is there an actual vine tomato or it a tomato on the bush? if so where can i get vine tomatoes?
vine rippened tomatoes?
Tomato plants are called vine ewhen they are short compact determinates. Some of the indetermines can have vines reaching 25 feet. The on-the vine tomatoes sold in the grocery are from a group called cluster tomatoes. Usually green house grown 4-6 ounce tomatoes that ripen uniformly. Cluster Grande and Sweet Cluster are available from Twilley.
What about the registered varieties that include vine ripe in their names like Arkansas Vine Ripe? This is a most deceiving and confusing tomato moniker. Isn't a determinate bush tomato called "vine" a classic oxymoron? Is the answer to Imzadi's question to grow any indeterminate tomato? I think "vine ripe" labels that come on store bought tomatoes are bogus.
It is a marketing ploy like many others. The trick to these is that load up on branch and all ripen at the same time. Just snip off the branch and ship them out. They are gassed like all other shipping tomatoes, but because they are still on the vine, vine ripened. The official Arkansas vine ripe tomato is probably not a variety. Bradley county and surrounding are started out with the old Gulf State Market. Joe McFerran at the University of Arkansas undertook the improvement of the variety, introducing Bradley in 1961, Traveler in 1971, Traveler 76 in 1976, Ozark Pink in 1980. That seemed to be the end of the series. The traveler series shows up as the Arkansas Traveler in todays heirloom market. Probably the recipient of some of most fanciful stories ever told about a variety. Arkansas has a long love affair with the pink tomato and still hold a festival. I understand that plantings lean toward the red Mountain series from N. C. State.
http://www.arhomeandgarden.org/plantoftheweek/articles/tomato_traveler.htm
I just took these two photos of Costco tomatoes purchased today. Note the writing below the word tomatoes. Blurry but it says "gourmet vine ripened".
Note that they are labeled Beefsteak. What is not evident in the photo is that they are hothouse grown in Mexico and distributed via Canada. I have many thoughts on this but no comments. I've bought these tomatoes for years when our fresh supply runs out. I put them in a cool pantry, like my own end-of season ones and let them slowly ripen. They are actually not bad. Certainly not to be compared to most garden ones.
They cut the vine a bit short, but since they left a bit of the stem on I guess they feel justified in saying vine ripened. Gourmet is a code word for "It gonna cost you more". Note that they are red tomatoes.
Edited to add, Green house grown (hydroponic) are usually a bit better than winter field grown.
This message was edited Jan 15, 2011 8:56 PM
These actually have not a bit of vine attached. However, to add to the political correctness of the packaged product, the box top is labeled as being a part of "THE GREEN GRASS PROJECT" and in smaller letters below it says that the box is made from Chlorine free (is the "c" in chlorine capitalized anywhere except a Periodic Table?) recycled materials. They also claim to use "integrated pest management". 'splain that one by me. I wish I could cash in on the creative writing involved in marketing copy for today's produce and food manufacturers.
Grown in Mexico and distributed in through Canada? Why didn't they just stop In the US on their way?
True and I thought it a bit humorous that they are hot house grown in Mexico and then sent to Canada. Maybe that's how they keep them from ripening to soon. We just put our garden tomatoes in the basement but Mexico sends theirs to Canada. More space. lol
ok still confused. what started this is the commercial on tv for a local pizza place. they take you out to the tomato field and say vine ripened tomatoes.
so a vine ripened tomato is a cluster of tomatoes that ripen at the same time like grapes sorta then they just cut the cluster off.
Twilley does it sale just packs or is it for commercial growers only?
i want to try some different tomatoes but am on a very very limited budget. some one sent me a few dollars to buy me some tomatoes as she knows how bad it is here for us right now.
MaypopLaurel - here ya go: "Integrated pest mamagement"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_pest_management
In my garden, I practice IPM by letting the good bugs eat the bad bugs (LOL)
Actually a vine ripened tomato is one that is ripeed on the vine. Most home grown and farmers market toamtoes are ripened on the vine. Ripe tomatoes are too perishable to ship long distances. Commercailly grown tomatoes are picked green or at best with just a faint blush and sent to a facility where they are ripened with ethylene gas and then reshppied to distribution points. They can end with thousands of miles of travel. In the case of the Pizza add, They are just using a ploy to make you think thier pizza is better. Pizza uses processed tomatoes, usually tomato paste. Any variety home grown is normally ripened on the vine. The cluster tomatoes, sold as on the vine tomatoes, are shipped with part of the vine, so they can say with some degree of truth that they were ripened on the vine. Maypops photo shows the stems still attached so they are using the same ploy. In both cases though, they wer picked green and gas ripened.
My brother works at a place that grows greenhouse tomatoes and when the tomatoes are the size they want they come in an spray them with ethylene and the next morning they are nice and ripe. So when you buy the vine ripened in the store this is how they get such a uniform ripeness.
Thanks,
Pam