Kitchen Garden Forum

I seem to have a couple of free packets of garden pearl tomato seeds.

Are they any good?

I grew them two years ago, good yield but disappointing taste and thick skins.

I would no bother again!

Jerry

I also grew them a few years ago and wouldn't bother again. No real taste.

I grew them last year & I would not grow them again either very bland, I'll go back to Gardeners Delight again this year

Helen

I grew a couple of them in hanging baskets last year, and although the taste wasn't as intense as other varieties, they were very, very prolific and great for freezing and cooking. I picked bowlfuls from the two plants and put them straight into plastic bags into the freezer. You might as well plant up a couple of containers if the seeds were free - you have nothing to lose!
Lyn

These are the variety that I will grow to offer at this summer's local village fete -- to give children the activity to repot and take away. They're perfect for kids - good in containers, determinate habit, small and very prolific. I'm not sure kids will be too choosy about the flavour. I hope you won't mind that I'm promoting less-than-flavourful toms to kids!

Thanks for the feed back guys, I think that I will promote them to the back of the pile.

Hello Piglet
This one came up on the old forum and I seem to remember that opinion was divided on them just like now. I grew several plants each in its own 12in pot a few years ago. They did very well trailing over the sides of the pot - nice and early, prolific with masses pink fruits about the size of small cherries. The taste was as good as a lot of toms these days.

John

Hi Piglet

I think we've talked about these but to recap, I grew them last year and although prolific I thought they were pants. You mentioned growing them in pots which may solve a lot of the problem as all the fruit was on the ground and in the mud as well as being eaten by slugs or something worse. In pots or hanging baskets they would do much better. I didn't rate the taste much either if I'm honest. However, there's only one way you'll find out; plant a few seeds and try them this year.

Chantal

Hum. I quite liked them. I grew them on a VERY sunny patio (light coloured paving, south facing brick wall behind) in pots. Quite sweet. Mother-in-law praised them too, and wants the same again this year. I preferred them to greenhouse grown gardener's delight, which were so thin skinned they were forever splitting.

Here's my little helper on watering duty.