Rutgers Tomato

• Delicious Heirloom Slicing Tomato
• 48-60 Inches Tall
• 24-36 Inches Wide
• Plant in Full Sun

Here is an oldy but goody, still a favorite heirloom indeterminate tomato that is a cross of JTD, a Campbell's Soup favorite, and Margold created in 1934. It is unequaled as a slicing tomato as well as to use in cooking. It has slightly flattened 6 ounce tomatoes with a bright red skin and good form. As an indeterminate it grows tall, and fruits all season long. This is a mid season tomato, taking about 2 ½ months to reach maturity. It exhibits an enhanced resistance to fusarium wilt, which is good news to any tomato gardener.

Heirloom tomatoes are typically open pollinated, meaning they are pollinated by the same variety of plant as they are. Crosses, or natural hybrids can occasionally occur and it can be interesting to see what the offspring from that cross, when planted by seed, brings to you in attributes and form. Sometimes famous varieties are made by accidental cross pollinations. The term ‘heirloom’ refers to a variety that grows true to seed and that is at least 50 years old. Rutgers Tomato remains a favorite to this day.

Rutgers Tomato Plant Care

Plant Rutgers indoors in soilless seed starting mix about 8 weeks before your area’s last frost date. Cover with ¼ inch of mix. They will germinate in about 7 to 14 days. Once they sprout, place a fluorescent or LED light about 4 inches from the seedlings, moving it up as they grow. Water regularly by misting or bottom watering, but avoid having plants sit in soggy mix. Harden off by moving outdoors little by little, giving them more sun each time until they can tolerate full sun. Plant in the garden when all danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures are above 65 degrees.

Growing Rutgers Tomato Plants

Once incorporated into your garden bed, mulch around them with a good quality mulch to help retain soil moisture. Tomatoes are heavy water users and must be kept consistently moist for best results. Do not let them dry to the point of wilting. Keep weeds down to minimize competition for soil nutrition. Water and feed frequently during the active growing season. Provide support for these indeterminate growers that can reach impressive heights and fruit over a long season. Use of tomato cages, trellises or stakes will help support the stalk and foliage and provide support for the fruit. Clip suckers (unproductive branches) along the first 8 inches of the stalk to help reduce any soil borne fungus or bacteria diseases from reaching the lower leaves.

Tomatoes make excellent container plants, giving even the smallest area gardeners a chance to enjoy their fresh fruits. Choose a container with drainage holes, and provide a tray with rocks in it to put the container on if you need to protect a finished surface. Do not let the container sit in a tray of water and be allowed to stay soggy as you will rot the roots of your plant. Select a large enough container that can resist tipping over when loaded with fruit, and will allow you to provide some support for the vine to grow on. Rutgers can grow to over 10 feet tall, and will spread 34 to 54 inches wide. Raised beds work well for gardeners with poor draining native soil.

Watering Rutgers Tomatoes

Water daily until your plants are established in the ground or their containers. Water frequently if planted in containers as these dry out faster than in ground plants will. Consider watering by irrigation if planted in a large garden area, or by a soaker hose in a smaller area to avoid splashing the foliage and giving rise to soil borne diseases.

Feeding Rutgers Tomato Plants

Fertilize your tomatoes about 3 weeks after planting in the ground with an organic tomato food. Alternatively, natural gardeners can apply a well rotted compost or make a compost tea to provide tomatoes with valuable nutrients that they can then use to produce fruit. If you notice blossom end rot beginning on your fruit, apply a soil amendment that is meant to add calcium to your soil to alleviate this problem. Fertilize every other week or as needed during the active growing season. If the weather gets hot and your plant slows fruit and flower production, cease fertilizing until cool weather arrives and your plant resumes its growth and production.

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