Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Furry Yellow Hog

Seeds for this tomato were sent gratis from Baker Creek as a *new test variety* and with a name like that...well hello, you can imagine how eager I was to grow this. They are of the 'peach type' due to the faint, fuzzy feel to the skin, even if this factor is hardly discernible on the tongue. From what information I could find, this is an experimental variety from Wild Boar Farms, and if the website weren't so bothersome, I'd have included a direct link. [Clicking on the links under the main header or clicking to enlarge images enables a pop-up ad that reappears even when you hit the 'BACK' button. Grrrr....]

At first I was under the impression that this was a cherry tomato, but Wild Boar's website points to a german page where the detail for this tomato translates loosely as such:

Yellow and greenish-white striped peach tomato; approx. 100 grams; mild, tangy flavor; very juicy; middle-maturing.

The first thing that I want to note about this variety is that it isn't middle-maturing, at least not in the prealpine mountains where we live. Of the Rouge d'Iraks, the Brandywines, the Cherokee Purples and Thessalonikis, this tomato is late, having given us less than a half dozen vine-ripened fruit. There is still a modest yield on the plants but they're still at the green furry stage, and I'm a little concerned since September has brought cooler temps. Even if it might seem otherwise from the macro shot, this is not a cherry-type, and the fruits on my plants range from 3-5 ounces. I still think the name is appropriate but maybe another adjective won't hurt - I'd call this one Furry Lazy Yellow Hog!

Soil/location(s):
area (A) mixed earth/potting soil in a large 5 gallon container
area (B) mixed clay/heavy soil situated on a medium slope with good drainage
Growing conditions/light: in full sun for most of the day (at least 8 hours)
Yield: modest, with 3-4 tomatoes in each cluster
Weight: 3-5 ounces with an almost apple-like shape to the larger fruit
Flavor/texture: light, citrusy flavor (even if my husband claims that it doesn't taste like a pomodoro as he knows it). Thick walls, meaty with not too much water in the gel.
A keeper or no?: at this early stage of my involvement with l'orto, I'm sticking with pinks, reds and blacks for now. Aside from the colors, I prefer deeper, more complex flavors. I love experimenting with the unique and unusual though, and am planting striped Black Pineapple tomatoes next year!
Extra notes:
No problems with pests or diseases other than slugs. I did a scratch-n-sniff test when they were partially yellow/half ripe (on the vine) and the smell reminded me of passionfruit! Some did sport a light showing of "freckles" but no other blemishes due to change in weather conditions (and again, we had a very mild summer this year). I just wish they would ripen.

8 comments:

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

A very thorough and interesting post about growing "exotic" tomatoes. I must say I have never been keen on yellow tomatoes. I like them RED. I know it is a lot of fun to experiment with different kinds of vegetables, berries or fruits. We have just planted a youngberry, a blackberry and a Loganberry, they are all thornless. Can you grow berries? Berries are a weakness of mine. I love to go out in the morning and gather them.Unfortunately Raspberries are not growing in my climate. Actually we are talking about tomatoes here, sorry for my deviation. We always plant tomatoes but we are only about 70% successful. The climate is not optimal to grow them. I hope yours will ripen before the cold weather sets in.

K and S said...

I am probably going to cover the rest of my tomato plants with plastic as the temp is forecasted to drop this weekend. Hopefully the tomato I have on the vines will ripen this way. I like red tomatoes too, I think if I saw yellow, I would wait and wait for them. I hope your tomatoes will ripen soon!!

Anonymous said...

Titania - No, no...deviations are good! I've learned so much new information from them! I can truthfully say that I will most likely never purchase seed for yellow or white tomatoes, but if the company wants to toss some my way I'm ready to catch! Ripe, deep red tomatoes are always the first that I used to reach for in the supermarkets, but now that we can grow our own...(at least for the summer). :-D

As for berries, they were on my order list but I had to give them the axe. I think they would do great here, but what with everything else that I wanted, the problem was for lack of space. For now I'll just have to be content with our young blueberry plants!

Kat - I actually thought about your little trick but with the amount of plants and the size of them, it would be too much fuss for me. Add to that Mr. Bentley who will surely want to bite on the plastic and pull it off the plants!!!! Yesterday I caught him digging in my newly planted lettuce patch. He had squirmed his way under the green plastic mesh "barrier"...I was so mad!

Anonymous said...

"Good Garden Greenstuff!" Or, should I say "Yellowstuff"?

Anonymous said...

Ha!!! Oh, my, Rowena! Seems like the only hoggy thing about this plant is the space it's taking up in your garden! And grrrr, why didn't Baker Creek send ME any test plants after my huge order?! Sigh. But I do love yellow tomatoes; really, I sometimes think I love them best of all... Thanks for a great post!

TYRA Hallsénius Lindhe said...

Smells like passionfruit, most interesting/ Tyra

Unknown said...

Great information about this tomato. :) I'm a traditionalist too when it comes to tomatoes because I really haven't had the opportunity to try some of the colorful heirloom varieties. Maybe soon, I hope I can sample them. :)

Hort Log said...

Sure looks like a melon to me...until you cut it that is.