Related Items

Potting Soil

Seed Starting Supplies

Tomato Sauce Fertilizer

Lillian’s Yellow Heirloom Slicing Tomato - Sustainably Grown

seeds

0.2g: $3.75; Item: 4090-A
0.4g: $5.25; Item: 4090-B
1g: $9.85; Item: 4090-C
2g: $11.95; Item: 4090-D

Solanum lycopersicum
Yellow skin. (88 days) Open pollinated.

Indeterminate. Lillian’s may be a little late, not coming on until September, but is worth waiting for. Superb creamy consistency, meaty flesh and complex of rich deep flavors make this the best-tasting clear tomato, a perfect balance of engaging sweetness and intriguing citrus quality in every 1 lb fruit. Won’t win any beauty contests, being bi-lobed, oblate and a bit lopsided, but will win taste contests. One bite into one of these beefsteaks and you’ll forget about its superficial shortcomings. Carolyn Male rates it among her top 100, we rate it in the top 10. Fruit in clusters of 2 or 3. Prone to catfacing under stressful weather conditions. From Lillian Bruce, Manchester, TN.

Supplier Transparency:
① Small seed farmers including Fedco staff

ships year-round

Quick Details

Hybrid Status: open pollinated
Skin Color: yellow
Days to Maturity: 88 days
Lifecycle: perennial grown as an annual

Compare

Compare with other Slicing Tomatoes
Variety	Product Type	Hybrid Status	Skin Color	Days to Maturity	Lifecycle
Glacier Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red	56 days	perennial grown as an annual
Oregon Spring Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red	58 days	perennial grown as an annual
Cosmonaut Volkov Organic	seeds	open pollinated	deep red	65 days	perennial grown as an annual
Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye Organic	seeds	open pollinated	green-streaked red	68 days	perennial grown as an annual
Pruden’s Purple Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	72 days	perennial grown as an annual
Bizhiki Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red	75 days	perennial grown as an annual
KC 146 Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red	75 days	perennial grown as an annual
Black Prince Organic	seeds	open pollinated	garnet	75 days	perennial grown as an annual
Goldie Organic	seeds	open pollinated	deep orange	75 days	perennial grown as an annual
Rutgers Schermerhorn Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red	70 days	perennial grown as an annual
Green Zebra Organic	seeds	open pollinated	green-streaked yellow	77 days	perennial grown as an annual
Cherokee Purple Organic	seeds	open pollinated	dusky brownish purple	77 days	perennial grown as an annual
Paul Robeson Organic	seeds	open pollinated	brick red	78 days	perennial grown as an annual
Black Krim Organic	seeds	open pollinated	iridescent purplish red	80 days	perennial grown as an annual
Chocolate Stripes Improved Organic	seeds	open pollinated	green-striped red	75 days	perennial grown as an annual
Golden Jubilee Organic	seeds	open pollinated	orange	80 days	perennial grown as an annual
Rose de Berne Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	80 days	perennial grown as an annual
German Johnson Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	80 days	perennial grown as an annual
Pink Brandywine Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	82 days	perennial grown as an annual
Yellow Brandywine Organic	seeds	open pollinated	yellow	82 days	perennial grown as an annual
Pineapple Organic	seeds	open pollinated	red-streaked yellow	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Aunt Ruby’s German Green Organic	seeds	open pollinated	yellow-blushed green	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Mark Twain ECO	seeds	open pollinated	deep red	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Weisnicht’s Ukrainian Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Weaver’s Black Brandywine ECO	seeds	open pollinated	coal-dusted crimson	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Weaver’s Black Brandywine Organic	seeds	open pollinated	coal-dusted crimson	85 days	perennial grown as an annual
Tiffen Mennonite Organic	seeds	open pollinated	pink	86 days	perennial grown as an annual
Lillian’s Yellow Heirloom ECO	seeds	open pollinated	yellow	88 days	perennial grown as an annual
Ruby Gold ECO	seeds	open pollinated	red-streaked yellow	90 days	perennial grown as an annual
Heirloom Tomato Blend Organic	seeds	open pollinated	multi-colored		perennial grown as an annual
Premio	seeds	F-1 hybrid	red	60 days	perennial grown as an annual
Jet Star	seeds	F-1 hybrid	red	72 days	perennial grown as an annual

Additional Information

Tomatoes

Days to maturity are from date of transplanting

Culture: Usually started indoors Feb–April. Minimum germination soil temperature 60°, optimal range 75–90°. Transplant after frost danger has passed. Avoid using fresh manure as it causes lush foliage with few ripe fruits. Instead use generous amounts of well-rotted cow or horse manure or compost to boost plant vigor, and crushed eggshells or gypsum at the bottom of each hole for calcium. Heavy phosphorus needs. Responds well to foliar sprays.

Determinate (Det.) bush varieties may be staked, should not be pruned.
Indeterminate (Ind.) climbing varieties are customarily staked and pruned. Tomato experts Carolyn Male and Kokopelli’s Dominique Guillet both oppose pruning, arguing more abundant foliage provides more photosynthesis.

