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Anytime gardeners get together, sooner or later, the subject turns
to favorite tomatoes. One old timer will say, "I want a tomato
that tastes like they did when I was a kid, one that will make
my mouth pucker with that real tomato taste." At the same
gathering, you will find someone else who has a sweet tooth and
prefers fruity, sweet tasting tomatoes. Such definite opinions
prove that preferred taste is quite subjective. Although we may
not agree on best taste, there are other factors to consider in
choosing a tomato variety. Not the least of these is whether it
will mature in our cool-summer, maritime climate.
Though we have a longer gardening season than gardeners in Vermont or Maine, we don't get the accumulated heat through the summer like most of the US. We need to select short-season varieties that do not require a lot of heat to ripen. When looking at the seed packet or catalog, read the "days to maturity" and choose tomatoes with the shortest number of days. The number usually will be all wrong for our climate, since ripening will happen much more slowly here. Still, they are a guide to help you choose a variety that stands a chance of ripening here.
Another consideration is whether the variety is open-pollinated or a hybrid. A hybrid seed comes from a cross between two different varieties, made to obtain a certain set of characteristics. (The seed from a hybrid has a different mix of the parent plants' genes and usually produces less desirable plants.) An open-pollinated variety holds on to the parents characteristics generation after generation. This is important, if you want to save seed.
Also, tomatoes have either a determinant or an indeterminate growth habit. Determinate tomatoes tend to have compact plants and the fruit ripens more closely together. Indeterminate plants continue to grow and the fruits keep setting until frost.
What follows is a list of varieties for the Northwest. Indet. is short for indeterminate varieties, Det. for determinate. The letters after the descriptions refer to seed companies that carry that variety. The supplier list is NOT exhaustive and is provided for the convenience of our readers. We do not endorse these suppliers or imply that the hundreds of other seed companies omitted are inferior in any way.
Quick picks: Stupice, Sungold, Early Girl, and Early Swedish or IPB are popular and dependable. First-time gardeners and gardeners new to the Northwest would do well to grow at least one of these. For more variety and detail, read on...
Brandywine--Indet. Open-pollinated. Dusty-red, fairly tangy, large fruits. Ripens late in our climate. This is a popular heirloom. T, P, AL, B, SC, C, J, TG
Celebrity--Det. Hybrid. Grows well in Northwest, very flavorful. Medium-sized to large, red fruit. Large plant for a determinate. T, P, B, J, TG, FM
Champion--Indet. Hybrid. Bigger than Early Girl, these medium to large, red tomatoes are meaty and not too sweet. Good performer, high yields. TG
Dona--Indet. Hybrid. Productive French variety. Medium red, oval shape, very meaty and early. This is a good choice for canning whole and salsa. TG
Early Girl--Indet. Hybrid. Very early, red salad tomato. Consistently does well in taste tests. Probably the most widely grown tomato in the Puget Sound area. B, P, T, TG, FM
Early Swedish or IPB--Indet. Open-pollinated. Very early, smallish, red fruits on prolific "potato-leafed" vines. A Washington State University release, prized for its earliness. AL
Early Cascade--Indet. Hybrid. Early, all-purpose small, red fruit. A good producer West of the Cascades. T, J, TG
Fantastic--Indet. Hybrid. Great flavor, does well in taste tests. Though called a mid-season, it is a bit on the late side here. Medium to large fruits. T, TG
Garden Peach--Indet. Open-pollinated. Slow to ripen, keeps well. It is a fruity-tasting tomato that is actually fuzzy. Great novelty. T, TG
Golden Nugget--Det. Hybrid. Early and productive OSU release. Small, yellow cherry tomato that resists cracking. Mid-sized, nearly seedless, meaty fruit. AL, T, J, C, TG
Jubilee--Indet. Open-pollinated. Large, orange, solid tomatoes with good texture. On the late side in our climate. TG, FM
Lemon Boy--Indet. Hybrid. Yellow-good size tomato. Mid-season around here and the best of the yellow tomatoes. P, TG, T
Mr. Stripey or Tigrella--Indet. Hybrid. Small red fruit, with clear yellow and orange stripes. These are so sweet and fruity tasting, they are like an entirely different fruit. Very early. TG
Oregon Spring--Det. Open-pollinated. Very meaty, excellent tasting, mid-to large-sized red fruits. Matures in a short season. OSU release. Takes cold well. AL, T, SC, S, J, TG
Seattle's Best of All--Indet. Open-pollinated. End of the early tomatoes, mild taste, a good choice for and all purpose red mid-sized fruit. T
Siberia--Det. Open-pollinated. Small to medium red tomato with green at the stem and unimpressive yields, but great taste. Very popular around here. TG
Small Fry--Det. Hybrid One inch red cherry tomatoes in clusters of 7-8. Great for small gardens, containers. Continuous fruiting, unlike many determinants. TG
Stupice--Indet. Open-pollinated. Very early, great tasting tomato. A sure-fire tomato in even a cool summer. AL, SC, TG, T
Sun Gold--Indet. Hybrid. These cherries ripen to a lovely orange. They have an extremely sweet, irresistible flavor; a personal favorite. Excellent dried. B, T, TG, S, C, J
Sweet Million--Indet. Hybrid. An improved Sweet 100 type cherry. Equally prolific and sweet, but with less cracking. T, TG, P
Sweetie--Indet. Open-pollinated. Lots of sweet fruit; a large cherry on large vines. T, TG
Top Sirloin--Indet. Hybrid. This new, beefy, red tomato is not yet widely available. Late to mature, but these big, flavorful fruits may be worth the wait. FM
Yellow Pear--Indet. Open-pollinated. Very, very prolific, mild cherry pears; intensified flavor when dried. Old time favorite. AL, TB, SC, C, J, T, TG
KEY TO SEED COMPANIES AND ADDRESSES
| AL | Abundant Life | PO Box 772 Port Townsend, WA 98368 B | Burpee | PO Box 5114 Warminster, PA 18974 CG | Cooks Garden, The | PO Box 65 Londonderry, VT 05148 FM | Ferry-Morse Seed Co. | PO Box 488 Fulton, KY 42041-0488 J | Johnny's Select Seeds | Foss Hill Road Albion, ME 04910 P | Park Seed Co. | Cokesbury Road Greenwood, SC 29647-0001 SC | Seeds of Change | PO Box 15700 Sante Fe, NM 87506-5700 S | Shepherds Seed | 6116 Highway 9 Felton, CA 95018 T | Territorial Seed Co. | PO Box 27 Lorane, OR 97451 TG | Tomato Growers | PO Box 2337 Fort Myers, FL 33902 | |
For more information contact your local WSU Extension Office.
