Seed Saving - Tomatoes

Tomatoes are in full swing now and we have more than we can use ourselves. Next week I'll probably try to make some sauce, but this week I'm saving the seeds for next year.

1. Select the best fruit which will carry on those good genes to the next season. Free of cracks, good shape, good color, and plants that have a lot of fruit are all things to look for.

2. Slice open the tomato and put the seeds in a small bowl. Cover the seeds with 1/2 - 1 inch of water and place the bowl in a warm, dark place. Let the bowl sit there two to three days until it starts to ferment. That little sack around the tomato seed is there to keep it from sprouting inside the tomato and this process will remove the sack.

3. Skim off any junk which float to the top of the bowl.

4. Gently rinse the seeds under running water.

5. Spread the seeds on a dry paper towel to dry. Throw out any seeds which are brown, green or otherwise look odd. Let the seeds sit for a few days until completely dry. Store them for next year in a cool dry place.

3.

The First Sprouts of Spring

The tomatoes have started sprouting! They are about 2 - 3 inches now and growing quickly. I'll thin them to one sprout per container next week. I've read a suggestion to cut out the extra sprouts with scissors rather than pull them out so you do not disturb the roots of the spouts that will stay.

The tomato sprouts in the growing tray:

The Ramapo Tomato

The New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) is the farm extension agency here in New Jersey and they’ve recently started offering Ramapo tomato seeds.

A hybrid is the child of two different varieties which is bred to take the best attributes from both the parents, but also means that the seeds cannot be saved and reused for future plantings. If no one is breeding these plants, the variety will gradually disappear. Sometimes the reason for not breeding the plant is that while the flavor may be superior, the ability to travel long distances is lacking and a more durable, but less tasty variety wins out.

The Ramapo tomato is a hybrid tomato which is supposed to be rich in tomato flavor, was once quite popular, but was no longer available for exactly that reason.

link has the details on how to order the seeds and some interesting articles on the Ramapo tomato and tomatoes in general.

New Jersey has a long history with the tomato. It is in the top 10 tomato producing states, is home to Campbells Soup and has two varieties of tomato, Jersey and Rutgers, named for it. I've already ordered a couple of packets of Ramapo seeds and it is interesting to be bringing back something associated with this history.

The Ramapo tomato: