Tomato Talk: Determinate vs. Indeterminate

       Since soon it will be time to start your seeds indoors. I thought I would talk about tomatoes, which are my favorite vegetable to grow, well botanically speaking they are a fruit but you get the idea.

       Now you may ask what is the difference between determinate and indeterminate tomato cultivars? They are all tomatoes right? The difference between determinate and indeterminate tomato cultivars lies in their growth and fruiting habits.

       Determinate tomatoes grow to a certain size and will not get any bigger. Determinate cultivars also usually set fruit sooner and most of the fruit is produced all at one time. Also another perk to growing determinate tomatoes is that they are smaller and require less soil; this trait makes them more suited for container gardening.

       Indeterminate cultivars on the other hand keep growing all season, set fruit later, and keep producing till frost. The photo attached to this post is of a Cherokee Purple Tomato I grew last season, which happens to be an indeterminate cultivar.