Tomatoes are a delightful staple in any edible garden. You are likely aware that there are various types of tomatoes, such as cherry and beefsteak. However, there are actually thousands of varieties and cultivars, each with unique characteristics and flavors.
Tomato growers often encounter issues like cracking, blight, wilt, and other diseases. Cultivated tomato species are generally more susceptible to these problems than wild species. Enter a cultivar that is resistant to cracking, early and late blight, and Fusarium wilt: Solanum lycopersicum ‘Jasper’, commonly known as Jasper tomatoes.
Jasper tomatoes are a cherry tomato variety cherished for their sweet, tangy flavor, bred by Johnny’s Selected Seeds. This is not a result of genetic engineering; instead, this cultivar was developed through crossbreeding existing tomato genetic material. The fruits are approximately 3/4 inch in size, and this tomato variety grows indeterminately, meaning it has no fixed final height and will continue to grow and produce fruit until the first frost. Jasper tomatoes also retain well on the vine when ripe and are less prone to cracking, making them ideal for a perfect tomato harvest without splitting.
How to grow Jasper tomatoes
Jasper tomatoes’ resistance to cracking and disease makes them an easy choice for your garden. Cracking occurs when a tomato plant’s soil becomes too moist too quickly, causing the fruit to expand faster than its skin can accommodate. With Jasper tomatoes, concerns about watering mistakes or sudden heavy rain are minimized. However, while Jasper tomatoes are resistant to cracking, blight, and wilt, these issues may still arise, though they are less likely to affect this cultivar.
Like many other tomatoes, Jasper tomatoes require full sun, moderate watering, and medium-rich, loamy soil. The growth process is best initiated indoors, with seeds sown in flats using a soilless peat-based mix. This allows roots to establish and simplifies the transplanting process to the garden, typically occurring five to six weeks after sowing.
Jasper tomatoes thrive in USDA Zones 3 through 9 and do not tolerate frost well, so ensure you transplant seedlings when nighttime temperatures remain above 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Space plants 14 to 20 inches apart, and since Jasper tomatoes are indeterminate, they will need staking to support their vining habit. About 60 days after transplanting, you’ll be rewarded with clusters of sweet red fruits ready for harvest!
