Beefsteak tomato is the best choice to give an old-fashioned flavor to your favorite sandwich or burger. Meaty, juicy, tasty, large, and thick are all about this variety. Whether you serve the fruit on a hamburger or a stand-alone side dish, there are several top ways to enjoy it.
Beefsteak tomato plant becomes the most popular species to grow in the garden since this fruit is rarely available in the grocery store. Different varieties that you grow serve typically great flavors.
Do you want to enjoy this fruit at home? Learn more about how to plant Solanum lycopersicum, the best varieties, and guide care for the flavorful beefsteak tomato from the following article.
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Some Facts about Beefsteak Tomatoes
Beefsteak tomatoes, scientifically known as Solanum lycopersicum, have a wide range of varieties and become one of the largest types. Their weight can reach more than one kilogram. Moreover, several colors are available such as red, green, orange, yellow, pink, and purple-black.
The beefsteak tomato is not round yet oblate. It has a chunky saucer shape. When you slice the fruit, see the filling of plentiful seed hollows. Its labyrinthine seedy maze has no core but provides a sturdy structure.
A smooth-skinned and gentle pressure surface, yet the firm is the best criteria to choose the beefsteaks. The tomatoes are in bad condition if they feature blotchy hue, wrinkled, soft, and broken skin. Then, a single fruit can weigh about 227 to 340 grams.
To keep the tomatoes in a high-quality flavor, do not store them in the refrigerator. Just simply place at room temperature. When the beefsteaks look splash green, they will turn into the red after the ripening process.
Additionally, you can enjoy some ultimate ways of beefsteak tomato serving suggestions. Add a slice on burgers and sandwiches. Also, dice it for salads and salsas to raw eating. Meanwhile, this fruit can be baked or grilled in casseroles and used in stews.
Remarkable Beefsteak Tomato Varieties
Beefsteaks are classified based on the sizes and shapes. They can be delicately flattened and oblate in the forms, whereas the standard weight is more than 454 grams for each piece. However, the big sizes are not as essential as the delightful taste.
Most hybrids and heirloom tomatoes have pink or red hues and contain many tiny seeds scattered all over the fruit. Various recommended tomato types have performed well for everyone. The popular ones are big beef, heirloom beefsteak, beefmaster, Brandywine, and Cherokee.
Big Beef Tomato
This globe-shaped variety has a large core of symbolic beefsteak tomato and features deficient deep-set stems. Moreover, the best indeterminate vines are disease resistant.
The plants will produce fruits even in wet and cold weather, unlike other beefsteak varieties. This vigorous tomato offers an old-time taste. Its large red slices are perfect for your summer sandwiches.
Heirloom Beefsteak Tomato
The heirloom that is rich in flavor has a shorter lifespan and low disease-resistant. Special attention is needed to prevent the plants from tomato blight. Therefore, they can produce fruits optimally.
Tomato aficionados will be more satisfied with the heirloom because it tastes better. This variety gives delicious flavors in sauces, soups, and juices.
Beefmaster Tomato
Unlike the other variety, beefmaster hybrids are indeterminate varieties that have abundant growth and fruitful reproduction. The plants are bred to set meatier, larger, and more disease-resistant fruits. Moreover, they need regular pruning and staking since the vines vertically grow.
Beefmasters are F1 beefsteak tomato hybrids that become a crossbreeding from two different pure tomatoes. These first generations produce large yields and have healthy growth. Besides, they have good endurance against splitting and cracking.
Brandywine Tomato
The Brandywine with rich fruits has creamy flesh. This variety is famous for its huge size, great taste, and pumpkin-like structures. It comes in varied colors such as orange, red, yellow, pink, and black. The distinct leaves resemble the potato plants.
This type is one of the popular heirloom tomatoes. It belongs to both determinate and indeterminate varieties. The open-pollinated beefsteak fruits are sensitive to hot temperatures and high humidity. Those factors make the flowers difficult to develop.
Cherokee Purple Tomato
The Cherokee tomatoes have dark rose hue with green color around the stem. Let them ripen on the vines to get the best flavor. These large fruits also have thick skins and sweet smoky taste.
Enjoy the sliced Cherokee purple by sprinkling with salt, using as a pizza topping, and bruschetta. Besides, you can sauté the diced tomatoes with pasta for a hot dish.
