Tomatoes have come a long way through their agricultural history. From their domestication by the Aztecs to their first transatlantic adventure to Spain; from their bizarre stint as a deadly poison in Great Britain and early America to their present state of eminence in every seed catalogue and garden, human relationships with tomatoes have gone from “good” to “complicated” to an all out obsessive love affair.
Now, most folks laugh and shake their head over salads, pizza, and pasta sauce as we recall how tomatoes were once considered toxic. But even with our modern acceptance of Solanum lycopersicum, the average person would only accept a red, ripe circular-thing as a tomato.
However, as tomato guru Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms put it (in all caps, of course), “TOMATOES HAVE CHANGED MORE IN THE LAST 10 YEARS THAN THEY HAVE IN THEIR ENTIRE EXISTENCE.” The jaw-dropping number of varieties, flavors, and colors to be found in both modern and heirloom tomatoes are the stuff of psychedelic daydreams. This delicious fruit is so much more than simple tomato sauce or the red slice on your salad and sandwiches.
If you have ever wanted to grow something truly bizarre in your garden, forget exotic flowers or expensive topiary, and grow a tomato. Peruse this list of strange and wonderful nightshades, and just see if you don’t get surprised by this seemingly everyday garden fruit.
Finally, if you’re finding yourself unable to resist the allure of growing unusual tomato varieties in your own vegetable garden, I’ve listed seed companies currently selling various types of tomatoes (as of Fall 2023) in every section. Let’s delve deeper and meet the bizarre and beautiful varieties of this plant.
1. Mushroom Basket
These large fruits are deeply ribbed, watermelon-pink, and resemble a flower when sliced in half. What’s not to love? In Russia, where this tomato was recently developed, it’s known as Gribnoe Lukoshko. In your own garden, these huge, pumpkin-like monsters might be one of your favorite things to grow (with ample support).
2. Reisetomate
Sometimes referred to in English as the Travelers Tomato, this amazing and bizarre German cultivar is what would happen if you crossed the fruit with a pull-apart loaf of monkey bread. Rather than being a single, round fruit, the Riesetomate is a huge handful of barely-attached lobes. Pull off one delicious morsel and pocket the rest for later without worrying about juice getting everywhere.
Garden Hoard — offers both a red and a yellow variety.
3. Striped Stuffer
With a shape like a bell pepper and an almost empty cavity hiding inside, these tomatoes hardly fit the mental image of tomato. In fact, these old heirloom varieties break the tomato mold and are excellent for stuffing with all sorts of tasty fillings. They’ve been traditionally stuffed with tuna salad when eaten raw, but they apparently hold up decently well when cooked.
4. Brad’s Atomic Grape
The first time I saw these dazzling beauties was at my farmers market, and I can confirm — the photos of their kaleidoscope colors are accurate. Unable to resist, I bought a pint, brought them home, and made sure to save the seeds so I could grow them myself. They produce wispy, scant foliage, but that makes the jewel tones stand out more.
Wild Boar Farms (Direct from Brad himself)
5. Garden Peach
This tomato was once called a Wolf Peach (that’s actually what part of its scientific name (Lycopersicon) translates to, so this seemingly strange title for a tomato isn’t all that odd. Bright golden-yellow with a touch of pink blush and fuzzy to the touch, this beautiful variety is mild and sweet, adding fruity charm to your nightshade patch.
6. Spoon Tomato
This tomato is officially the smallest you can grow, producing bunches upon bunches of bright, sweet bitty bits on sprawling vines. True to their name, you can probably fit about a dozen tomatoes in a single spoon. Kids will delight in snacking on these tiny treats, and adults will have little trouble finding a use for them in salads, soups, and garnishes. The biggest problem will probably be getting them into the kitchen. They may get eaten before they ever make it.
7. Kellogg’s Breakfast
Now that you’ve met one of the smallest tomatoes, meet one of the biggest. With a cheery, glowing orange color, sweet flavor, and penchant for tipping the scales at up to 2 pounds, this is a tomato that is sure to weigh down your basket and fill up your plate.
With a fried egg and a piece of whole wheat sourdough, a few slices of this fresh tomato would make a far better breakfast than a box of the puffed sugar (that may also be designated a Kellogg’s Breakfast), making it the perfect choice for those who want to live a healthier lifestyle.
8. Indigo Gold Berries
What can I say? I’m a sucker for pretty colors, and when it comes to the Indigo series of tomatoes, it’s impossible to choose which one is the prettiest. That said, the Gold Berries are particularly eye-catching with rich golden bellies crested with wine shoulders.
9. White Queen
This huge, beefsteak-type tomato is a pearly, greenish-white with a kiss of pink on the blossom end. What it lacks in color, it makes up for in flavor. Several seed companies report it is among the tastiest of the white tomatoes they’ve ever tried.
10. Tim’s Taste of Paradise
Tomatoes like these are not just a delight to the eye and palate, they come with an interesting story as well. After the eponymous Tim closed his seed business, his sunny little experimental tomato, originally called Fruity Mix, was nearly lost to gardeners. Seeds for this bright yellow, clusteriffic, intensely fruity variety were salvaged from a 17-year-old seed packet and have since been resurrected by Wild Boar Farms.
Meraki Seeds (European Seller)
This list merely scratches the tippy-tip of an enormous, overwhelming, and gorgeous iceberg of my favorite varieties. If you’re fascinated by the thought of growing something different from the same-ol’-round-and-red tomato offered by the garden section at your local megamart, I highly recommend picking up your own seeds, and delving into the unique varieties of tomatoes available with small seed companies. At local seed swaps, on the Seed Savers Exchange (where there’s more than 10,000 tomato variety listings), or with the farmers at the market, when it comes to tomatoes, if you can imagine it … it probably exists.
Such a great read, I’ll be bookmarking this for later.