Apologies to everyone, this is from the ‘Under Gardener’ this time as your usual columnist has had an eye operation. Back in the days when we had a large garden open under the NGS scheme, I used to wear a badge saying ‘Under Gardener’, and people thought (mistakenly) that I knew something about the plants.
When they asked the name of something I didn’t know, I would say, “Oh, that’s a nomen incognescenti, quite rare, really”. Some smiled knowingly, but most had forgotten their Latin, and I got away with it.
I am passionate about tomatoes, and since we are looking back this year at so-called ‘heritage’ varieties, I thought it would be interesting to do this with tomatoes. Most of the new varieties that have become popular nowadays were developed for the commercial growers, and especially the supermarket trade, where perfect shape, colour, and keeping qualities take priority over taste. To some extent, horticultural shows encourage this, because fruits are judged purely on their appearance. Even the RHS show guide for judges emphasizes colour, size, shape, and uniformity, but do we really want our own home grown fruits to be like an EU straight banana, or look like ‘Tesco’s finest’, or would we prefer them to have exceptional taste?
This year I am experimenting, trying some of the best old varieties, and a couple of modern ones, to see whether they really do taste better. They have all been chosen because of a reputation for outstanding flavours. I am growing ‘Brandywine’ an old variety bred by the Amish community in America in 1886. It has pinkish beefsteak fruits. Unusually, the leaves, even on my little seedlings, are more like potato plants than tomatoes. ‘Black Krim’, a traditional pre-revolutionary Russian variety from around 1900. The name probably refers to present day (and much in the news) Crimea. 
A very dark, almost black, beefsteak tomato which likes hot sun. ‘San Marzano’, an Italian plum shaped chef’s variety which is ideal for pizzas. They have been grown in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius since the 1700’s. ‘Sungold’, which is the Head Gardener’s favourite, and ‘Gardener’s Delight’, which you probably all know.
When we get to harvesting time, and if the Head Gardener allows me to, I will let you know how my experiments with these old varieties have worked. Roll on Summer !