Amish gardeners preserved and passed down the Pink Brandywine heirloom tomato so that it can be grown by gardeners today.
Determinate and Indeterminate
When selecting tomato varieties, you must choose between plants with different types of growth habits called determinate or indeterminate. All tomatoes are either one or the other.
Bush Goliath tomato was bred to be a shorter, stockier version of its parent, Goliath.
Determinate, or bush varieties, reach a certain plant height and then stop growing. The majority of their fruit matures within a month or two and appears at the ends of the branches. These are popular with gardeners who like to can, make sauce, or have another reason for wanting most of thier tomatoes at once. It might even be that you’d prefer to harvest early and leave late summer for a long vacation.
Most determinate varieties need a cage, but there are some very stocky varieties, such as Better Bush, that have a very sturdy main stems; they don’t need much support, just a stake to keep them from toppling in wind and rain. Varieties especially suited to growing in pots, such as Patio and Better Bush, are determinate. Little or no pruning is needed.
Indeterminate varieties continue to grow and produce tomatoes all along the stems throughout the growing season. Indeterminate plants need extra-tall supports of at least 5 feet. Because indeterminate varieties throw out so many shoots, gardeners often prune them for optimium-sized fruit or train them on a very tall trellis. However, if you don’t prune, no harm done! You may have seen photos of 10- or 15-foot tomato vines. These are definitely indeterminate types.
Most gardeners grow both types, determinate for large harvests for canning and freezing and indeterminate to get fruit for salads and sandwiches throughout the growing season.
A few varieties are called semi-determinate because they are somewhere in between. For best results, give them support.
Symbols for Disease Resistance
Early Girl, an indeterminate variety of tomato, will grow well over 6 feet.
Tomato names are often followed by capital letters that stand for resistance to certain diseases. This is very important because these diseases can wipe out a tomato crop. Bonnie Plant Farm offers varieties that have proven to be most productive with disease resistance a major consideration in our selection. Resistance to disease is indicated by these letters:
- V – Verticillium Wilt
- F – Fusarium Wilt ( two F’s indicate resistance to both races 1 and 2 )
- N – Nematodes
- A – Alternaria Stem Canker
- T – Tobacco Mosaic Virus
- St – Stemphylium ( gray leaf spot )
- SWV – Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus
- LB – Late Blight
Other Tomato Terms
Heirloom tomato - Any tomato that is at least fifty years old and is not a hybrid.
Hybrid tomato - A tomato bred by crossing varieties. Hybrids offer better disease resistance, higher yield, and other improved traits. Our hybrids are not genetically engineered.
Early variety - A tomato that matures in 50 to 60 days; these are prized for early harvests and late summer planting for a fall crop. Sometimes we refer to tomatoes that mature in more than 60 days as ‘early’, but only in comparison to their peers. For example, the earliest beefsteak type compared to other beefsteaks. Beefsteaks are typically longer maturing because they are so big!
I live on the Texas Gulf Coast and purchase Bonnie tomato plants. Can you identify those of your plants that are determinate? I do not find this information on the tags that identify the plants.
Hi Bill,
Yes, we do have a list of our determinate and indeterminate tomato varieties on our Tomatoes catalog page. Here are the links: determinate and indeterminate. Thanks for buying Bonnie plants!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
I just purchased two kinds of your tomatos. One is the bush goliath and the second is phoenix. I am new to gardening in Arizona and wonder how to care for these two types of plants. Are they even compatable with our hot climate?
Hi Rita,
Bonnie Plants grows varieties suited to the region where they’re sold, so your Bush Goliath and Phoenix plants should do well in the Arizona climate. In fact, Phoenix tomato is a new item for 2012 chosen specifically because it can take the heat. Be sure to read our article “Growing Tomatoes”: http://bonnieplants.com/growing/growing-tomatoes. You should also read “Drought Busting Techniques”: http://bonnieplants.com/library/drought-busting-techniques.
Happy gardening!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
Are all of your tomatoes labeled “HOMESTEAD” non-hybrid heirloom types? I purchased several different Bonnie tomatoes at WalMart here in Panama City Florida last year all of which were labeled “HOMESTEAD” . I intend to grow from last year’s seed. Will these produce viable tomatoes?
Hi Robert,
Yes, Homestead is one of our many heirloom tomato varieties and is well suited to your growing conditions in Florida. You might also try our Marion heirloom tomato this year. It’s also well adapted to the hot and humid South and has grown well in our south Alabama gardens. Best of luck!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
Thank you for you prompt and honest answer! I will indeed look for the Marion heirloom tomatoes!
PSST! Keep it to yourself, I always buy Bonnie plants……….
I have learned a lot about your tomatoes today from your posting.
how will better boy adapt to the Destin, Fl. temp.?
Better Boy is widely adapted across the country, so it should do fine in Destin, Florida. Learn more about this tomato on our Better Boy page.
