Best Varieties for Indoor Growing

MickyT · January 25, 2018

Hi Tomatovillians,

One of my co-workers who likes growing tomatoes just moved to an apartment with no balcony and also lost her community garden plot. She said that she has big windows in the apartment with lots of light and will try growing plants indoors. I would like to suggest some varieties that would do well indoors/with lower than ideal light conditions.
I did search through the site but wasn't able to find too many threads, maybe I'm not too good at using the search function..

Would you be able to provide some suggestions of varieties that have done well for you grown entirely indoors? Growth habit, colour, etc. can vary, the main thing is plants that can produce tasty tomatoes indoors. Thanks so much for any suggestions!

Cole_Robbie · January 25, 2018

Windows are hardly ever enough light, without supplementing with artificial light. The plants will grow, but probably not make any tomatoes.

jmsieglaff · January 25, 2018

IF the windows face south you may get enough light, but only during the later spring - early fall. Even then it might not be enough. I would try micro dwarf cherry tomatoes. Larger tomatoes with that weak of light source will likely be a waste of time and produce some lanky, ugly plants with likely subpar flavor--if any fruits at all like Cole Robbie says.

My south facing patio doors work with micro dwarf tomatoes, but you can't expect that to work October-March.

maxjohnson · January 25, 2018

Depends on the amount of lights available then you can grow bigger plant. It help if it's a south facing window. If it's north facing, then forget it, just get artificial lights. Also since this is Canada, I'm going to assume there might be extra challenge in getting enough sun.

My indoor experience is only limited to starting seeds up to 5 weeks and growing microdwarf. There are lots of recommendation for dwarf tomatoes here too. I find it more satisfying to grow a bunch of microdwarves over dwarf, since they take less space and doesn't need trellising or caging. Red Robin is a micro favorite, you can grow it in 1 gallon pots. I like Totem F1 which has bigger cherry fruits, but it gets to up to 18" tall and benefit from at least 2 gallon pot. "Silver Fir Tree" is a compact plant that could work that put out small to medium sized beefsteaks, I would give it 2-3 gallon pots.

You want to stick with compact determinate variety.

MickyT · January 25, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmsieglaff

IF the windows face south you may get enough light, but only during the later spring - early fall. Even then it might not be enough. I would try micro dwarf cherry tomatoes. Larger tomatoes with that weak of light source will likely be a waste of time and produce some lanky, ugly plants with likely subpar flavor--if any fruits at all like Cole Robbie says.

My south facing patio doors work with micro dwarf tomatoes, but you can't expect that to work October-March.

Thanks, her windows are South Facing and she would be growing these in the summer months. Our summers have been very sunny lately and during peak summer I think we get a lot of hours of light, Sunrise around 7AM and Sunset around 9PM. I know she likely won't get very many tomatoes no matter what she does, but don't want to discourage her if she wants to give it a try.. Thanks again for your suggestions.

Cole_Robbie · January 25, 2018

Yes, microdwarfs are a great suggestion. The best ones I have tried have been bred by one of our members here, dfollet. I also like the yellow micro cherry Aztec.

I have a few very compact varieties that might be fun to try if you have a little more space. Maglia Rosa, Terrenzo F1, and Utynyok come to mind. I think the vines will trail downward on those varieties. I have grown Terrenzo in a hanging basket and it did well. The seeds of Terrenzo are expensive, but the fruit are sweet and delicious.

Here's an old thread I made about building a cheap grow light: http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=35099

However, if you happen to be more financially-blessed, I'd get one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/Kessil-H380-S...dp/B017WOSOU4/

Koala Doug · January 25, 2018

I sometimes overwinter a couple of Red Robin micro-dwarf plants and just sent them on the floor next to a window. They always give fruit (usually two flushes per winter), but the number of fruit is low. It's more of an ornamental plant for me in the winter.

Hatgirl · January 25, 2018

I grow micro varieties indoors on my windowsill - a North facing window in Ireland!

