[siztenboots]

About three years ago, I heard about this Campari tomato variety that was described as tasting and smelling like tomatoes your grandparents grew. Due to becoming quite fed up with the usual boring varieties and tasteless supermarket offerings I decided to avoid the usual seed packet offerings and try growing these in our climate.

Before the tv programme ( I think it might have been GW talking about a hydroponic grower on the Isle of Wight ) I had not seen or heard about this variety in the UK.

I only found seed from one source that would sell to the public and this was an Ebay trader in the USA, who has since told me she is not allowed to sell this anymore due commercial rights ?

Last year I lost 100 plants that I started due to the blight , but I am hoping this year that the remaining seed I have is still viable, as finding a source for this has become impossible.

It has not helped that the seed envelopes seemed to get mislabelled with my chillis, so its a bit pot luck.

[Stevens706]

Good luck with your sowing, if you are successful and they are not a F1 variety you will be able to save the seed for next year.

[siztenboots]

I know that in the USA they have good success growing them from saved seed. From what I can find, a lot of commercialisation and massive greenhouse growing in the USA seems to be from the parent company growers in Holland.

Some information I know, but would welcome comments on, particularly the disease resistance what does all that mean?

Campari
Maturity: early
Greenhouse: +
Artificial light: +
Weight (g):  45-50
Shape: round
Plant vigour: medium vigorous
High resistance:  ToMV|Fol:0,1|Va|Vd|For|Ma|Mi|Mj
WI: +
Comments:  Appreciated worldwide for its quality and flavour.

Viruses
ToMV: Tomato Mosaic Virus

Fungi
Cf: Cladosporium fulvum
Va: Verticillium albo-atrum
Vd: Verticillium dahliae
Fol: Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici
For: Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. radicis-lycopersici
Ol: Oidium neolycopersici

[gobs]

I have never closely grown or known them but I've heard they are F1 greenhouse variety, Dave's garden also says they are sort of sterile, so I don't know about seed saving or the reliability thereof.

All that means they are resistant to all sorts of rots, fungal diseases and viruses, probably a major reason for their introduction.

Unfortunately, can't report on their flavour either.