Honey Delight F1 x Orange Dream (M)

Status: Active

Overview

Honey Delight × Orange Dream is an ongoing tomato breeding project focused on combining the flavor, productivity, and warm coloration traits of Honey Delight with compact micro and dwarf growth structures derived through Orange Dream lineage selections. The project is currently in early-generation segregation and observation phases, with emphasis placed on plant structure, fruit coloration, and maintaining usable flavor on reduced plant forms.

Parentage

Female Parent: Honey Delight F1

Male Parent: Orange Dream

Original Cross Year: 2025

Internal Project Code: HDOD

Project Goals

Primary goals currently under evaluation:

  • Preserve the flavor quality and production potential associated with Honey Delight

  • Reduce overall plant size toward micro or compact dwarf structure

  • Explore orange/yellow coloration

  • Maintain strong vigor despite compressed plant architecture

  • Evaluate ornamental and container-growing potential

  • Observe segregation patterns related to plant stature and fruit coloration

Current Active Generations: F3 Population

Current Status

Segregations: Size and Color

  • Dwarf Yellow

  • Dwarf Red

  • Dwarf Orange

  • Micro Yellow

Traits Under Observation

  • Micro growth habit

  • Compact dwarf structure

  • Internode spacing

  • Orange/yellow fruit coloration

  • Fruit production

  • Flavor retention

  • Foliage density

  • Structural stability

Findings

Early F2 populations appear to segregate strongly for both plant stature and fruit coloration. Initial observations suggest multiple combinations of orange, yellow, and red coloration are present within compact and intermediate growth habits.

Some selections currently display:

  • highly compressed growth

  • strong ornamental structure

  • varying degrees of anthocyanin shoulder coloration (dark green when unripe, Tan when ripe on yellow only)

Flavor and productivity stability remain under active observation.

Failures & Removed Selections

Selections that were non compact were removed within weeks of seeding, only the best structured and best tasting selection to each color was held back for continued trials in the F2 stage.

F1

This F1 cross was just a plain red tomato visually, no frills. The Taste was almost identical to the Honey Delight tomato, this was exactly what we had in mind. Only one plant was started and grown, although with the F1 seeds being from an F1 parent cross we could potentially see other lines come from this cross in the future if we grow out other seeds.

F2

This generation was finalized with a selection for compact plants in red, yellow, and orange each. One selection of micro was chosen out of two possible plants, one was diseased easily and cut from the program early on. This micro ripened yellow with slight antho shoulders. Brix scores for these crosses were generally higher than a majority of other tomatoes and have a flavor reminiscent of the parent honey delight.

F3

Seeded Mid April 2026

F3 generations were started with lower count populations, room for many other crosses was necessary. Several hundred seeds were saved for each color, we started 10 each. These seeds all germinated quickly and immediately culled plants showing micro behavior, none showed full size. 5 total plants in their own cells were selected for each color of compact.

5/12/26 At 4-5 weeks old three plants for each color were selected to put into 10 gallon containers together

5/19/26 at only 7 days later the change in these is drastic. All three selections seem to be growing at the same rate.