Beautifully Promiscuous and Tasty Tomato Project

[Kadence Luneman]

What are the odds of a solo Neandermato plant having fruit? Selfed or pollinated by other not-habrochaites plants? I have Improved Galapagos and Cache valley currant right near it. The rest is domestic or mostly domestic.
I had started several Neandermato. 2 got put in the garden. One didn't make it. I triple checked. There is only one plant.

[Kadence Luneman]

Solo Neandermato plant, tiny fruits growing. Can get more pics tomorrow.

[William Schlegel]

It is possible. Some habrochaites accessions are mixed SI and SC. Neandermato is essentially a super accession so some SC getting mixed in isn't unexpected. Also, back crossing may have happened which might just bring in SC- though we hoped that might be impossible.

[Kadence Luneman]

Close ups of the plant

[Kadence Luneman]

The plant from above. It's kind of sprawling out. Doesn't stand upright much.

[Kadence Luneman]

Improved Galapagos is rather low sprawling plant too. Next to them is Cache valley currant which is sprawling but also holds more upright branches.

[Joseph Lofthouse]

The Neadermato plant looks not fully wild to me. The pattern of leaflets on pure wild plants typically follows the pattern of "large-tiny-medium-tiny-large".

[Kadence Luneman]

Neandermato leaves and flowers

[Kadence Luneman]

As I was taking pics this big bee was busy on all the flowers. I saw it on the Neandermato, Cache valley currant, and improved Galapagos.

[Kadence Luneman]

Fruits are still hard and green. I'm going to save seed and mark it so I know it has the selfing ability.

I was curious if it being capable of selfing means it could be pollinated by domestic tomatoes? Or different genes for that?
If it can be then that would be a way to get the habro mother side genes into a population.

[William Schlegel]

Capable of selfing and capable of accepting domestic pollen may be two different things but could co-occur. I'd try pollinating it with Joseph's SI population and with domestic and see. It has super exserted stigmas so pretty easy to try different combinations and find out. Hybrids with it may be even more capable if you can make any with any of the possible parents.

[Adam Igra]

I grew some seeds from a farmers market, they were large green when ripe tomatoes with vertical stripes. I thought you might be interested that all the flowers have open stamens. Not seen it before.

[Tim DH]

Good photo!

[William Schlegel]

I found an interesting cross down in the foliage yesterday. 339 mild x 356. I was trying to cross with 356 because the 2025 plant refused to self or be manually crossed (still not a fruit on it)

339 is a offshoot of promiscuous I called The One x Mission Mountain and 356 is (Mission Mountain Morning or MMM x Galapagense X unknown) (MMM x (Promiscuous x LA2329)

Mission Mountain Morning is Mission Mountain Sunrise x Big Hill which is also known as HX-9 for OSSI.

Mission Mountain Sunrise is Brad x Blue Gold.

Big Hill is Jagodka x Hillbilly

Though if 356 is SI the 2024 generation was exposed to lots of potential fathers in the LA2329 arthropod resistant project so the true lineage might be a little more complex.

I am sometimes saddened to think that because of accidents of timing and some difficulty making crosses that while Big Hill is deeply integrated into my own work that Joseph's subsequent promiscuous project is underrepresented. This particular cross was made possible by improvements in my crossing skills in 2025. However the prior crosses on both sides were not. So with persistence I would guesstimate I'm making progress working with this promiscuous project material. 339 is easy to use as a cross mother and I have five packets of crosses with it already in 2025

339 mild x 283 31.25%
339 mild x 303 31.25%
339 mild x LA0410 56.25%
339 blue bicolor great fruity flavor x LA1385 56.25%
339 mild x PI 129143 56.25%

Also made
298 x SI
306 × SI
4-72 × SI
514 x 505

I just picked an LA0410 x 339 cross as well though that is just the reciprocal cross of one above.

Past years crosses included 292, 356, 514 and 339

I only have one surviving plant with green fruit of 292 direct seeded this year. It is MMM x (Promiscuous x LA2329). It may have been pollinated by SI if it is itself SI. I hope it ripens.

[reed]

Big Hill is Jagodka x Hillbilly

Hillbilly is one my old-time favorites as far as flavor. It's one I consider part of the regional group of old heirloom beef steak types that have a strong adaptation to my geographic area. I think they originated and still seem to be most associated with the Appalachian Mountains but also well north, and west of them but not quite so much east or south. I don't know why.

Another heirloom I discovered a few years ago called Willard Wynn is very similar to Hillbilly except it makes considerably more, slightly smaller fruits. With very similar flavor I've replaced Hillbilly and some other similar ones like Yellow Brandywine, Pineapple and even my beloved Mr. Stripy with Willard Wynn.

Can't help but wonder what might come out if that original cross was made with WW instead of Hillbilly.

I might have asked before, but do you know in what direction that original cross was done?