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Tomato varieties for south west france - help sought


MedocGreenie
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I have tried to grow my favourite English varieties of tomato, in my place in the Medoc bleu, with mixed results. I have also grown, successfully, the much loved Marmande variety.

Does anyone know of  other varieties of Tomato indigenous to the south of France, that I could source, and from where I could get them. I do like Marmande, but want a mix of varieties and a mix of maturity times too . Space is no object, I have a hectare, and a small serre plastique.

Thanks in anticipation

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Hi Medoc,

Marmande is your local variety but many others will do well in your area, both English and French soursed. Seed breeding is an international business and many toms that we grow in the UK will have been bred in Holland, France or whereever.

This chateau near us http://www.labourdaisiere.com/en/the-conservatory-of-tomato  grow 650 different varieties while these people further south do more than three hundred http://www.semences-bio-languedoc.com/domaine.htm

I think you can get plants / seed from these contacts but if not your local garden centre will help you.

Me, I like Cherry Toms and will be putting my order in to Thom[son and Morgan as soon as I get a spare moment.

Colin

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As Colin says, try your nearest garden centre, Point Vert etc.

If you wait a while they will have several types of plants, and I've always found them good value.

People around here seem to prefer the large beefy ones, which mine turned out to be last year. One of my neighbours had some small yellow pear-shaped ones which were delicious.

Look out for mildiou though.

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Last year we grew 6 types of tomato, 5 in beds and one (Ildi) in a pot.  We had a good result overall, lots of toms, enough to give away.

May be an idea to join one of the seed swap schemes, the sort of thing we're trying to set up here.

Apart from the local garden centres/brico sheds, look out for the plant fairs which seem to abound in late March/throughout April.  I was in a garden centre this morning and the toms are there already tho the weather is nowhere near good enough to plant them out.  They look about 2 months old so are definately forced under cover, dangerous to plant them out and every chance of later frosts.

I think the plant fairs are the best way of buying ready grown plants tho this year I'm growing tomatoes as part of the HDRA/Garden Organic Seed Guardian Scheme also.

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Thanks Patf and Tony.

I've set some Alan Titchmarsh organic Moneymaker seeds away in the serre, and risked a couple of 6 inch plants in the fleecy cloche, a variety called Brandywine (if only that were literally possible from seed....) , which a friend sent to me from canada. I agree with you, frost is still a risk, even here 4 miles from the atlantic. Still , I have to find a way to achieve successional maturity and not to have a gazillion giant marmande toms all screaming to be eaten in the first week of august. Do any of you know of seed swapping communities locally in the aquitaine or dordogne ?

MedocGreenie

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Seems as tho any seed swapping is being done by individuals - Dragon Rouge and I have a nice little exchange going, exchanging with people in the Uk is difficult because of the SAE thing.

I'm not aware of any French seed swapping communities tho I'm setting one up for a general cultural group I belong to, part of their gardening group.  I've been in touch with Seedy Sundays in the UK and they don't know of anything tho there are a few HDRA/Garden Organic members here in the SW.

I'd find out whether there are any local gardening associations close to home - through the Mairie or your local communitie de communes - and see whether they can help you.

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There seem to be some sites for seed and plant-swapping in France, if you google "échanges de graines", although I don't know any of them personally.

http://www.graines-et-plantes.com/

and

http://lepotager.free.fr/echanges_graines_plantes.htm

and

http://www.semeurs.net/   

look at all the tomato varieties they have!   http://www.semeurs.net/bourse_tomates.php

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[quote user="ukhostland"]

Me, I like Cherry Toms and will be putting my order in to Thom[son and Morgan as soon as I get a spare moment.

Colin

[/quote]

I bought lots of seeds from thompson & morgan during their half price autumn sale. They are now selling in france and I think they can't be beaten for their large choice of varieties. I find the only problem with british firms are their ungenerous amount of seed in each packet ( probably due to smaller gardens in the uk) so the half price sale was an opportunity to try new varieties. I'll always grow the tomato "Gardeners delight"( love the flavour) and this year are trying a newly revived type called"brandywine"(loved the name,but only 30 seeds!) and "roma" an italian plum type.

Lets just keep our hopes up that the blight doesn't show up.

