High heat can be a real issue when growing tomatoes. When temperatures get too high, many tomato varieties will suffer. Most will stop producing fruit in an effort of self-preservation. Pollen can be burned and killed in high heat, too.
Some tomato varieties can bounce back from periods of high heat when temperatures moderate, but others will continue to show the effects of heat stress. In southern regions, growers may not even try to grow tomatoes during the summer.
Fortunately, growers and researchers have put work into solving this problem. Thanks to modern hybridization, we now have quite a few good, reliable, heat-tolerant tomato plants to choose from.
Jump to:
- 14 Of the Best Heat Tolerant Tomato Varieties You Can Grow
- 1. Heatmaster
- 2. Early girl
- 3. Big Beef
- 4. Black Krim
- 5. Dixie Red
- 6. Phoenix
- 7. Summer Set
- 8. Solar Fire
- 9. Homestead Heirloom
- 10. Arkansas Traveler
- 11. Super Sioux
- 12. Florida 91
- 13. Black Cherry Tomato
- 14. Matt’s Wild Cherry Tomato
- Early and Small Often Equals Heat-Tolerant
- A Note on the Limits of Heat Tolerance
14 Of the Best Heat Tolerant Tomato Varieties You Can Grow
Many heat-tolerant tomatoes are determinate, which makes sense because they tend to be earlier producing varieties, and they set their blossoms and fruit early—before high heat hits, in many cases.
Not all are determinate, though. There are a good number of indeterminate plants on the list, too, including cherry tomatoes, which are usually reliable producers in hot weather.
1. Heatmaster
| Flavor: | Very good, classic garden tomato |
| Type: | Slicing, multi-purpose |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 7 ounces |
| Uses: | Multipurpose slicer; sandwiches, salads, slicing, canning, saucing, freezing; good storage tomato |
| Climate Notes: | Bred for high-heat climates and areas that experience high heat/heat waves |
| Disease Resistance: | Excellent: Anthracnose, Verticillium wilt, Fusarium wilt, Root-knot nematode, Gray leaf spot, Tomato mosaic virus, Alternaria stem canker |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic; should be supported -- stakes, cages, etc. |
| Days to Harvest: | 65 to 75 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate |
Where to Buy Heatmaster Tomato Seeds:
With a name like “Heatmaster,” this tomato is bound to be heat tolerant!
That’s exactly what this variety was developed for—performance in the high heat of the southeastern United States. It is also one of the highest-yielding tomato varieties (probably because it can keep going when others stop), and it’s resistant to diseases.
2. Early girl
| Flavor: | Excellent, classic tomato flavor |
| Type: | Slicing |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 4 to 6 ounces |
| Uses: | Slicing, salads, fresh eating, sandwiches and toppings |
| Climate Notes: | Suitable for all regions; excellent heat tolerance |
| Disease Resistance: | Good: Fusarium wilt, Verticillium wilt |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic; requires support – stakes, cages, etc. |
| Days to Harvest: | 52 days |
| Yield: | Very high |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Early Girl Tomato Seeds:
Not only is Early Girl very tolerant of heat, but it also happens to be one of the highest-yielding tomato varieties. It’s one of the earliest-producing varieties, too. It often beats the high heat of summer but even so, it will continue to produce straight through a heat wave.
3. Big Beef
| Flavor: | Excellent; old-style tomato flavor |
| Type: | Beefsteak (large) |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 12 to 16 ounces |
| Uses: | Slicing, salads, toppings, sandwiches |
| Climate Notes: | Reliable in all climates; resilient and productive in both cool and hot weather; heat tolerant |
| Disease Resistance: | Excellent: Verticillium wilt, Fusarium wilt, Anthracnose, Root-knot nematodes, Alternaria stem canker, Tomato mosaic virus, Gray leaf spot, Late blight, Crack resistant |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic; requires support (stakes, cages, etc.) |
| Days to Harvest: | 73 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Big Beef Tomato Seeds:
Big Beef is a good choice if you live in an area with changeable weather. It produces well in cold and wet weather, but it also has good heat tolerance. So, if you live in the north, where heat waves can come mid-summer, but cooler weather bookends the garden season, Big Beef is an excellent choice. Also, it’s an early producer.
4. Black Krim
| Flavor: | Excellent; classic and sweet, juicy |
| Type: | Beefsteak/Slicer |
| Color: | Dark red, maroon with green shoulders |
| Size: | 10+ ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, slicing, sandwiches, toppings, juicing |
| Climate Notes: | Heat tolerant, good for all regions; suited to hot areas |
| Disease Resistance: | Good; crack resistant |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, requires support (stakes, cages, etc.) |
| Days to Harvest: | 80 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Black Krim Tomatoes:
Black Krim is an heirloom variety from Crimea in Russia. Its claims to fame are heat tolerance and dark red coloring with green-tinged shoulders, as well as classic heirloom flavor. Black Krim is open-pollinated, so the seeds can be saved, too.
