Determinate, Indeterminate and Semi-Determinate Tomato Varieties

In our last blog, we discussed the difference between hybrid and heirloom tomatoes. Today, we'll talk about the differences between determinate, indeterminate and semi-determinate tomato varieties, and how to care for each. You can find the Tigerella Tomato (featured below) on our web site, along with a number of other great tomato seeds!

Determinate: a.k.a. bush; reach heights between 3-5’; set fruit all at once, offering one big harvest.

Pros:	Fruit are good for canning and making sauces; plants don’t need pruning.
Con:	Single harvest can leave you with an overabundance of tomatoes
Preferred growing method:    Caging or stalking

Indeterminate: a.k.a. vining; grow continuously and offer fruit all season long.

Pros:	Produces fruit until the first frost
Con:	Need lots of space; must be pruned, because the plant will concentrate on growing taller instead of producing fruit
Preferred growing method:    Trellising

Semi-Determinate: The best of both worlds – easy to manage like determinate varieties, and produces all season long like indeterminate varieities.

Pros:	Bushy and sturdy with thick stems; produce considerable and constantly.
Preferred growing method:    Caging or stalking