Costoluto Florentino is an heirloom Italian variety that produces flavorful, ruffled fruits great for turning into sauce or slicing up for fresh eating. The plants are vigorous, highly productive, and early maturing.
Tomatoes have two different types of growth habits: determinate and indeterminate. Determinate tomatoes stop growing once the plant has reached a certain height. Most of the fruit matures within a month or two. Determinate tomatoes are ideal for canning and making sauce. Most determinate varieties need a cage.
Indeterminate tomatoes continue growing and producing tomatoes throughout the growing season. Indeterminate tomatoes are great for salads and sandwiches.
Indeterminate plants use tall supports 5-8 feet. For better flavor, harvest your tomatoes once they show deep color, but still feel firm when gently squeezed.
Tomato: Costoluto Florentino
- Planting: Since tomatoes need at least 6 to 8 hours of sun to bring out their best flavors, plant seedlings in bright, direct sun, in nutrient rich soil, as tomatoes are heavy feeders. Providing a tomato cage for determinate varieties and a stake or trellis system for indeterminate varieties is highly recommended, place them at planting before root systems have developed to prevent harming the plant.
Spacing: for determinate varieties, space plants 12" to 24" apart; for indeterminate varieties that are staked, space plants 14" to 20 " apart; for indeterminate varieties that are not staked, space plants 24" to 36" apart.
Watering: Water plants regularly, and keep soil evenly moist to prevent issues on fruit like blossom end rot or cracking.Harvesting: harvest tomatoes when they have changed colors but are still firm when gently squeezed. Let the tomatoes ripen on the vine for the best flavor, but they can also be harvested when fruits have begun to change color and still have a little bit of green, and can be ripened on the kitchen counter. Store tomatoes on the kitchen counter for best flavor, but for longer storage times, place in the refrigerator.