What is an Early Pak Tomato?
If you’re like me and love growing and eating tomatoes, you have no doubt noticed just how many different tomato varieties are available for the garden. While I have my specific favorites that I grow every year, I also like to try at least one new variety each season. This has, of course, led me to discovering new favorites and has also helped me determine which varieties not to grow again. One variety I would certainly grow again is the Early Pak tomato, also known as Early Pak 7. What is an Early Pak tomato? Early Pak tomatoes are a determinate vine tomato which produce medium sized, juicy red fruit. The tomato fruit wall is thick, making them excellent for slicing, canning, or stewing. They have a classic tomato taste for all your favorite recipes. They can be eaten fresh in salads or sandwiches, canned for later use, stewed, or made into pastes, sauces, etc. Early Pak tomatoes, though just a pretty average looking tomato, are extremely tasty and versatile.
How to Grow an Early Pak Tomato Plant
Early Pak tomato seeds can be sown directly in the garden or started indoors about six to eight weeks before your region’s last expected frost date. From seed, Early Pak tomatoes take approximately 55 to 68 days to reach maturity. Early Pak tomatoes are one of the best rated tomatoes to grow in the Midwest or cooler climates because of their short maturation time. Early Pak tomato plants grow to about 4 feet (1 m.) tall and wide. This smaller stature also makes them excellent to grow in containers, while their vining habit makes them excellent for trellises or espaliers. Early Pak tomatoes have shown resistance to verticillium wilt and fusarium wilt. However, like all tomato plants, they may experience problems with blight, blossom end rot, tomato hornworms, and aphids.
