Tomato time in Niagara
It was too hot on the weekend to do any serious gardening, so I did the next best thing: Taste-test my tomatoes.
About half of my containergrown tomatoes have ripe fruit, so the timing was right to assess the progress and flavour of the 13 varieties I’m growing this year.
All of the crop was grown in large containers with cages or metal trellises for support. Although they received full sun and identical water and feeding regiments, certain varieties thrived while others suffered. I could blame the hot, humid weather, but tough conditions bring out the best (and the worst) habits of the tomatoes.
Brandywine tomatoes are not known for disease resistance, but they are just about ready to kick the bucket — the fruit is sparse, the few leaves that remain are yellow and brown, even the stems are blotched with brown. The foliage of Sweet Gold is also struggling, but the plant has produced a delicious crop. Super Marzano and Oxheart lost their first round of fruit to blossom end rot, very frustrating, but not that uncommon. The later fruit is unaffected.
It’s not all bad news, other tomato plants are lush and thriving. Midnight Snack, Indigo Ruby, Sugar Rush and Rainbow are showing vigorous growth, lush foliage and and a heavy crop of fruit. Cherokee Purple, San Marzano, Oxheart, Indigo Ruby, Ananas Noire and Rainbow are all late varieties, so they are not ready for tasting, they also look very promising.
Midnight Snack
Vigorous vine with dark green leaves with some purple markings, very clean. Unusual, clusters of unblemished round green and purple fruit are very pretty on the vine. They ripen to orange and then red with just a hint of purple, they are not sweet until they are ripe. About 15 tomatoes per cluster. Inside, very juicy, lots of seed, good flavour. The clusters of fruit ripen together so you can pick a whole cluster for a garnish on a platter. They won’t last long.
Sweet Gold
First ripe tomatoes of the season (about July 20), eight to 13 tomatoes per cluster, they ripen in sequence, a few each day. Unblemished, shiny, round fruit, golden yellow when ripe, no cracking. Sweet flavour, very juicy and delicious, not many seeds, low acid. Superb flavour while they are still warm from the sun. Excellent as a topping for bruschetta or in a salad. Fruit is not abundant, but still worth growing for the exceptional flavour.
Sweet Million
Classic grape-shaped tomato, very vigorous vine, firm red fruit appears in clusters (like grapes) Fruit ripens in sequence, a few per cluster each day. Light green leaves, good tomato flavour. Excellent for bruschetta, salads and box lunches.
Sugar Rush
Very early, small round fruit all over the plant, very vigorous, disease free, about 12 tomatoes per cluster, three to four clusters on each stem, super sweet, firm, skin is not bitter at all, seems very happy growing in a half wine barrel with a large tomato cage. A favourite of the grandchildren, lots of fruit to pick and snack on — I will definitely will grow this one again.
Big Rainbow
Lemon yellow inside and out, maybe the rainbow will appear as the fruit matures. Very meaty, almost no seeds, great for slicing for a burger or tomato sandwich. Very mild, low acid, but not much tomato flavour at this point. Largest tomato to date weighs 220 grams, which is not very heavy for a beefsteak-type tomato, a few cracks in the skin.
Ananas Noire
This variety is just starting to ripen, and I picked the first tomato for this test. Lush, very dark green leaves, the fruit is soft to the touch, and seems to have a very thin skin that splits at just about the equator line on the round fruit. The skin is yelloworange/brown coloured skin, not very pretty; inside, the flesh is green with a little pink in the centre, it might colour up more as it ripens. It tastes surprisingly sweet and looks pretty sliced on a plate. They look promising for late August eating.
Niagara Bruschetta
Bruschetta, pronounced brewskay-ta, celebrates the first local tomatoes of the season with style. Combine tomatoes, basil, local green onions and grilled artisan bread for a delicious appetizer for an alfresco dinner.
2 cups vine-ripened cluster tomatoes, quartered
½ French bread stick, sliced in ½-inch slices
6 Genovese basil leaves, slivered
½ cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 large clove garlic, peeled and cut in half
2 tbsp green onions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Coarse salt and black pepper
Gently toss the cut tomatoes and green onions in a small bowl with one tablespoon of olive oil, dash of balsamic vinegar, a pinch of salt and a few grindings of black pepper, set aside.
Brush both sides of the bread slices with olive oil and place them on a rimmed cookie sheet lined with baking parchment, rub the top side of the bread with cut garlic then top with grated Parmesan; bake in a 350 F oven until just crispy; keep an eye on them.
Top the rounds with the tomato mixture and dust with Parmesan cheese. Pop back in the oven, just to melt the cheese. Place the rounds on a serving plate and top with the slivered basil, garnish the plate with a sprig of basil and whole grape tomatoes. Serve with chilled Niagara Riesling.
Theresa Forte is a local garden columnist, photographer and speaker. You can reach her by calling 905-351-7540 or by email at theresa_forte@sympatico.ca.