Experiments That Yielded Fruit

My tomato breeding journey began in March 2023. I had already been starting tomato seeds for some of my gardening clients- some of my favorite varieties including Brad’s Atomic Grape, Tim’s Taste of Paradise, and Red Grape. Out of curiosity, I searched the internet for how to make a cross and tried my hand at it, crossing each with each other.

I got some viable seeds which I grew the next year and I was hooked. I started reading tomato breeding blogs and research papers and learning about tomato genetics and looking for the best tomato varieties to use as parents for new varieties. As I grew varieties, I noticed that some with almost universal acclaim were indeed all-stars, but others for me were duds. Some combination of the growing conditions here and my personal taste made me never want to grow most again.

I realized that I have a very particular taste and interest, and after learning more and growing many hundreds of tomatoes myself, I found three main projects that continue to pull me forward: Large “tangerine” tomatoes, Grape tomatoes of all colors, and Micro Dwarfs with interesting leaves (variegated, charteuse, woolly).

I also found that I like particular sizes and shapes of tomatoes— round orange-sized, passionfruit-size and shape, and grape-size and shape. And so my experiments continue within this framework of interest, hopefully with more to show for them soon!