Curated picks

Best Early Tomatoes for Short Seasons

When the season is short, days to maturity is the only number that matters. The varieties below ripen in roughly 50 to 65 days from transplant, the impatient crowd that fruits before a cool summer or an early frost can call time. Several were bred for cold northern gardens by people who were plainly done waiting.

1. 1Sub-Arctic Plentyslicer · open-pollinated · 50 days · earlyAmong the earliest tomatoes in the world, a compact bush that sets in cool conditions.
2. 2Polar Babyslicer · open-pollinated · 60 days · earlyBred in Fairbanks, Alaska, it sets fruit with nights in the 40s on a small bush.
3. 3Glacierslicer · open-pollinated · 56 days · earlyA very early Swedish variety, surprisingly sweet for its speed, good in containers.
4. 4Stupiceslicer · heirloom · 65 days · earlyAn early cold-tolerant Czech heirloom, one of the first slicers off the vine.
5. 5Sungoldcherry · hybrid · 60 days · earlyAn early, intensely sweet orange cherry that bears for months.
6. 6Early Girlslicer · hybrid · 54 days · earlyA dependable, prolific early red slicer that handles cool nights.
7. 7Moskvichslicer · heirloom · 60 days · earlyOne of the earliest full-sized slicers, with cold tolerance and rich flavor.
8. 8Gold Nuggetcherry · open-pollinated · 56 days · earlyAn early golden cherry on a compact determinate plant, a fast first set.

These are editorial picks, not a ranked score. For the full filterable catalogue, use the browse page or the chooser.