DESCRIPTION
This is a bushy, determinate variety that grows about three feet tall. Medium-sized, red and round fruits have great flavor. Plants are prolific and relatively disease resistant.
PROVENANCE
This is Oshkosh-grown seed originally from Celia Sawicki’s garden. Current local seed stewards include Celia Sawicki and Jason Mills.
GROWING RECOMMENDATIONS
Start indoors in early April for late May/early June transplanting. Since seeds need warmth to germinate, a grow light and possibly a heat mat would be helpful. Harden off transplants gradually, exposing them to outdoor sunlight and wind a few hours at a time before transplanting into the garden. Plant deeply in soil, covering all stem up to first side shoots, and maybe (especially if the indoor-grown plant has become long and spindly) pinching off bottom shoots to cover more stem with soil. Roots will form along the stem planted under soil. Mulch before watering transplants, taking care not to splash soil up onto plants (to mitigate against spreading soil-borne disease). Determinate varieties should not be pruned. These bushy plants require support of low trellis or cage, especially when loaded with fruit.
SEED SAVING
Tomato varieties should be spaced 20 feet apart for seed saving purposes. If saving for use within a year or two, simply spreading seeds on newspaper/paper towel/brown paper bag to dry will work. For seed sharing and longer-term storage, it is best to ferment the seeds to remove pulp which has sugars that could mold. After fermenting them, wash, strain and let dry on paper. Clean and dry tomato seeds can be sealed and stored in the freezer for many years.
CULINARY USE
This is a good salad tomato and also great for stuffing, especially since one gets a lot of uniform fruits ripening all at once.
PRESERVING THE HARVEST
This is Celia Sawicki’s favorite canning tomato. Can it whole, crushed, puréed or as a basis for vegetable juice.