I grow them in 8inch pots with a standard 3 ring circular plant support.
So far my favourites are:
*Bajaja (red and round, under 18inches)
*Little Sun (yellow and round, close to 18inches)
*Red Profusion (red and round, under 18inches)
*Red Robin (red and round, under 18inches)
*Sweet ‘N Neat Scarlet Improved (red and round, under 18inches)
*506 Dwarf Bush Early (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support)
*Mega Bite / Megabyte (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support)
*Snow Fairy (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support)
*Tumbling Tom Jnr Yellow (yellow and round, close to 18inches)

MickyT · January 25, 2018

Thank you all for your great suggestions!

zipcode · January 26, 2018

The hartbreaker series from Prudac is probably the most shade tolerant tomatoes I've seen.
My father says he knew someone who grew a sort of determinate (many years ago) that made inside around 40 tomatoes that were around 2 oz in size. I have some suspicions about that. In any case avoid any bigger fruited varieties.

bower · January 26, 2018

Microdwarf tomatoes is definitely the answer... I've tried others including determinates in a "south window Newfoundland" late winter/early spring and it was a horrible mess. They leggied up the window and got foliage disease from the cold condensation on the glass. Fruit set was much reduced so really low fruit-to-shoot ratio.
Microdwarf I have only grown one so far: Red Dwarf (aka Roter Zwerg afaik). Grew indoors in the winter. Wonderful self supporting foliage. Excellent fruit set without any pollination aids on my part. No supplemental light just a south window. Indoor temperature 64-68 F with lower and higher (on rarely sunny) temperatures next to the glass. The season was fairly cloudy, but I had a very nice set of red cherries that were sweet when fully ripe.
The plant in its 1 gallon pot got hucked outside during the summer and neglected/slated for disposal. When I caught up with it in the fall it had dropped all the old leaves, made new ones, and started a new set of fruit. Still in the same 1 gallon.
I also tested in the greenhouse early another year and it was decently cold tolerant, shade tolerant, and early. Plant was bigger in a larger pot. It finally managed to topple itself over by reaching, when left in complete shade ie no direct sunlight at all.
The only caveat on cold tolerance, my mother grew one in winter in a really cold room with lots of light (no heat but when the sun shone). She said the first round of fruit were "not tasty". Taste improved with temperature.
I need to try more microdwarfs.

Hatgirl · January 27, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by zipcode

The hartbreaker series from Prudac is probably the most shade tolerant tomatoes I've seen.
My father says he knew someone who grew a sort of determinate (many years ago) that made inside around 40 tomatoes that were around 2 oz in size. I have some suspicions about that. In any case avoid any bigger fruited varieties.

I grew Heartbreaker Vita. It was OK, but it sprawled too wide for me to consider growing it indoors the way my setup is arranged

BlackBear · January 31, 2018

For me ... with little supplementary light (just regular room Lights not grow light) near south window . I would have to pick Silvery Fir and Yellow Pygmy as best bet.

But I would hang at least 1 T-5 grow light with timer as partial light supplement in winter months . I hear Ditmarsher is a good one for indoor growing as well .
Venus also works for me indoors well .

oakley · February 1, 2018

Yes possible. Especially a seasoned gardener. I grew many all last winter and into the
Spring months indoors. The micros do well and even some of the dwarf varieties.
Five one and two gallon pots fit on no more than a chair seat.

I have 4 growing now and another 12 micros at about the 4inch stage. They are all getting
some time in a sunny window but mostly under lights. So, as suggested, supplemental
light would be good.

The only issue might be when the sun is it's most high in the sky end of June. I would
suggest starting seeds soon to take advantage of April-May sun. (my plants went out on
the deck in June as the window no longer gets direct sun with a deep overhang)

Heritage has a good listing of micros. https://heritageseedmarket.com/index...warf-tomatoes/

And a few pics of last years fruit...

MickyT · February 1, 2018

Very cool, I think my coworker will have more than enough inspiration and options after reading this thread. Thanks again everyone!

January 25, 2018	#1
MickyT Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2017 Location: North Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 46	Best Varieties for Indoor Growing Hi Tomatovillians, One of my co-workers who likes growing tomatoes just moved to an apartment with no balcony and also lost her community garden plot. She said that she has big windows in the apartment with lots of light and will try growing plants indoors. I would like to suggest some varieties that would do well indoors/with lower than ideal light conditions. I did search through the site but wasn't able to find too many threads, maybe I'm not too good at using the search function.. Would you be able to provide some suggestions of varieties that have done well for you grown entirely indoors? Growth habit, colour, etc. can vary, the main thing is plants that can produce tasty tomatoes indoors. Thanks so much for any suggestions!

January 25, 2018	#4
maxjohnson Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: OH 6a Posts: 592	Depends on the amount of lights available then you can grow bigger plant. It help if it's a south facing window. If it's north facing, then forget it, just get artificial lights. Also since this is Canada, I'm going to assume there might be extra challenge in getting enough sun. My indoor experience is only limited to starting seeds up to 5 weeks and growing microdwarf. There are lots of recommendation for dwarf tomatoes here too. I find it more satisfying to grow a bunch of microdwarves over dwarf, since they take less space and doesn't need trellising or caging. Red Robin is a micro favorite, you can grow it in 1 gallon pots. I like Totem F1 which has bigger cherry fruits, but it gets to up to 18" tall and benefit from at least 2 gallon pot. "Silver Fir Tree" is a compact plant that could work that put out small to medium sized beefsteaks, I would give it 2-3 gallon pots. You want to stick with compact determinate variety. Last edited by maxjohnson; January 25, 2018 at 02:20 PM.