How to Grow Beefsteak Tomato
Whether you obtain flavorful tomatoes or the small ones, the result depends on the method to grow the beefsteaks. After preparing the best condition for the soil, start planting the seeds. Maintain the dampness of the ground as the seedlings grow.
After the seedlings develop larger, you can transplant them outdoors. Move the beefsteak tomato into pots and grow in a greenhouse or into raised beds.
The Best Soil for Beefsteak tomatoes
To get perfect beefsteak tomatoes, they require a long growing season. You need to sow beefsteak tomato seeds in well-drained soil. Keep them indoors for six weeks.
Use warm soil to plant the seeds at a temperature of 16 to 32 degrees Celsius. They will germinate faster. Before developing to sprout, maintain the moisture well. Prevent them from being water-soaked.
Furthermore, to become rich in organic matter, apply clays and fertile loams for growing beefsteak tomatoes. Then, you will obtain ample yields. However, some gardeners can harvest faster by heating lighter soils.
When the first flowers appear, it is advisable to side-fertilize the soil. If you prefer growing organically, utilize compost tea. Then, give lots of water after the fruits start to form.
Additionally, beefsteak tomato plants will thrive in mild acidic soils. Make sure that you prepare a pH of around 6 and 6.8. While the crops are developing, add organic fertilizer that consists of Phosphorus, Nitrogen, and Potassium.
Add mulch and straw in the soil to keep the tomato’s roots breathe easily. It aims to relieve any health problems that may occur.
A Guide to Grow Beefsteak Tomatoes
Before growing the beefsteak tomato, kill any weedy growth of undesirable plants that exist in the soil by mowing the cover crop. Add soybean meal to provide Nitrogen that is needed.
If the cover crop develops well, the soil has already gotten Nitrogen from its decaying. Therefore, do not add too much nutrient since it will delay the production of fruits due to the vigorous growth of foliages.
Then, another essential way is installing irrigation in the middle of the bed. Next, use a black landscape fabric to cover it. After that, create several holes for growing the beefsteak tomato. The size is about 10 centimeters.
The last step is to build up a cage or a simple wire fence for trellis. Do this stage after mulching the surface. It helps to support the tomatoes while growing.
Moreover, the best tip on growing beefsteak tomato plants is separately planting four times a year. The first one is at the end of April that will set the fruits in July and early August.
Prepare another planting in early June and two other ones before the summer season. It starts on June 21 and December 21. Thus, those beefsteak tomato plants will produce fruits into the fall.
Importantly, you need to make space while planting based on the types, whether it is a determinate or indeterminate variety. Perennial vines that grow aggressively require larger space than more compact growth habits of some hybrids.
Space each tomato plant at 46 to 91 centimeters apart if you are using a wire fence. Make a long-distance area for the cages.
Most gardeners prefer the indeterminate type since it sets more fruits. The taste also will be better and sweeter since more photosynthesis on lots of leaves creates more sugar.
Common Diseases of Tomatoes
You can control illness and pest problems by using disease-resistant tomatoes, applying good rotation, and having proper air circulation.
Some problems that might occur are tomato leaf spots, early blight (Alternaria), and fruit worms. To fight against the infected leaves, you should keep spacing the plants at a long distance to improve the air circulation.
If serious damage happens due to the fruit worms, spray the plants with Bacillus thuringiensis. This bacterium will kill the worms by striking the digestive system.
Likewise, make sure that the beefsteak tomato plants get enough water. Poor irrigation will cause blossom-end rot, as the foliages cannot transfer sufficient Calcium to the fruits. However, too much watering should be avoided. It makes the skin crack and split.
Some other diseases that might infect the beefsteak tomato plants are Fusarium, Anthracnose, late blight, damping off, and blossom drop. Meanwhile, the pest problems consist of flea beetles, aphids, tomato hornworms, and rodents.
Therefore, to deal with those pests, you should handpick the beetles, eggs, and larvae. Then, use row cover to avoid being bothered by them. Whereas, to remove the aphids, pour a powerful water stream on the beefsteak tomato plants.
In conclusion, you have already been familiar with this richly flavored beefsteak tomato, right? The fruits are ideal for slicing, burgers, sandwiches, and other dishes. Let’s grow some in your garden and enjoy them too!