Organically and sustainably grown seed was rinsed with a sodium hypochlorite solution to reduce risk of seed-borne disease. This treatment poses no health risks.

Saving Seed: Saving tomato seed is easy! Remove stem-end and crush the fully ripe fruit into a container. Ferment uncovered for a few days until the slurry forms a moldy cap. Rinse in a fine strainer and dry seeds on a coffee filter. To ensure true-to-type seed, grow open-pollinated varieties and separate by 50 feet.

Diseases:

ASC: Alternaria Stem Canker
BRFV: Brown Rugose Fruit Virus
EB: Early Blight
F: Fusarium
GLS: Grey Leaf Spot
LB: Late Blight
N: Nematodes
SEPT: Septoria Leaf Spot
TSWV: Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus
TMV: Tobacco Mosaic Virus
TYLC: Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl
V: Verticillium

Pests and Disease Remedies for Tomatoes

Early Blight shows up as drying and dying leaves at the bottom of the plant. EB can be managed culturally; should not result in significant crop loss. Mulching deters EB by reducing rain splash on foliage. Do not compost affected plants as EB can overwinter even on dead tissue.
Cultural controls: Rotation, avoid stressing plants, staking, minimize leaf wetness, mulching, indeterminate varieties are more resistant/tolerant, disinfect stakes & cages.
Material controls: Regalia, Cease.

Late Blight usually starts on the foliage of the plant. Early in the season, late blight infection shows as roundish lesions on leaves that uniquely will cross the center vein of the leaf. Later, blotches appear on stems. Still later, hard crusty lesions form on fruits. LB on tomatoes is not seed-borne and does not survive on dead tissue. Letting plants freeze on soil surface kills LB spores.
Cultural controls: Destroy cull potatoes & potato volunteers, avoid overhead irrigation.
Material controls: Regalia, Copper, Cease.

Septoria Leaf Spot can appear almost overnight. It is characterized by yellowing and small circular spots on older leaves. It can eventually spread to the entire plant in conditions of high humidity and temperatures. It can be spread by wind or carried on clothing and tools. Septoria can live over the winter on live tissue, so don't compost affected plants.
Cultural controls: Space plants for good air circulation.
Material controls: Regalia, Copper, MilStop.

Anthracnose
Cultural controls: Rotation, mulching, minimize plant wetness, staking, use compost.
Material controls: MilStop, Copper, Regalia, Cease

Tomato Hornworm
Cultural controls: Look for frass (droppings) and handpick. Eeeuww! Use a blacklight to find them. See if you can get the chickens to eat them.
Material controls: Bacillus thuringiensis subsp.kurstaki, Monterey Garden Insect Spray.

Tarnished Plant Bug
Cultural controls: Floating row covers, good weed control.
Material Controls: Pyrethrin.

Bacterial Canker, Spec and Spot
Cultural controls: Disinfect greenhouse materials & cages, farming tools & gloves, avoid overhead irrigation, don’t work crop when wet, rotate crops, use compost.
Material controls: Copper.

Open-pollinated Slicers

250–650 seeds/g unless otherwise noted.

Preventing Late Blight

Dry conditions spare us some years, but late blight is here to stay, especially for field-grown crops. Cool temperatures, moist conditions, still air and lack of sunshine favor sporulation; spores can occur and advance in any condition of high humidity. LB might spread quickly... or not; wind-borne spores can travel hundreds of miles on storm fronts, but also can be baked into submission by the hot sun. Once LB lesions develop on your plants take immediate action to halt the disease in hopes of salvaging a crop. Our recommendations:

Where possible, use resistant varieties.
Try to find tolerant cultivars—use anecdotal evidence and experiment.
Grow your own tomato plants or buy locally grown seedlings. Avoid big-box seedlings. Know your farmer!
Do not use saved potatoes as seed stock. Purchase only new certified disease-free seed potatoes. More potato-related late blight info.
Plant in areas with full sun and few wind blocks. Avoid shade and moist environments. Facilitate air movement. Maintain high soil fertility.
If you choose to spray, have a plan and materials on hand, so you can make quick and timely application(s) when conditions indicate. Order supplies from Organic Growers Supply
Most market growers and many home gardeners now grow at least a portion of their tomatoes in high tunnels, which greatly reduces vulnerability though still requires vigilance.

Information Sources

See the Cornell Vegetable Resources website for excellent photos and info.
University of Maine Cooperative Extension: Potato IPM bi-weekly tells where LB infections have been confirmed in Maine or the eastern United States, umaine.edu/potatoes, 1-888-USE-UMCE.

Germination Testing

For the latest results of our germination tests, please see the germination page.

Our Seeds are Non-GMO

All of our seeds are non-GMO, and free of neonicotinoids and fungicides. Fedco is one of the original companies to sign the Safe Seed Pledge.

Shipping

From early May through mid-December, items shipping from our garden seeds warehouse ship twice a week, usually Tuesday and Thursday. For quickest turnaround time order online by noon Monday or Wednesday.