January 25, 2018	#8
Hatgirl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Ireland Posts: 211	I grow micro varieties indoors on my windowsill - a North facing window in Ireland! I grow them in 8inch pots with a standard 3 ring circular plant support. So far my favourites are: Bajaja (red and round, under 18inches) Little Sun (yellow and round, close to 18inches) Red Profusion (red and round, under 18inches) Red Robin (red and round, under 18inches) Sweet ‘N Neat Scarlet Improved (red and round, under 18inches) 506 Dwarf Bush Early (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support) Mega Bite / Megabyte (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support) Snow Fairy (red and round, close to 18inches, larger fruit need good support) Tumbling Tom Jnr Yellow (yellow and round, close to 18inches) Last edited by Hatgirl; January 25, 2018 at 02:32 PM.*

January 31, 2018	#13
BlackBear Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2015 Location: Nanaimo , BC Posts: 961	For me ... with little supplementary light (just regular room Lights not grow light) near south window . I would have to pick Silvery Fir and Yellow Pygmy as best bet. But I would hang at least 1 T-5 grow light with timer as partial light supplement in winter months . I hear Ditmarsher is a good one for indoor growing as well . Venus also works for me indoors well . __________________ So Many Tomatoes ...So Little Time !

January 25, 2018	#2
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	Windows are hardly ever enough light, without supplementing with artificial light. The plants will grow, but probably not make any tomatoes.

January 25, 2018	#3
jmsieglaff Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Southern WI Posts: 2,742	IF the windows face south you may get enough light, but only during the later spring - early fall. Even then it might not be enough. I would try micro dwarf cherry tomatoes. Larger tomatoes with that weak of light source will likely be a waste of time and produce some lanky, ugly plants with likely subpar flavor--if any fruits at all like Cole Robbie says. My south facing patio doors work with micro dwarf tomatoes, but you can't expect that to work October-March.

January 25, 2018	#7
Koala Doug Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2017 Location: Detroit Posts: 688	I sometimes overwinter a couple of Red Robin micro-dwarf plants and just sent them on the floor next to a window. They always give fruit (usually two flushes per winter), but the number of fruit is low. It's more of an ornamental plant for me in the winter.

January 26, 2018	#10
zipcode Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Romania/Germany , z 4-6 Posts: 1,582	The hartbreaker series from Prudac is probably the most shade tolerant tomatoes I've seen. My father says he knew someone who grew a sort of determinate (many years ago) that made inside around 40 tomatoes that were around 2 oz in size. I have some suspicions about that. In any case avoid any bigger fruited varieties.

January 26, 2018	#11
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,793	Microdwarf tomatoes is definitely the answer... I've tried others including determinates in a "south window Newfoundland" late winter/early spring and it was a horrible mess. They leggied up the window and got foliage disease from the cold condensation on the glass. Fruit set was much reduced so really low fruit-to-shoot ratio. Microdwarf I have only grown one so far: Red Dwarf (aka Roter Zwerg afaik). Grew indoors in the winter. Wonderful self supporting foliage. Excellent fruit set without any pollination aids on my part. No supplemental light just a south window. Indoor temperature 64-68 F with lower and higher (on rarely sunny) temperatures next to the glass. The season was fairly cloudy, but I had a very nice set of red cherries that were sweet when fully ripe. The plant in its 1 gallon pot got hucked outside during the summer and neglected/slated for disposal. When I caught up with it in the fall it had dropped all the old leaves, made new ones, and started a new set of fruit. Still in the same 1 gallon. I also tested in the greenhouse early another year and it was decently cold tolerant, shade tolerant, and early. Plant was bigger in a larger pot. It finally managed to topple itself over by reaching, when left in complete shade ie no direct sunlight at all. The only caveat on cold tolerance, my mother grew one in winter in a really cold room with lots of light (no heat but when the sun shone). She said the first round of fruit were "not tasty". Taste improved with temperature. I need to try more microdwarfs.

February 1, 2018	#15
MickyT Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2017 Location: North Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 46	Very cool, I think my coworker will have more than enough inspiration and options after reading this thread. Thanks again everyone!