From beefsteak to baby cherry, heirlooms to hybrids, there are over 10,000 known tomato varieties, so we can be forgiven for having trouble deciding which is the best tomato to grow in our gardens. But this incredible variety means that, however big or small your yard, and whatever your USDA zone or growing conditions, there is a variety that is perfect for you. Not too big, not too small, but Goldwood-just right for a bountiful harvest of tasty fruit that makes the most of the outdoor space you have.
i have been tomato cultivation for 20 years, starting with a single small plant in a patio pot and gradually scaling my harvest to match the size of my garden, and now I have a vegetable patch filled with huge vines. I like to experiment with different varieties every year, renewing only those that really earn their garden space with lots of delicious food and zero hassle. So I can promise that even if you only have a windowsill, you can enjoy tasty, easy-to-grow tomatoes all summer long. The secret is simply to find the best tomato variety for your growing conditions.
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Get this match right and rest is simple. All of these varieties are easy to grow (I’ve included links so you can see exactly what I’m talking about, but support your local retailers too). Start the seeds in the original seed mixture like this one from Gardenera via Amazonor start with a young plant that can go straight into a container with an all-purpose nutrient potting mix like this one from Amazon. Bet unless it’s a bushy variety – using a cage is the easiest option, but make sure it’s strong like this one from Amazon as tomatoes are heavy!
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If you are growing tomatoes in the ground, then enrich your soil first with organic matter such as worm castings like these from Amazon. Add coconut like this one from AmazonIt will also improve drainage and the soil’s ability to hold water – and consistent moisture is the key to growing great tomatoes. Enriched soil or potting mix will have enough nutrients for strong growth but, once you spot flowers and the first fruit starting to set, you can feed a bountiful harvest with a tomato food such as Espoma Organic Tomato! from Amazon. Potted plants will need more regular feeding than those growing in the ground.
Here are the top 10 tomato varieties to grow for maximum flavor in whatever garden space you have. Which one is right for you?
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1. Best tomato for window or balcony: Red terrace
This little powerhouse of a plant means anyone can grow tomatoes as it only reaches a little over a foot in height and width. It has been bred to thrive in a container, so place it in a window or balcony pot for plenty of cherry tomatoes in the tiniest space. You could grow it as a centerpiece for your outdoor dining area for the freshest options for summer meals. Or it can even be grown on a sunny windowsill indoors: just shake the plant gently to pollinate the flowers in the absence of bees.
As it is one determined variety, ‘Verandah Red’ naturally grows into a bushy shape that does not require staking. Incredibly versatile and quick to mature in around 60 days, it can be grown in all zones.
2. Best Tomato for Vegetables: Raindrops
If you have the space to stake 8-foot-tall, 2-3-foot-wide ‘Raindrops’ in a vegetable patch, then you’ll enjoy tasty cherry tomatoes until the first frost. This vague The hybrid has been bred to be sown directly into the ground and is very easy to grow, even for novice gardeners. And, as its name suggests, it is quite weather resistant with good durability crack if a heat wave hits.
They take 70 days to mature, so get the seeds in the ground as soon as possible last frost date.
3. Best tomato for a huge yard: SteakHouse
One of the largest in the world beef steak tomatoes, just one “SteakHouse” tom can weigh up to 3 kg and a single slice is enough for an entire sandwich! Also known as ‘Gigantomo’, this variety is incredibly tasty for its size, with a wonderful aroma. This is an indeterminate variety, so it needs strong support and can reach 6 feet in height and width. It takes about 80 days to mature, so it needs a long growing season in a warm, sunny climate, so it’s best for zones 7–9, but will be fine in zones 5–6 as long as it has a sunny, sheltered spot.
4. Best tomato for a hanging basket: Sunpeach
Put ‘Sunpeach’ in a sturdy hanging basket and you’ll have cascading stems filled with pretty pink cherry blossoms all summer long. Give it the biggest basket you can and hang it high on a strong chain, though, because this is an extremely prolific variety and the stems can reach 8 feet!
