Sow in flats or cell-packs 6 to 8 weeks prior to transplanting outdoors. Tomato seed will not germinate in cool soil. To enhance germination soak seeds for 8 hrs. starting with warm water prior to sowing. Once sown, place trays or packs on a heat mat with consistent bottom heat of 75°-85°F. Plant seeds 1/4 inch deep. When plants are about 1 1/2 inches tall with two sets of true leaves, transplant into Jiffy® Peat Pots. After threat of frost, harden off tomato plants for 7-10 days, then transplant outdoors 3 to 4 feet apart when nighttime temperatures stay above 45°F. Maturity days given are from date of outdoor transplanting.
Tomatoes can be attacked by a range of diseases and insects, so monitor plants for symptoms throughout the growing season.
To combat diseases, you can grow varieties bred with resistance to common disease problems. With the help of your local extension service, determine what diseases are common in your area. Look for varieties with codes indicating resistance to those diseases. The disease resistance codes appear at the beginning of each variety description. If no codes are given, as with many heirlooms, that means they don't have bred-in disease resistance. Even resistant varieties may need some preventative fungicide applications, especially in wet, humid seasons when disease pressure is highest.
Common Tomato Disease Codes
V = Verticillium Wilt
F = Fusarium Wilt (FF = Races 1 & 2 and FFF = Races 1, 2 & 3)
N = Nematodes
T = Tobacco Mosaic Virus
A = Alternaria Stem Canker
St = Stemphylium Gray Leaf Spot
LB = Late Blight
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On Sale
$3.45–$8.50
$3.45–$4.25"Real tomato taste" in a turn-of-the-century Amish heirloom. The best for sauces and canning. Bright red fruits are...Buy Now Details -
On Sale
$5.25–$8.50
$4.25–$5.25( VFA GLS) One of our most popular hybrids because of its huge yields of large flavorful fruits. Plump, juicy, deep...Buy Now Details -
$4.65(VFA FOR GLS ToMV) Bright red, unbelievably juicy fruits weigh up to 1 lb. and with a higher Brix of 6.6, it's packed...Buy Now Details
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$5.75(VFFA GLS ToMV) "The best tomato yet developed," as described by many experts who named this colossal beauty the 1994...Buy Now Details
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$4.95(VFFA FOR GLS ToMV ToTv) With the added crimson gene this beauty is visibly deeper red inside and out. Fruits are...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$3.65–$8.50
$3.65–$4.25This huge prize-winning champion is a cross between two heirlooms that were bred by Minnie Zaccaria. Fruits...Buy Now Details -
$3.35–$7.9580 Days Prolific yielder, with an old-fashioned flavor you'll remember fondly from childhood. A multi-use old-timer...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$3.55–$8.50
$3.55–$4.2590-100 Days Heirloom Amish variety, dating back to 1885, generally considered to be the world's best-flavored...Buy Now Details -
$5.35(A) Big, crack-free fruits combined with exceptional flavor to make this one of America's favorite varieties. Fruits...Buy Now Details
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$4.95(VFFNT) Delivers every desirable quality in a compact, patio-type variety: extreme earliness and huge yields of firm,...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$5.85–$8.50
$4.25–$5.85(VFFA GLS ToMV) The standard for main-crop hybrids where multiple disease resistance is required. Resistant to all 5...Buy Now Details -
$4.95(VFFA GLS ToMV) Large, smooth 8 oz. fruits have an outstanding flavor. Widely adaptable for fresh markets and home...Buy Now Details
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$3.35A reliable producer of unusual, medium pink-purple fruits that appear brown in color, and average 8 to 12 oz.,...Buy Now Details
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$3.45Our only climbing type produces enormous yields. Vine grows 10 to 15 ft. tall and should be supported on a trellis....Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$3.45–$8.50
$3.45–$4.25An excellent slicer, with most fruits over 1 pound with many 2 to 3 pounds, and a long-time world record holder at...Buy Now Details -
$5.95(VFF) A popular variety that continues to bear until frost. Plants produce heavy crops of 4 to 5 oz. fruits,...Buy Now Details
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$3.45An attractive, tasty beefsteak-type with true yellow to pale orange skin and yellow flesh. Fruits weigh 6 to 7 oz....Buy Now Details
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$3.45Uniquely shaped pink type resembles a heart. Rosy-pink, smooth fruits weigh 12 oz. to 2 lbs. Flesh is firm, with few...Buy Now Details
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$3.55Mild flavor and low acidity make this one of the best varieties for tomato juice. Bright, golden-orange fruits, 2-1/2...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$5.35–$8.50
$4.25–$5.3565 Days VFFTA GLS ToMV. Very simply the best hybrid tomato on the market today. Beautiful, smooth, bright-red, deep...Buy Now Details -
$3.35An ancient heirloom from the hills of West Virginia. Huge, mild-flavored beefsteak-type fruits weigh up to 2 pounds....Buy Now Details
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$3.35The standard salad type with fruits that are somewhat larger than other cherry types. Tall growing plant produces a...Buy Now Details
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$3.75Perhaps the most beautiful fruit of all, a perfect globe shape, with a pleasant sweet flavor. Heavy, uniform vine...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$3.65–$8.50
$3.65–$4.25Said to have prevented bankruptcy. In the '30s, a guy nicknamed Radiator Charlie was in tough financial shape. He...Buy Now Details -
$3.45An old heirloom originally grown by the Mennonite community of Virginia and one of the best ever for slicing. Fruits...Buy Now Details
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$3.55(T LB) Has the vigor, disease resistance, and fruit-setting ability of a hybrid combined with the huge size and...Buy Now Details
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$3.35Beautiful dark red fruits, sweet, solid, and meaty. Fruits are smooth, free from cracks and seams, and - although...Buy Now Details
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$3.5590-100 Days A selection of Brandywine dating back to 1885. Deep red, 8 to 10 oz. fruits with luscious flavor on...Buy Now Details
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$3.55–$8.75Roma is considered to be the most well-known paste-type tomato, perfect for sauces, pastes and ketchup. Its heavy...Buy Now Details
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$3.45One of the best all-purpose varieties. Ideal for canning. Ripens evenly from inside out. Excellent flavor - rich,...Buy Now Details
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$3.95Very attractive, large, 3 in., blemish-free, beefsteak-type tomatoes can grow up to 1 lb.each! Juicy fruits are...Buy Now Details
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On Sale
$4.95–$8.50
$4.25–$4.95(F ToMV) The sweetest tomato in our trials, so sweet you'll eat them like candy. Each plant produces a seemingly...Buy Now Details -
$3.45(VF) This is it! Possibly the best early season-opening tomato in the world. Bred by Dr. Paul Thomas, the famous...Buy Now Details
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$3.45An old heirloom variety brought back from near extinction. Just one plant can produce up to 250 pink, meaty 2 oz....Buy Now Details
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$2.25Allergic to the pigment in red tomatoes? Skin and flesh are a creamy white, free of usual acids. Fruits weigh about 5...Buy Now Details
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$4.752023 AAS Regional Winner (Great Lakes, Heartland)! Home gardeners will be impressed with this early-maturing, high...Buy Now Details