5. Dixie Red
| Flavor: | Good |
| Type: | Round, Slicer |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 11 ounces |
| Uses: | Slicing, multi-purpose: slicing, fresh eating, salads, sandwiches, canning, juicing, sauces |
| Climate Notes: | Excellent heat tolerant variety; suited to grow in all climates; tolerates humid climates; versatile, good for beginners |
| Disease Resistance: | Excellent – among the highest: Anthracnose, Fusarium wilt, Verticillium wilt, Gray leaf spot, Root-knot nematodes, Tomato spotted wilt virus, Crown wilt |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 85 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate |
Where to Buy Dixie Red Tomato Seeds:
Dixie Red is a variety used in commercial open-field production. It is also a good choice for home gardens. It thrives even in the heat of southern growing regions and continues to produce through hot conditions.
Dixie Red is also known as a high-yielding variety. Its canopy protects the fruit from sunburn and scalding, and it is recommended not to prune the plant to maintain that protection.
Compact grower; best disease resistance.
6. Phoenix
| Flavor: | Very good |
| Type: | Round, slicer |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 8 to 12 ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, sandwiches, slicing, toppings; fair for canning |
| Climate Notes: | Designed for high heat tolerance |
| Disease Resistance: | Good: Anthracnose, Verticillium wilt, Gray leaf spot |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, light support recommended (staking, cages); good for container growing |
| Days to Harvest: | 72 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate |
Where to Buy Phoenix Tomato Seeds:
Phoenix was developed expressly for areas of high heat. It is a hybrid that was designed to grow in hot south Texas in the U.S. and in comparable climates. This is an early maturing variety and a determinate plant of compact size, growing only to three or four feet high.
7. Summer Set
| Flavor: | Very good, classic tomato |
| Type: | Round, slicer |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 10 to 12 ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; slicing, sandwiches, salads; canning, saucing |
| Climate Notes: | Suited to all regions, does well in high heat and through heat waves |
| Disease Resistance: | Fair: crack resistant, including rainy years |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages); good for raised beds |
| Days to Harvest: | 75 days |
| Yield: | Very good |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Semi-determinate |
Where to Buy Summer Set Tomatoes:
Summer set, as its name implies, can take some intense heat. It is semi-determinate, so you’ll get large flushes of tomatoes but also extended continuous production. Known mainly as a slicing and fresh-eating tomato, it’s meaty enough for canning, too.
8. Solar Fire
| Flavor: | Good |
| Type: | Round, slicer |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 6+ ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, sandwiches, slicing |
| Climate Notes: | Developed for hot, humid, wet growing |
| Disease Resistance: | Very good: Fusarium wilt, Verticillium wilt, Gray leafspot, Fruit soft rot, Crack resistant |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 75 days |
| Yield: | Very good |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate |
Where to Buy Solar Fire Tomatoes:
Solar Fire was developed by the University of Florida with the idea of developing a larger tomato with high heat tolerance that can also take the humid climate and rain without cracking. Solar Fire solved all these problems. It can be planted earlier in high-heat areas like the south—even earlier than other varieties developed for these regions.
9. Homestead Heirloom
| Flavor: | Very good: sweet, meaty, juicy |
| Type: | Round, slicer, multi-purpose |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 8 to 9 ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; slicing, salads, sandwiches, canning |
| Climate Notes: | Heat tolerant, ideal for hot, humid locations |
| Disease Resistance: | Good: Anthracnose, Fusarium wilt |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 80 days |
| Yield: | Very good; 50 pounds per plant in ideal conditions |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate, semi-determinate |
Where to Buy Homestead Heirloom Tomato Seeds:
(Sometimes listed as Homestead) The Homestead tomato or Homestead Heirloom tomato was developed by the University of Florida in the early 1950s for growing in climates with hot, humid weather. Its foliage protects fruit well against sun scald and is the plant determinate or semi-determinate; therefore, pruning is not recommended.
Homestead has excellent heat tolerance, but there has recently been a shortage of seed, so you may want to save seed from this open-pollinated heirloom if you do grow it.
10. Arkansas Traveler
| Flavor: | Excellent; mild but classic tomato flavor |
| Type: | Round, slicer |
| Color: | Deep pink |
| Size: | 6 to 8 ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; slicing, sandwiches, salads, toppings |
| Climate Notes: | Performs in all climates; known for high heat and humidity tolerance |
| Disease Resistance: | Fair/Good: tolerates humidity [Blight], crack resistant |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 85 |
| Yield: | Good |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Arkansas Traveler Tomato Seeds:
(Also called Arkansas tomato) Arkansas Traveler is an old heirloom tomato that originated in the Ozark Mountains in the state of Arkansas in the U.S. This tomato can be grown virtually anywhere but is specifically known to be tolerant of heat and humidity, but also drought tolerant and crack resistant.
