Senga's Blog
Eco-chic Outdoor Living & Exterior Design
January 17/2010 – The Planning Stage: Heirloom Tomato 'Brandywine'
Tomatoes are the essence of summer in vegetable gardening. Don’t plant a garden without a least a few tomato plants. I would like to say that this is it for the heirloom tomatoes this year but I am fascinated by the myriad of sizes, shapes, and colours and even names (can you say 'Bloody Butcher') of these beauties. But no heirloom edible garden would be complete with the ‘Brandywine.’
The Ascension of the Heirloom Tomato Rage
This tomato variety was partially responsible for the ascendance of the popularity of heirloom varieties due to its excellent flavour. While I picked up this package of seeds while in New Zealand it is readily available in North America. The ‘Brandywine’ Tomato can be described as ‘very rich, loud and distinctively spicy’ in flavour. This will definitely merit more experimentation in the kitchen than the usual culinary applications.
Botanical name: Lycopersicon esculentum ‘Brandywine’
Country of Origin: USA – Pennsylvannia (late 1800’s)
Description: Large fruits have deep pink skin and smooth red flesh. Plants produce 18-20 fruits
Best harvested: Large fruits 450 gr. (1 pound!)
Time to Sow Seeds: Early Spring - March 1 indoors (4 weeks before last spring frost)
Where to Sow and Grow: Start indoors and transplant to prepared bed with well rotted compost/manure in full sun. Space 30cm apart and trellis. In case of late frost protect plants under cloches which can be made from old clear plastic pop bottles.
Maturity: 78 Days
Tip: MUST pick fruit before ripens as susceptible to cracking during ripening stage
Taste: ‘Very rich, loud and distinctively spicy’
Uses: Sliced fresh, Salads, grilled and stay tuned for harvest time later this summer!
Place in Square Foot Garden: In the vertical vegetable section of the square foot garden on my edible green roof. As this variety will take a little time to mature this can be paired with a very fast growing vegetable such as a heirloom baby leaf lettuce mix I am using. By month’s end I will have this nicely slotted into a master plan of the vegetable garden and post it on my blog.
