By Tom Kalb, Horticulturist

NDSU Extension

Tomato production in the Dakotas is about to change.

There is a new wave of tomato varieties that will provide more colors, better flavors and higher yields.

Scientists have cracked the genetic code of tomato. They have identified new genes to improve the crop. Through natural breeding (not GMO) techniques, scientists are using these genes to develop new varieties with amazing qualities.

The latest breakthrough is BadaBing! This is one of the first varieties to resist Septoria leaf spot, the most common disease of tomatoes in the Dakotas. Septoria is a fungus that causes spotting and browning of tomato leaves late in the season. This breakthrough will help our vines stay healthy and productive until frost.

You won’t hear much about BadaBing! The seeds of this cherry tomato are rare and expensive. Nevertheless, this news is very exciting.

That’s because this special gene can now be bred into future varieties. The same thing occurred over the past 10 years with early blight and late blight. Now we have several varieties that resist these diseases.

Another breakthrough has led to the Plus varieties. Celebrity is one of the most popular varieties in the Dakotas. Now we have Celebrity Plus. Celebrity Plus has all the great qualities of Celebrity, with better fruit quality and greater disease resistance. The same goes for other varieties such as Better Boy Plus, Big Beef Plus and Lemon Boy Plus. Look for them.

A new group of varieties is coming out of the Blue Ridge Mountains. These varieties resist diseases and grow well in cool summers. Mountain Fresh Plus and Mountain Merit have excelled in our trials. A new beefsteak called Mountain Man is available this spring. This variety is reported to have a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity, making it perfect for slicing and topping burgers and sandwiches. It sounds delicious!

A bonus of the Mountain tomatoes is that their vines are determinate. This is important because determinate vines stay compact. They do not need to be pruned and can be easily trellised with cages or weaving. Determinate varieties usually yield earlier than indeterminate vines, which are more vigorous and require a lot more work.

Another big trend is the improvement of heirloom tomatoes. Gardeners enjoy the taste of heirloom fruits, but the vines are unproductive and susceptible to disease.

Scientists are now developing hybrid heirlooms that have the beauty and flavor of heirloom fruits, but with productive, disease-resistant vines.  

A good example is Cherokee Carbon. This is a cross between the popular heirlooms Cherokee Purple and Carbon. This new hybrid has the special flavors of these two purple heirlooms, but it ripens earlier, produces more fruits, resists cracking and fights diseases. I can’t wait to try it.

I also look forward to growing Wonderstar Pink. This new hybrid produces pink tomatoes like the famous heirloom Brandywine, but its fruits are firmer and ripen earlier. Its compact, two-foot vines resist diseases and are easy to grow.  

Get to know the new and colorful cherry tomatoes. Gardeners have raved over the golden cherry Sungold for its intense, fruity flavor in recent years. This year, we will test Sunorange, which has larger fruits that crack less. We are going to test chocolate cherry tomatoes, too. These will be great for snacking.

You won’t find many of these new varieties in garden centers yet. You will need to search for the varieties online. Aim to sow the seeds in late March to early April.

I encourage you to visit our website at ndsu.ag/gardentrials and download our list of recommended varieties. In that publication, there is also a list of companies that you can contact for seeds. Nearly all these companies offer free catalogs.

Many of these new varieties will be tested in gardens across our region. If you want to evaluate the varieties for North Dakota State University, you can request our online catalog from our website.

A revolution in tomato production is upon us. Let’s explore and enjoy!

For more information about gardening, contact your local NDSU Extension agent.

NDSU Agriculture Communication – Feb. 10, 2026

Source: Tom Kalb, 701-877-2585, tom.kalb@ndsu.edu

Editor: Dominic Erickson, 701-231-5546, dominic.erickson@ndsu.edu