- Hillbilly Tomato: Profile
- Origin and history of the tomato
- Flavour & Characteristics of 'Hillbilly' Tomato Variety
- Planting and caring for hillbilly tomatoes: Our tips
- Harvesting and Using Hillbilly Tomatoes
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The 'Hillbilly' tomato variety attracts attention with its large and colorfully patterned fruits. In this overview we will show you how to properly plant and care for the hillbilly tomato in the garden.
The 'Hillbilly' tomato variety produces large and pretty red, orange and yellow marbled fruits that have been delighting the hearts of tomato lovers for more than a hundred years with their fruity-sweet taste. Find out more about this historic tomato variety and its cultivation requirements here.
Hillbilly Tomato: Profile
| Fruit | Beefsteak tomato; sunny yellow with orange-red marbling |
| Flavour | sweet and fruity |
| Maturity | medium early |
| Growth | Stick tomato, up to 180 cm |
| Location | Greenhouse, protected outdoor area |
Origin and history of the tomato
'Hillbilly' was allegedly bred and cultivated around 1880 in the West Virginia area of the USA. Its unique color and taste have given reason to preserve and cultivate this yellow tomato variety to this day. The naming, on the other hand, is far less flattering, because 'Hillbilly' means something like a hillbilly or country finger.
Flavour & Characteristics of 'Hillbilly' Tomato Variety
The 'Hillbilly' tomato variety reaches a height of up to 180 centimeters as a potato-leaved plant. The large, slightly ribbed fruits weigh 500 to 1000 grams and are therefore real heavyweights. The ripe fruit inspires with a sunny yellow basic color and orange to red marbling, especially on the inside. Its color and shape are reminiscent of the 'pineapple tomato'. The variety has little acidity, the taste is sweet and fruity. The historical variety 'Hillbilly' is open-rooted. So you can win tomato seeds yourself and continue to preserve and cultivate this variety.
Planting and caring for hillbilly tomatoes: Our tips
The Hillbillyis particularly in need of warmth and should therefore find a place in the greenhouse. Cultivation is also possible outdoors, for example on a house wall with rain protection. For planting, dig a deep hole and put the young plants in so deep that only about half of them are above the surface of the earth. Remove the bottom leaves and fill the planting hole with substrate. Our Plantura organic tomato & vegetable soil is particularly suitable for this, as it is already pre-fertilized with nutrients. The peat-free potting soil is also suitable for greenhouses and outdoors, because it has a high compost content, which has a long-term positive effect on the soil structure. After planting, the 'hillbilly' must be well supported and tied due to its sometimes huge and heavy fruits.
Beefsteak tomatoes such as 'Hillbilly' should be pinched out and grown with a maximum of two shoots. The plant concentrates on flowering and fruit growth, and late-ripening varieties also ripen earlier. The tomato squeezing must be repeated regularly, about every two weeks. From June, the 'Hillbilly' should be fertilized for the first time. Now the flowers that have just been pollinated begin to fruit and the need for nutrients increases. A primarily organic long-term fertilizer such as our Plantura organic tomato fertilizer should be worked in lightly on the surface. This provides tomatoes and other vegetables with essential nutrients over a longer period of time. With just one more application of fertilizer after two months, your hillbilly tomatoes will be fed all season long.
Our tip: A mulch layer made of plant materials, such as grass clippings, promotes soil life and reduces evaporation. In this way, many liters of water can be saved in summer. We have compiled more detailed information on the subject of mulching for you in this article.
Harvesting and Using Hillbilly Tomatoes
The beautiful 'Hillbilly' is ideal for fresh consumption. A single slice fits perfectly on bread or burgers. The large fruits are also economical to process and attract everyone's attention, especially when made into yellow tomato soup.
Aphids, whiteflies and the like can severely weaken our tomato plants and develop into veritable plagues. With the help of tomato beneficial insects, you can get the harmful insects under control effectively and naturally.