Some seed shortage recently, so consider saving seeds from this open-pollinated variety.
11. Super Sioux
| Flavor: | Very good; sweet, flavorful |
| Type: | Canning, dual-purpose |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 4 to 6 ounces |
| Uses: | Canning, processing, slicing, fresh eating |
| Climate Notes: | Particularly good for hot, dry regions |
| Disease Resistance: | Fair |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 70 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate/Semi-determinate |
Where to Buy Super Sioux Tomato Seeds:
(Also called Super Lakota) The Super Sioux tomato was developed in the mid-1900s in the U.S. Midwest state of Nebraska. Its claim to fame is high heat tolerance and drought tolerance, and it is a shorter-season tomato.
Super Sioux is primarily a canning or saucing tomato, great for home processing in hot regions, but it is often used as a dual-purpose tomato for slicing and fresh eating. Outperforms other heat-tolerant varieties in many areas, according to grower reviews.
12. Florida 91
| Flavor: | Good |
| Type: | Slicing |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | 9 to 11 ounces |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, sandwiches, slicing |
| Climate Notes: | High heat tolerant; thrives in hot, humid tropical locations |
| Disease Resistance: | Very good: Verticillium wilt, Fusarium wilt, Anthracnose, Gray leafspot, crack-resistant |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 90 days |
| Yield: | Good |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Determinate |
Where to Buy Florida 91 Tomato Seeds:
Florida 91 was developed as a commercial crop tomato for hot, humid climates, but it is also recommended as an excellent tomato for gardeners in similar hot, humid, and tropical locations. It sets fruit in some of the most intense summer heat conditions.
Florida 47 is a similar tomato with high heat tolerance but earlier maturity, ripening in 75 days.
13. Black Cherry Tomato
| Flavor: | Excellent; classic tomato in a cherry form |
| Type: | Cherry |
| Color: | Dark mahogany-red |
| Size: | ½ to 1 ounce |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, snacking, platters |
| Climate Notes: | High heat tolerant; grows in hot and humid conditions |
| Disease Resistance: | Good; vigorous vines often outgrow the disease |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (trellising, stakes, or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 64 to 65 days |
| Yield: | High |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Black Cherry Tomato Seeds:
The Black Cherry tomato is a southern, open-pollinated selection. It has a lovely dark red-brown color and is said to be the first black cherry with true, classic tomato flavor, considered a gourmet variety that is prized by chefs. It matures early, does well through periods of heat, and continues to produce throughout the season until killed by frost.
14. Matt’s Wild Cherry Tomato
| Flavor: | Excellent; very sweet |
| Type: | Small cherry, ¼ to ½ ounce |
| Color: | Red |
| Size: | ¼ to ½ ounce |
| Uses: | Fresh eating; salads, snacking, platters |
| Climate Notes: | High heat tolerant |
| Disease Resistance: | Very good: Early blight, Late blight |
| Growing Conditions: | Full sun, fertile soil, slightly acidic, needs support (stakes or cages) |
| Days to Harvest: | 55 to 60 days |
| Yield: | Very high |
| Determinate or Indeterminate? | Indeterminate |
Where to Buy Matt's Wild Cherry Tomato Seeds:
Matt’s Wild Cherry tomato hails from Mexico, so heat tolerance is a given. It performs well all season long, matures early, and continues to produce even in the high heat of summer; then, it produces straight through until fall frosts. This is a small, currant-type cherry tomato with a very sweet, superior flavor and thin skin.
This cherry tomato is resistant to both early and late blight.
Early and Small Often Equals Heat-Tolerant
If you’re looking for heat-tolerant tomatoes, you’ll find that the tomatoes that produce early often make the list. This is largely because those tomatoes will start producing before the highest heat sets in, so heat doesn’t delay their blossoming and fruit set (something that tends to happen when plants respond with self-preserving drought protection measures).
Many of these early-maturing tomatoes will continue to produce through periods of high heat, but even if they stall, they’ll often rebound when temperatures moderate.
Smaller tomatoes also tend to be on the most heat-tolerant lists. Tomatoes that produce small tomatoes are also often the tomatoes that produce early. Because of this, a lot of cherry tomatoes and grape tomatoes are heat tolerant, but this also applies to canning and slicing tomatoes that are smaller in size.
A Note on the Limits of Heat Tolerance
All heat-tolerant tomatoes will have difficulty producing if temperatures stay consistently above 100-110 Fahrenheit (37.8 - 43.3 C) for prolonged periods of time. Many varieties will stop producing at temperatures five to ten degrees lower than that.
Pollen will burn at high temperatures, and tomatoes will drop their blossoms in order to conserve water and resources for the plant. The most heat-tolerant varieties will rebound and begin to produce again when the weather gets cooler.
