Tomato growing season is upon us and you may or may not know, but tomato plants are either classified as determinate or indeterminate.

What’s the difference? Well, there are quite a few major differences in how they grow, how and when they produce tomatoes and how long they’ll produce fruit. There are pros and cons to both varieties and depending on your needs these facts may help you decide if you want to grow an indeterminate tomato or a determinate tomato. I grow both kinds and it’s really the best of both worlds

How do I know which variety each plant is? If you’re growing your tomatoes from seeds the back of the seed packet should specify whether it is a determinate or indeterminate variety. Sometimes these are abbreviated by DET and IND respectively. If you’re buying a seedling it often says determinate or indeterminate right on the information tag stuck in the soil. You can also look up the name of your tomato on the internet and find out.

Determinate Tomatoes

• Sometimes these are referred to as “bush” tomatoes.
• Determinate tomato plants set all of their fruit at once and all of the tomatoes ripen about the same time.
• The fruit tends to be smaller in weight than an indeterminate variety.
• They grow 4 – 5 feet and height and require minimal staking for support if any at all.
• They’re great to grow in containers and in small spaces.
• If you have a short growing season, determinate tomatoes are perfect because they mature within 45 – 60 days.
• You will not need to continuously prune determinate tomato plants. Only prune the leaves toward the bottom that would be touching the ground. This is to prevent soil-borne diseases from splashing up on your plant when watering.

Indeterminate Tomatoes

• Indeterminate tomato plants grow big and need a lot of room. These are not recommending for containers.
• They will grow 12 – 14 feet in height and will need sturdy staking and support.
• Indeterminate tomatoes produce fruit all season. These are great for those of us who want to continuously harvest tomatoes for salads and sandwiches all summer!
• Pruning the vines is not required, but it is recommended to control the vines and leaves so the plant can focus it’s energy on fruit production. Pruning allows air flow throughout the plant thus preventing disease and it will allow sunlight to ripen the fruit more quickly.
• If you have a long growing season you’ll enjoy an abundant harvest from indeterminate plants.

Common Determinate Tomatoes: Roma, San Marzano, Amish Paste. These are the tomatoes you’d want a lot of at once to make tomato sauces and salsas with.

Common Indeterminate Tomatoes: Cherry, Beefsteak, Big Boy, Better Boy. These tomatoes are the ones you want to pick all season for salads and to slice for burgers and sandwiches.

Which Tomatoes Should I Grow? If you’re like me and live in a long growing season and have multiple uses for tomatoes like making salsa and needing tomatoes all year then you should grow a mix of determinate and indeterminate types. If you have a short growing season and/or you’re looking to can and preserve a lot of tomato sauces and salsas you’d prefer the determinate varieties. If you live somewhere where you have a long summer and like to pop out to the garden for a handful of tomatoes for you salads all summer, grow the indeterminate types.