The Fairview Flyer: 2026 season closeout

 

It’s been a great tomato season… there are no two ways about it! With 86 tomatoes over 11 producing plants, the numbers have been strong across the board, and for the first real season of propagating the “new hybrid heirloom” (“The Fairview Flyer”), 

a great season for the new variety!  I raised from seed and planted 12 plants across the three varietals: 6 "Fairview Flyers", 3 Mrs. Carfang’s “Big Pinks”, and 3 MaMa’s “old yellow” tomatoes.  One of the “Fairview Flyer “plants did not grow very well and produced no blossoms or fruit… thus 11 producing plants this season.

 

A few key “notable notes:”

Ø  I harvested well over 40 Fairview Flyer tomatoes, with one (pictured at the left of this picture below) that weighed in a 1¾ pounds… clearly the largest tomato I have ever grown. While huge in my book, my nephew Mike grew one “Fairview Flyer" plant this year in Virginia which produced well, with one fruit over 2 pounds!

 

Ø  The Fairview Flyer plants were very tall, well over 14 ft. tall by the end of the season, and a few had taproots that were over 2 ft. long.

 

Ø  All three varieties produced well, with the “Big Pinks” producing some really tasty fruit… still my favorite flavor I think!!

 

Ø  The “Fairview Flyer” had characteristics of both “parent” plants… producing plentiful reddish fruit with orange shoulders (pictured top right) , even taller plants than the “Big Pinks”, and had blight resistance that was good but not quite as strong as “Mama’s old yellows.” 

 

A great season all around and nothing beats going out to the garden, early on a summer morning, colander in hand, picking a good batch of all three types of tomatoes for great meals ahead.  As is our custom, I have saved seeds from great mid-season fruits, and the seeds are being stored in a dark spot, awaiting my seed starting work in mid-January!  Now for the fall/winter soil work and more reading about how to better manage the ground-based blight that ultimately brought my season to an end!  

I hope you all had a great Tomato season as well!!