Since I once started a thread over here about the world's hottest chilies - I might as well do one for tomatoes also. So the video below is over 20 minutes long, but well worth watching. Because that's unofficially the world's largest tomato.
OK, so now the question is, how do some people have such giant tomatoes? While the majority of us have never had any such luck... What I've been able to gather, (so far), is this below: First thing of course is that only beefsteak tomatoes can grow this large. But not all of them. Because they need an extra stroke of luck. So the second thing I found was, that this extra stroke of luck actually has a name - And it's called a "Super Bloom". Basically this is when there is a dense cluster of flowers in your tomato plant that merge into one flower. So when it starts to fruit, 2 or more different tomatoes actually merge into one giant tomato. Third thing I found, is that there is a preferred bunch of seeds, or parent seeds. Which seems to be genetically more prone to producing a Super Bloom (sometimes also called a Mega Bloom) in comparison to others. So that's the Domingo type of heirloom beefsteak tomatoes, of the batch # 944 line of seeds, (not completely sure what all this means as right now I'm just in information collection mode)... Fourth thing I found, is that to make a tomato extra large, (be it of any type) - You have to put it in a controlled environment, which will be rich in carbon dioxide (CO2). As that's when your fruit grows extra large! So that's what I've been able to gather so far. On how to obtain a ginormous tomato. 1 - Good quality of giant heirloom beefsteak tomatoes, (some are more inclined to produce a Super Bloom then others). 2 - Be ready to give it CO2 gas, to make a Super Bloom grow even larger. I did not include any special type of soil or fertilizer in this list above, nor any pruning techniques that results in big and healthy tomatoes. Because that's something we can look up and tailor to our own individual needs, (literally no shortage of such information over the internet). So that's why I left that information out.
And I think now I have collected enough information here in this thread - Following which anyone who's interested can now potentially have a super giant tomato of their own. Which they can be proud of! Unfortunately these videos are long, so not suited for everyone. But, like I've already said, those of us who really want to learn about this - Now can over here.
ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES! Sorry I have to do this to you all, (by ruining my own thread) - But I just couldn't resist... I mean, what's life without any tomato humor!?
This thread made me laugh Growing any beefsteak tomato here is a big deal with a LOT of care....but I did indulge in some seeds for a Gigantomato from the UK. It will not have any chance of being as large as LARGE..if we get something that fits a slice of bread and tastes amazing....it's a Win! Interesting about the bloom clusters - I've seen that from time to time and picked them off I've always been a bit awe struck that you can propagate your Toms year round and as a perennial - if I'm not mistaken.
Yes that's true. I can plant them at any time of the year here in the South around the coast. But elsewhere in the country, no, not so much...
We've had some large tomatoes but of course nothing like that one. Ponderosa can be quite big. I wouldn't know what to do with such a large tomato. My goal is productivity, and flavor. For beefsteak types, I want then juicy and tasty, and production over a few months if possible. This year, I'm growing dark types (Dwarf BrandyFred and Dwarf Chocolate Champion), red (Dwarf TanundaRed), pink (New Big Dwarf - actually a century-old variety descended partly from Pink ponderosa) and yellow *a couple of dwarf varieties). I like the dwarf types a lot. They do great in my garden. Some have big tomatoes, good for a tomato sandwich or BLT. Or tomato pie yum yum yum!
I agree with you, our aim should be quality and flavor over size/weight plus other aesthetics. But for these of us (myself included) who do occasionally get obsessed with the size of what we produce - I did my best to have all the information collected in one place. Another thing which often starts to bother me. Is that tomatoes shrink a lot as we sun-dry them - Sure, they start to taste even more amazing. But the unavailable reduction is size starts to become like an itch that I cannot scratch. So that's how and why I got motivated to do this. Asi would appreciate a tomato slice, which is still of a decent size after getting sun-dried.