Choose a fixed-sided hanging basket to retain moisture, but you’ll need to water extra regularly as compost will dry out more quickly in an exposed spot. Unlike many similar varieties, this indeterminate variety is very hardy crack and, as long as you take care of it, it will reward you with toms until the first frost. It does best in a hanging basket in zones 5–8. While it will cope in zones 3 and 4 and 9, it is best to give it an easier life by growing it vertically in a trellis container.
5. Best tomato for a trellis or fence: Super Sweet 100
‘Super Sweet 100’ is incredibly abundant with pendulous clusters of bright red cherry tomatoes, making it both attractive and prolific. Plants can reach 6 feet tall—and even taller in the right conditions—but only spread to about 1 ½ feet, making it the perfect shape to grow a trellis attached to a fence. Tomatoes are deliciously sweet, so this variety will also provide plenty of gardening snacks.
This is an indeterminate variety, so it will produce tomatoes all summer and, if you take care of it, into the fall. It prefers a warmer climate, so zones 5-9 provide optimal conditions.
6. Best Cherry Tomato For a Patio Pot: Baby Boomer
Competition for this category was fierce, as many tomato varieties have been bred specifically for pots. But “Baby Boomer” earns my top spot because of its incredible abundance in the smallest space. A plant just 2 feet tall and wide can produce about 300 tomatoes, and each one is a sweet-tasting 1-ounce diamond. It also ripens incredibly fast, taking just 50-55 days to fruit.
“The only downside to the Baby Boomer is that they tend to produce their fruits at the same time. ‘Sweetheart of the Patio’ is a better choice. Or, better yet, grow both! ‘Baby Boomer’ and ‘Sweetheart of the Patio’ are both suitable for zones 3–11.
7. Best Beefsteak Tomato For a Patio Pot: BushSteak
Years ago, you had to have plenty of garden space to grow beef steak tomatoes, but not anymore! ‘BushSteak’ bears large 8–12 oz tomatoes on compact plants less than 2 feet tall. The flavor is rich and the texture meaty, so don’t worry that this dwarf plant isn’t as tasty as the taller varieties.
Despite the defining variety, it’s a good idea to back the ‘BushSteak’ because of the weight of these distinctive beef steaks. Because it is very versatile and an early grower with cuttings in as little as 65 days, this variety can be grown in zones 2–11.
8. Best Tomato for Southern States: Heatmaster
Bred to excel in hot, humid climates where many other varieties struggle, ‘Heatmaster’ is the perfect choice if you live in zones 8–11. Since it is a bushy determinate variety, it will cope just fine with life in a container as well as in the ground, although it will still need a cage as it grows to 3 feet tall and wide.
This shredder produces 7–8oz toms with great flavor, and although it matures a bit slower than others, taking 75 days, this is not a problem with the long growing season of the southern states.
9. Best Tomato For Northern States: Early Girl
This variety matures incredibly quickly, growing from seedling to fruiting plant in about 59 days, making it an excellent choice for the shorter growing season of northern states. ‘Early Girl’ is an indeterminate variety with 5 oz toms, reaching about 4½ feet tall and wide, that fruits throughout the summer.
If you want to stick seeds directly into the ground – yes, even in the North! – then this Garden Sown Early Bird The designated variety is cold hardy, so it grows well from early direct sowing. Grows smaller cut cherries and takes 75 days to ripen.
10. Best tomato for high rainfall areas: Mountain Magic
Think it’s not worth growing toms because high rainfall and humidity are calling you all tomato disease transition; Think again! ‘Mountain Magic’ has been bred for incredible disease resistance to blight and wilt, so even if you’re an organic gardener, this variety will give you a bountiful crop of red tomatoes.
This indeterminate hybrid grows to about 4 feet tall and wide, producing 2–3 oz fruit by the first frost. Due to its hardy nature, ‘Mountain Magic’ can be grown in zones 3–11, but as it is a bit slow to mature, taking up to 80 days to fruit, it is best to start with a young plant rather than seed at this time of year if you have a shorter growing season.
