Aunt Ruby's German Green Tomato
Heirloom
- Organic
- Green fruits grow to 1 pound
- Beefsteak tomato
- Fruit ripens throughout the season
- 80-95 days from transplant
Item Details
Family heirloom from Ruby Arnold of Greeneville, Tennessee. Introduced to SSE in 1993 by Bill Minkey of Darien, Wisconsin. Large beefsteak fruits weigh one pound or more. Sweet juicy flesh with a hint of spiciness. Ready to harvest when soft to the touch and yellow-green in color. Indeterminate, 80-95 days from transplant.
Learn to Grow Aunt Ruby's German Green Tomato
Start Indoors: 6 weeks before last frost
Germination: 7-14 Days
Plant Outdoors: 24-36” Apart
Support: Cage, stake, or trellis
Instructions - Sow seeds indoors ¼" deep. Tomatoes are sensitive to freezing temperatures, so wait to transplant outdoors until the soil is warm. Plant in full sun.
Ratings & Reviews
7 reviews
A good late-producing tomato for cool coastal summers
by Hollis
Good producing tomato, large fruit throughout summer in cool coastal central California. Good slicing fruit, used it mainly for pickling because it is difficult to get over eating a green tomato! Didn't notice any disease problems until very late in the season when it became cooler and moister overnight.
Never harvested even one tomato out of three seasons attempted
by Elizabeth
I live at 4700 feet in Northern Utah. I've tried growing this tomato and have never harvested even one tomato out of three seasons attempted. Started from seed indoors in early March each year I tried it.
Another Utah Grower
by Chris
I'm writing because I saw Elizabeth's comment. I also grew this at around 4700 feet in Utah (Utah County). I started my tomato and pepper seeds the first week of February (yeah, I'm a little obsessed) and grew in planters until I could get them in the ground in late April/early May. I had my first ripe tomatoes on cherry tomato type plants by June 1 and had tomatoes from 11 other varieties all summer. However, I didn't get any tomatoes on this plant until mid August and nothing ripe until mid to end of September (which is often the end of the growing season here). I only got a few tomatoes total. The plant looked great but didn't produce much. My garden space is challenging (limited sunlight, minimal space) so I wondered if that was the reason. Interesting to see a comment from another grower nearby with a similar experience. Maybe this isn't the place for this tomato.
One of My All-Time Favorites!
by JRH
One of the best-tasting tomatoes I've ever had. Consistently delicious throughout its season, good producer, stores fairly well. My favorite for tomato sandwiches. (Considering some of the other reviews here, perhaps this tomato's viability is largely determined by growing conditions inherent to region. In any case, here in the mid-Atlantic U.S., it seems to do great and taste great, and I look forward to enjoying it every year, beginning in late July or August.)
Unique and Delicious!
by June
I love this tomato! They are big slicers with a great taste and texture, perfect for fresh eating. Since they are green when ripe, they are also unique so sharing them with friends is fun. A must grow if your goals are a basket full of rainbow colored tomatoes! I will always grow a couple plants of these.
Most delicious tomato!
by RUTH
My husband the tomato lover said these were his favorite of all! Make sure you mark them somehow as they will rot while you are waiting for them to turn red lol. It did take a little practice to figure out when they are ripe. Bring them inside to finish ripening when they become slightly soft and yellow.
Aunt ruby’s German green tomatoes
by Alice
I grew 4 -5 plants, 4 did great but the 5th not do well. Each plant gave me 2-3 tomatoes. I used them for fried green tomatoes. My girls love fried green tomatoes.