W Rat

 

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[quote user="hakunamatata"]Grew toms from plants last year but would like to plant seed this year. I am new to gardening in this area and I do not have either greenhouse or window sills, when should I plant my seeds?[/quote]

I don't know when you should plant them but I planted plum tom seeds in pots last week. They are on the outside window ledge, with the shutters closed over them at night.

Tomatoes self-seed in the veg plot so I transplant the seedlings when I find them... they come up a bit later than pot sown seedlings but they are already hardened off and fruit at about the same time. 

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Dear Hakunamatata,

Perhaps Its a bit late for seed raising . I recommend you stay with plug plants this year and buy bell cloches or some type of propagator for next year. Harrodhorticultural do good ones.

My french asst. assures me that now is the time to transplant the first bush tomato seedlings , at 6 inches high in the serre plastique, and pot them in a raised patio pot with a glass bell cloche over them overnight. I'm wary about doing this given I have only 6 bush tomato plants raised this year but he's a wise old bird... However, if the weather at long last is turning for the better I'll get some really early fruits. When is everyone else going to risk going "outdoor" , those of you who live sufficiently far south? I've decided to keep my brandywine plants in the serre for some time yet, likewise the Marmande and the Roma, the latter which seem to dislike being hardened off in any way shape or form and would do just fine in the sahara ! Next year I'm going to change my tomato varieties thanks to the links provided by kind members on this thread.

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Good luck, Medocgreenie. Your tomatoes should do just fine. I was very envious of the tomatoes (and other veg) I saw when I visited my niece who lives probably quite near you (used to be Vertheuil, between Pauillac and St-Laurent du Medoc) and the soil in her garden was just fabulous - I don't know if it is because of being close to the Garonne estuary, or because the previous owners had fed the soil really well. If you live more on the other side near the ocean, it might be different soil and conditions though.

Here where I live it is partly a Mediterranean climate, partly mountainous as I am just on the border between the two, and the soil in my garden used to have nothing but vine growing, arid, heavy, stony, needing huge amounts of compost, and clever watering in the very hot summer.  Not as good as your side of France. Yet because of the sunshine, most tomatoes I have tried to grow have done very well - I now prefer the various beef tomatoes, (the red ones, pink ones yellow ones)as they have more flesh and fewer pips - otherwise I still love the very strongly flavoured and sweet small cherry tomatoes such as Gardener's Delight.

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Dear 5-element

I'm near Lake Hourtin, so have a huge lake, a huge ocean and a huge estuary all within 20miles. The soil is sandy loam and thus great for carrots and parnsips and beetroot but being so windy so much of the time vines will only grow with clever winbreak plantings all around. Also have to box a bit clever on tomatoes in that way, I plant them amongst sweetcorn and french beans so gain shelter and nitro-fixing. Bush varieties are a bonus for me in this windy microclimate. Marmande as I mentioned earlier is "the norm" here and yokels nearby seem to plant nothing else which is disappointing. next year when I have my long-dreamt-for huge new serre erected I shall go totally nuts and grow Ukrainian Black tomatoes, and a whole host of american heirloom oldies as well as sauce/paste tomatoes for passata and winter storage. Some of the links posted on this thread have opened me up to groups and organisations I never knew existed so I am eternally grateful.

Good luck with your growing this year, I guess its warming up there nicely right now. Love some of the wines coming out of your neck of the woods, much more exciting than the stuck-in-the muds here !

Cheers!

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Médocgreenie, I spent many holidays near Carcans (in Maubuisson) and swam many times in the lake,  so much easier than trying to swim in the ocean!

I am very glad the links were helpful - if one looks hard, I believe there are organic gardening groups in many areas, and that swapping seeds and plants is very popular. It must be a great way to meet people and make friends too.

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Dear Tony have been off air for some time and only just returned from the UK where there are some family difficulties.  Here I too lost my best friend Jean Claude the Basset who I miss every day so very much.  Normal morning routines are not the same and I just cannot get the Vets out of my head and the final moments.  It has destroyed me.

Some here will think I am stupid but I am trying to get my head around lots of things.

Tony have not forgotten the seeds I promised you and will do it this week end.  Think I have organic tom seeds as well.  Sorry in all of this have lots your address.  Please can you pm me with the details and I will post on Monday.

Meanwhile for bio tom plants in a huge range of varieties go to Ferme Ste Marthe and you can organise delivery to suit your schedule and weather conditions.  Have seen too heavily forced tom plants in the garden centres.  Too early here for the Vendee.

rdgs

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