I've ever tasted, rivaling Isis Candy, and ready to pick in only 55-60 days. It has the big, rich flavor of a full-size tomato, in a beautiful little deep-golden fruit growing in bountiful clusters on a huge plant. Sweet, rich, so beautiful...just left of center in top photo. Most of them won't make it into your house from the garden. If you send someone to pick them for you, keep your binoculars trained upon the picker. 

 

 

 

 

  

Summer Cider ($6.95)     Oh. My. God. Had my first taste of this spectacular fruit when I bought one at Elser's Country Farm Stand at our local farmers' market this summer. Amazing Terry and I brought it home, sliced it in half and starting eating. Lost our minds. This is one of the most incredibly delicious tomatoes I have ever tasted. Refreshing, juicy, fruity, sweet, tangy, sublime.  Meaty, full flavored, ambrosial.  Love it.

 

This photograph is the property of my friend Lisa VonSaunder of Amishland Heirloom Seeds www.amishlandseeds.com  and used here with her gracious permission.

 

 

 

 

Yellow Submarine  ($5.50) 70 days. (Ch) (E) Similar in appearance to Yellow Pear but with a deep, rich flavor and excellent texture, Yellow Submarine is replacing Yellow Pear for many gardeners who long for this beguiling shape and color yet with really big yummy tomatoey taste.  Now the cutest little tomato has great big flavor!

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