There is no rest for a North Texas gardener. But we wouldn’t have it any other way! I just harvested a basketful of fall tomatoes from the garden, and lo and behold, it’s already time to start planning for the 2021 tomato growing season.
About The Dallas Tomato Trials
2020 marked the inaugural Dallas Tomato Trials, an informal but highly informative testing of 24 different heirloom or open-pollinated tomato varieties including 8 patio/container varieties. I also made these rare tomato varieties available for purchase as seedlings in March. (To be notified when seedlings are available for pre-order, please make sure that you are subscribed here.)
I tested all 24 tomato varieties and presented surveys to all those who purchased or received seedlings. You can read the results of the trial here.
Based on the success of the 2020 trials, I am very excited to announce that the tomato trials will be returning for 2021.
What’s New for 2021
The trials started informally, but my goal is to build the Dallas Tomato Trials into a valuable, large-scale source of research and information for home gardeners. Most plant trial programs are designed for agricultural producers or commercial growers and conducted in highly controlled environments that are difficult for a home gardener to replicate. In contrast, Dallas Tomato Trials data is collected from actual North Texas home gardens. The more participants we gather for the trials, the better the research will become so that we can build a rock-solid list of heirloom and open-pollinated tomatoes that are well-suited for growing in North Texas home gardens.
The 2021 Dallas Tomato Trials are being expanded and improved by the following:
- Public voting process to select the varieties that will be tested (and offered for sale) in 2021
- Gardeners can participate in the trial by purchasing trial seedlings OR by purchasing their own seeds and starting their own plants.
- More formalized data-collection procedures for trial participants including a Tomato Trials web destination for data reporting and sharing of information.
- Tomato selections will be grouped into six categories: Dwarf/Patio/Container (6), Giant (4), Interesting Color (4), Cherry/Grape/Pear (4), Weird/Unusual/Rare (2), Old Fashioned/Classic (4).
How to Vote
**VOTING HAS NOW ENDED** Visit this link to vote for the varieties you would like to see included and would like to be available for purchase (quantities are limited):
See which varieties received the most votes to become the 2021 Tomato Trials selections.
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