Tomato Beefsteak Tomato

The Beefsteak Tomato is a late variety that produces large, red fruits weighing between 200 and 700 g. Their flesh is dense, juicy, and contains few seeds. It has a sweet flavor. Sow in March - April for a harvest from July to September.

The tomato is native to South America and Central America. Several varieties were already cultivated by the Incas long before the arrival of the Conquistadors. We are still amazed by the variety of this nightshade plant. The term 'tomato' comes from the Incas' word Tomatl and refers to both the plant and the fruit it produces. There are fruits of all colours, except perhaps blue, in all shapes and sizes. Ancient varieties are plants with indeterminate growth and can live for two years. More recent varieties have determinate growth and stop growing at the bush stage, so they do not need staking or trellising.

The tomato is one of the many foods that came to us from the New World, along with beans, corn, squash, potatoes, and chili peppers. It took a long time for it to reach our taste buds. And for good reason! It was cultivated for its aesthetic and medicinal qualities. It was thought to be toxic because of its resemblance to the fruit of the Mandrake, another nightshade plant. It only became a regular part of our diets at the beginning of the 20th century.

The tomato plant is a perennial herb in tropical climates but is cultivated as an annual in our latitudes. It lignifies over time and produces small, insignificant yellow flowers grouped in clusters that will turn into fruits.

It must be admitted that its fruit is very attractive and adds a pleasant colour to the vegetable garden. It also has many nutritional benefits. Low in calories like most vegetables, rich in water, it contains a very interesting molecule: lycopene, a powerful antioxidant. And the longer the tomato is cooked, the more lycopene becomes available. It is also rich in vitamin C, provitamin A, and trace elements.

Today, its taste and nutritional qualities are beyond doubt. For gardeners, tomatoes are among the essential vegetables of summer. They simply have to consider how they plan to use them to guide them among all the existing varieties. Is it for salads, sauces, consumption directly in the garden, cooked, etc. They will also consider when they want to harvest them. The answer will, of course, depend on the average summer sunshine in the region where their garden is located. Rest assured, the choice is vast, and every situation has its tomato! And although tomatoes need plenty of sun and heat, they do not necessarily require a lot of space. Therefore, there is no reason not to grow them in containers on a balcony, where varieties with small fruits are preferred. Be careful, immature fruits, stems, and leaves contain solanine and should not be consumed.

Harvesting: depending on the varieties, it can take 50 to 100 days between transplanting and harvesting. There is no foolproof trick to determine in advance when a tomato has reached full maturity. Harvesting should be done when, at the very least, it is completely colored as announced, and when its texture, while remaining firm, shows a slight softening. For better storage, be sure to pick the fruit with its calyx.

Storage: tomatoes do not keep as long the higher their water content. They can be kept for a few days in the vegetable drawer of your refrigerator or spread out in the open air. To keep them longer, consider culinary methods such as tomato confit, sun-dried tomatoes, sauces, frozen fruits, preserves, jams, or juice. We love to confit them because it's simple and so delicious: cut your tomatoes in half and collect the juice. Place your half tomatoes face up on the baking tray of your oven. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar, then bake at a very low temperature for at least an hour. Remove your tomatoes and consume immediately, or store them in a glass jar and cover with olive oil.

Gardener's tip: it is recommended to grow several varieties of tomatoes each year to minimize the risk of complete crop loss due to climatic factors or specific diseases.
To counter the phenomenon of 'blossom-end rot' - not a disease but a calcium deficiency - spray a comfrey maceration rich in calcium on your plants.
When transplanting, do not hesitate to bury the stem up to the first leaves. This will stimulate the root system, ensuring a good fruit harvest.
Winning combinations in the garden are often the same on the plate. It's a good mnemonic to remember that tomatoes and basil go well together.