Well guys, we've reached the end of our tomato guides and we're ending on a sweet note. While we chose to share our list alphabetically this part ended up with an unintentional theme of small fruited tomatoes. Here you'll find an abundance of tomatoes that can be grown in small spaces, are prolific producers, and are bursting with sweetness.
Green Zebra on the left. Indigo Rose on the top right. We can't remember the others LoL!
If you missed the first four parts and are interested in discovering new tomato varieties, be sure to check out Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 of our Popular Tomato Guide.
Sun Gold
Matures: 55 – 65 days
Fruit Size: 1 oz.
Plant Type: Indeterminate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
Like hitting the jackpot, the Sun Gold tomato is bursting with sweet flavour. This perfect little snacker can satiate your sweet cravings. Mix into salsas along with more acidic flavours to create a robust flavour pallet or toss with fruit for a rich summer salad. While the sweetness is ready a week before ripening, picking when the hue has reached a deep orange will give you the richest taste.
Sweet Million
Matures: 60-62 days
Fruit Size: 1”
Plant Type: Indeterminate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
Trick your kids into eating healthy snacks by offering them one of these candy-like fruits. The Sweet Million is a brilliant combination of sweet and tangy, making these tomatoes an excellent choice for munching and adding to salads. As their name suggests, they bear an abundance of fruit. As an added bonus, not only are these fruits are crack resistant they are mature quickly meaning you'll get your tomato-y goodness early in the season.
Sweet 100
Matures: 68-70 days
Fruit Size: ½" to 1”
Plant Type: Indeterminate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
The Sweet 100 is a humble name for the abundance of fruit that this plant can produce; one to two plants can provide all season long, offering long vines filled with clusters. This cherry tomato is admired for it's candy-like sweetness in addition to its sheer volume of fruit. While an obvious favourite for snacking, this tomato also bodes well in salads, cooking, and canning. One downside is cracking which can be avoided by even watering throughout the season.
Sweet Treats
Matures: 70 days
Fruit Size: ¾ to 1 oz.
Plant Type: Indeterminate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
If gardening makes you hungry, you may want to consider planting this tomato in your garden. The Sweet Treats tomato is one that often doesn't see the kitchen because they're so tasty you'll want to eat them straight off the vine. The gourmet flavor of this tomato make them versatile for eating both fresh and cooked. Additionally, these small pink fruits are both disease and crack resistant.
Tiny Tim
Matures: 45–60
Fruit Size: ¾” to 1”
Plant Type: Determinate
Genetic Type: Heirloom
You don't have to have an acreage, a greenhouse or even a yard to grow tomatoes. All you need is a windowsill. The Tiny Tim was specifically bred to grow in small containers and thrives in inside houses, and even office spaces. Despite it's small size, this tiny fruit packs a lot of sweet flavour. The skin is thicker than other small flavours, which makes for that famous pop when you bite into one.
Tumbler
Matures: 55 days
Fruit Size: 1.5”
Plant Type: Determinate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
While most people associate hanging baskets with over-flowing flowers, vining tomatoes are actually an excellent choice for this apparatus. The Tumbler, while slightly larger than cherry tomatoes, are still vigorous producers with a sweet, refreshing flavour. What's more is that this variety bears fruit early in the season which means you'll be snacking sooner. So if you're looking to save some ground space, don't rule out gardening above your head!
Tumbling Tom Yellow
Matures: 63 – 70 days
Fruit Size: 1" to 2”
Plant Type: compact determinate
Genetic Type: Hybrid
If your torn between decorative gardening and edible garden, why not combine the two? The Tumbling Tom Yellow adds a burst of sunshine to tall planters and hanging baskets. Best of all, your eye candy also equals real candy as each drop of yellow is bursting with the classic cherry tomato sweetness. Add this flavourful tomato to salads, salads, and salsas or just eat them straight off the vine.
Harvesting
After choosing your varieties, planting, and warding off pests and diseases the time to harvest arrives! Best practice is usually to let the tomatoes fully ripen while on the plant, although that is not always possible. In this state, they will be the most fresh and flavorful.
In warm climates, with extended growing seasons you can probably just wait for ripening to occur without intervention and your harvest will be spread out over a long period of time; you will have plenty of opportunity to harvest and use your crop.
Colder climates can be a bit of a challenge. Often, only the first tomatoes to be pollinated will ripen on the plant before frost hits and leaves with a bunch of half grown green tomatoes. There are a few things that can be done to prevent this though.
Choosing determinate tomatoes with shorter growing seasons is a good option. If you like varieties that are indeterminate you can pinch off all the growing tips of your tomato plants to encourage them to flower earlier in the year.
Additionally, you can limit the number of sets (clusters of fruit) that each plant has so that the energy will go into fully developing existing fruit rather than producing more. In cold climates, 3-4 sets is usually ideal. The longer the growing season the more sets will have time to fully develop and ripen.
Even with using these tactics, you may still end up with some green tomatoes. What should you do with those green tomatoes? Our favorite option is to get a bunch of shallow cardboard boxes and spread the tomatoes out in a single layer. If you put down a few sheets of newspaper over these you can put a second layer over the first, if you like.
Another popular option is to pull the tomato plant up by the root and hang them upside down. Using this method will allow the remaining nutrients in the roots to trickle down into the fruits as they continue to ripen on the vine.
Then, put the boxes in a cool, dry place and they will slowly ripen. Make sure your storage area isn't too cold though because refrigerator-like conditions will tend to diminish the flavor and make the fruits mushy. You can speed the ripening process up by adding a green banana or two to each box. The bananas will release ethylene gas which will accelerate the ripening process.
Make sure to check on your stored tomatoes every day or two. If you have more than one layer per box, don't forget to check under the newspaper. If you forget to check, when you finally do you may be surprised to find rotten, overripe tomatoes on the bottom even if the ones on the top layer are still green.
Now is also a good time to can or dehydrate your crop. Even when taking all these measures, if you are a tomato lover, there is a good chance you will end up with more fresh tomatoes then you can use!
All photos and illustrations in this post are original work by Mrs. Canadian Renegade.
