If you don’t mind elaborating, which cultivars?
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O-33, Krainiy Sever, and Sub Arctic Plenty are a few to look into. I grew them - and about 20 others - in 2013 and found most to be sub-par but distinctly more cold tolerant than any others I’ve grown. Also, keep in mind that in the humid southeast, frost forms when temps go below 28F. Even the cold tolerant varieties have problems when frost forms on the leaves.
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Gotcha. So in humid regions they’re more just light frost resistant. Presumably they’re a bit better at ripening in cool weather?
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Ripening in cool weather is a different trait. Look up Earlinorth for a variety that has the Fruiting Temperature mutation. It can still grow and produce fruit down to about 40 degrees F. There are several varieties that have been selected specifically for ripening fruit in cold conditions. Sub Arctic Plenty is a good example. It is a fairly decent tomato. I grow Bloody Butcher most years as a golf ball size 55 day tomato. It also can ripen fruit in lower than normal temps though it takes more than 55 days to do so.
Earlinorth is in TGRC as LA2006. There are a few places that sell seed online.
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On the cool weather front, I grew San Francisco Fog and Visitacion valley (named for a neighborhood in SF) for a few years and thought they were pretty meh. I tell myself I coulda figured them out with one more year, but I moved to the sun and won’t be trying that.
Not sure if these cool weather suggestions share the same traits since San Francisco is obviously very different climate than the southeast or Russia. These are supposedly adapted for SF’s summers which are quite cool and foggy. Not sure if it’s just these tomatoes that are bland or cool weather ones in general
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I’ve grown San Francisco Fog and it is underwhelming and not cold tolerant. Earlinorth is a far better tomato with real cold tolerance so long as it is above 35F.
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