Natures Garden Heirlooms - Best Large Heirloom Tomato Plants

vegeable garden
I - Indeterminate, once the plant starts to bloom it will set fruit and continue to bloom and set for the full season.

D – Determinate, the plant will bloom and set fruit once, usually over about a three week period.

Name	Description	Type	Image
Mortgage Lifter	Dates from the 1940’s, this plant produces many over 1 lb (some report up to 4 lbs) of meaty vigorous beefsteak type tomatoes with few seeds and great flavour, a good slicer. This flat tomato is a legend. It was developed by M.C.Byles who crossbred his best tomatoes for 6 years until he arrived at this variety. He sold them for $1.00 each and it was reported people would drive up to 200 miles for his plants. Being so popular “Charlie” paid off his mortgage, giving it the name Mortgage Lifter, and all this during the Depression! Highly productive and disease resistant this plant is now Endangered.	I Late Red
Sicillian Saucer	Huge red fruit with ridges, up to 2 lbs this slightly flattened, thick, juicy, meaty flesh has a good taste. Known as a non-sprawler this plant does not need caging.	I Mid Red
Sylvan Gaume	This old heirloom was obtained from an elderly Canadian gentleman in his 80’s, the original seed was from Russia. Known for its delicious flavour this is often a favorite of the large fruited tomatoes. A very large oxheart shaped fruit, a friend often gets 2-3 lb tomatoes. Quite a lovely plant to see with these large red fruit peeking through the green leaves.	I Late Red
Polish	This productive heirloom from Poland of 1 lb tomatoes has an excellent sweet flavour and is very attractive.	I Late Pink
Striped German	This unique tomato with red and yellow skin and red and yellow marbled interior has an outstanding flavour. The compact vines produce 1-2 lb fruits.	I Mid Bicoloured

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What is companion planting?

Every plant lives in a community and, like you and I, a plant has neighbours it likes and those it does not.

Plants also have pest issues. While a bug may love to munch on one plant there are others that repel the bug through smell, taste, or the chemicals it exudes. Planting the repelling plant by the plant that the bug is targeting provides it with protection from these pests without the use of harsh chemicals or pesticides.

To avoid spraying pesticides and herbicides on the food we serve ourselves and our family we can plant herbs to deter the problem from the very beginning. This is known as companion planting.

To repel tomato worms plant Borage.

Tomatoes protect asparagus from asparagus beetle and gooseberries from insects.

Stinging nettle grown close by improves the tomatoes keeping quality.

Tomatoes are compatible with chives, onions, parsley, marigold, nasturtium, and carrots.

Do not plant Tomatoes near corn, potatoes, kohlrabi, fennel or any brassica (cabbage family: including broccoli, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, brussels sprouts, rutabaga, turnip…)

For more information on companion planting, please follow the link below.