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
Hi, I don’t have a garden, and haven’t planted anything before, and want to buy a tomato in a pot and put it in my backyard. I don’t want the cherry tomatoes, and want to use the tomato for soup with beef, so I want the tomato with a very ripe tomato flavor. I am in So Cal, and want to buy it now and hopefully get something out soon. Could you please recommend one species? Thanks!
Hi Hila,
Glad you’re going to start gardening this year! You should try Roma tomato. Roma is good for cooking in soups and stews and for canning because it’s very meaty (instead of juicy). It’s also a short, determinate plant, so it will grow well in a pot. Be sure to pick the right size pot, 18-24 inches for a tomato. You should get handfuls of Roma tomatoes for a few weeks after the plant starts fruiting. Collect them to use in your soups and stews.
Best of luck! Let us know how it grows.
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
I live in a town in OK that sells a lot of Bonnie tomato plants. the tag tells determinate or indeterminatebut does not tell the VFFNT about the plants. How do we know?
Thank you Martha
Hi Martha,
Our variety description pages include information about disease resistance. Search the list of Bonnie tomato varieties for the varieties you’re planning to plant. Also read our article about Tomato Terms.
Best of luck!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
I live on the eastern plans of Colorado, I would like to know which tomato would do the best. Our season is short and hot.
It also gets pretty windy where I live. In the past I have had trouble with the fruit cracking on me. I like them for slicing. Of course the Roma tomato for sauce. I get a lot of plant, but not much fruit.
Thank You,
Ed
Hi Ed,
The Bonnie Plants station manager near you in La Junta, Colorado, suggests that you try Solar Fire or Heatmaster. These are both heat-tolerant tomato varieties. Tomato cracking or splitting occurs when the fruit takes up water faster than the fruit can expand, which happens after dry weather. Give your plants consistent water as best you can.
Happy growing!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
I just came to the site to learn about the Summer Set tomato. I just bought a couple of the Bonnie Summer Set plants. I find nothing about the Summer Set which is a hybrid and Determinate. Thank you for any info you may give.
Hi Glenn,
Summer Set is one of our new heat-tolerant tomato varieties. Click this link to learn more about this tomato variety: Summer Set. Come back later in the season to rate and review Summer Set, or write to let us know how you like this tomato!
Happy growing!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
I live in northern mich. Our growing season is not real long. We get frost in Sept. What would be the best to grow for canning?
Hi Bonnie,
We like your name! The good news, despite your short season, is that you do have options for a bountiful harvest. If you choose varieties that ripen in 75 days or less, you should be in the clear. Also, consider “determinate” varieties that usually set a lot of fruit at the same time so that you may can them all at once. Tomatoes to consider for your area are Early Girl, Celebrity, Better Bush, or Big Beef. Roma is great for sauces, canning and paste. Look at our full listing of tomatoes, and check out our new tool, the “Tomato Chooser.” ~Mary Beth, Bonnie Plants
I live in Central Florida and this is the fourth year I’ll have attempted to grow tomatoes in our sandy soil, a relatively fruitless effort in the preceding years. This year I bought Better Boy, Celebrity, Beefmaster and something starting with BHN. After digging deep holes for my transplants (though not necessary deep enough to cover 2/3 of each plant but still quite deep) I first filled the holes with mushroom compost, composted cow manure, cottonseed meal, kelp meal and greensand to a depth of 3″ or more and then backfilled with existing dirt mixed with compost. At first I was watering daily but noticed some wilting on the leaves and cut back just enough not to see that occurring anymore. Our summer months are long and hot here and I want the plants to be well established by the time we enter the hottest months. I’m feeding weekly with Bonnie Plant Food, but like the results obtained with fish emulsion on my other plants and plan to alternate feeding with it and Bonnie. I’m seeing lots of buds and we have several nicely formed tomatoes already. How does it sound like I’m doing to you so far? And will we need to cover the tomatoes to keep stinkbugs and birds away? Thanks for any suggestions you may have.
Hi Barbara,
I applaud your efforts to grow tomatoes in your challenging soil! It sounds like you are taking the right approach to making your sandy soil more fertile for growing tomatoes and other vegetables. Here are a few articles I suggest you read:
Growing Tomatoes
Heat-Tolerant Tomato Varieties
How Much Water Do Vegetables Need?
Hot Summer Watering
Drought-Busting Techniques
Conquer Blossom End Rot
If you encounter problems as the season progresses and the temperature rises, use our Ask an Expert service to get feedback and solutions. This is a free service that connects you to a nationwide network of Extension experts.
Happy growing!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants
From southern il do you recommend dickering brandywine tomatoes.
Hi Gary,
We get a lot of questions about pruning or suckering tomatoes. You can do this but it’s not necessary. Some gardeners will prune up to 12 or 18 inches off the ground to avoid any soil-borne diseases that can splash up from the ground onto the plant’s leaves. This should work for you in southern Illinois where you’re bound to get lots of rain.
Happy growing!
Kelly, Bonnie Plants