Tomatoes
Dates below are counted from the average last spring frost or the average first fall frost. Enter a ZIP in the calendar for NOAA 1991–2020 station averages, or pick a zone and use the zone table.
When to plant
Soil and site
Rich, deep soil with available calcium — blossom end rot is a calcium-plus-uneven-water problem. Mulch well.
Seedlings
Start 6 weeks before last frost, pot up once, and plant deep — every inch of buried stem grows roots.
In the garden
Stake or cage at planting, not after. Consistent water prevents cracking; prune suckers on indeterminates if you want fewer, larger fruit.
Picking
Pick at first blush and ripen on the counter during heat waves or ahead of storms — flavor doesn't suffer, and the birds lose.
Harvest
First harvest is about 60–85 days after transplanting. The picking window often runs about 10 weeks.
Pick at first blush and finish ripening indoors during heat waves. Full color is full flavor. Do not can tomatoes from dead or frost-killed vines.
Preserving
USDA's tested method for whole or halved tomatoes packed in water. Tomatoes have to be acidified. The same guide also offers a pressure-canner option. Use the linked tables for time, pressure, and altitude.
National Center for Home Food Preservation: Whole or halved tomatoes (packed in water) →Freeze raw or cooked tomatoes with the NCHFP method. Packing steps are on that page.
National Center for Home Food Preservation: Freezing tomatoes →Dry fully ripe tomatoes, then condition and store them as the NCHFP drying guide describes.
National Center for Home Food Preservation: Drying fruits and vegetables →A home freeze-dryer can dry this crop, but USDA has not published a canning-style time for it. Follow the appliance manual for load and cycle length, then store the dry food sealed. Freeze-drying is not a substitute for a tested canning process.
Appliance manual (no USDA process time)
Canning, pickling, and fermenting notes here are summaries of tested USDA and National Center for Home Food Preservation methods. Times, pressures, and amounts live only on those pages. This site does not publish home-invented processing times.
Gear placeholders
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- Placeholder: seeds for Tomatoes
- Placeholder: canning gear
- Placeholder: home freeze dryer
Dates by zone
These pages turn the same frost offsets into calendar dates for each zone the calendar covers.