Jersey Tomatoes

Late winter always gets me longing to get out in the garden. Now is the time to think about garden planning, starting seeds and cleaning up garden spaces. And I can't help but think about my Jersey tomatoes. Any NJ gardener with space for vegetables should be growing tomatoes and though there are many varieties, at least one should be a Rutgers-developed "Jersey Tomato."

I got my 2018 order form for Rutgers 250, Ramapo, Moreton and KC-146 tomatoes (You can also use it to order a Jersey tomato t-shirt.)

In 2008, the "Rediscover the Jersey Tomato" program began with the re-introduction of the Ramapo tomato. That type was released in 1968 and was celebrating 50 years, but it is not your only choice.

The Rutgers 250 resulted from crossing the same parent varieties as the original 1934 "Rutgers’ tomato" with ones featuring high fruit quality and flavor. It was named in honor of the University’s 250th anniversary in 2016. It has a mid-season maturity and firm, crack-resistant fruit with a uniform color. These are semi-determinate plants and best if staked. Rutgers 250 was not bred specifically for disease resistance, but it shows good resistance to bacterial spot and bacterial speck.

The "Ramapo F1" hybrid tomato was developed at Rutgers NJAES and released in 1968. The seeds were unavailable for many years, but Rutgers reintroduced it in 2008. This is a mid to late season tomato (about 80 days) that has medium to large fruits that are resistant to cracking and Verticillium and Fusarium wilt.

The less well known Moreton F1 was Harris Seeds’ first F-1 hybrid, released in 1953 and one of the first hybrids grown by Jersey tomato growers. This early maturing, tasty variety was off the market and re-introduced in a cooperative effort by Harris and Rutgers. Moreton makes a good earlier maturing (70 days) garden choice. Many gardeners will plant several varieties to get ealy, mid and later yields. Moreton is also a treated seed that is popular in extreme climates with short growing seasons and in containers.

KC-146 tomato is also known as Campbell’s 146 because it was developed by Campbell’s Soup Company as a better flavored processing tomato and released in 1956. It was eventually replaced with newer varieties with a more disease resistance, but Campbell’s maintained the KC-146 stock as their flavor standard. A mid to late season tomato, resistant to Fusarium wilt, semi-determinate plants that take 78 days to maturity. This was developed for processing (soup etc.) but has great flavor as a fresh tomato.

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• Plant Diagnostic Lab
• Soil Testing Lab
• Rutgers Cooperative Extension County Offices