An experienced gardener will sing praises for the Jet Star tomato, vouching for it due to a myriad of reasons.
In what ways does the Jet Star distinguish itself for garnering such praise?
Could it be an earlier harvest? The ability to thrive in different soil conditions? Does it stand out for being a fast-growing crop? Is it disease-resistant?
We can continue guessing, but let’s stop here.
In today’s post we’ll explore the merits of Jet Stars.
What Are Jet Stars?
Jet Star tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum) are categorized under hybrid tomatoes and bear red sweet low acid fruits. They are early season tomatoes that take roughly 72 days to mature.
An increasing factor for their popularity is their overall disease and crack resistance. Within the scope of home gardening, these variety provide two fewer challenges compared to others; Vericillium wilt and fusarium wilt.
The plants thrive optimally in full sun with a minimum of five hours of direct sunlight exposure. They are planted in spring, developing early budding and yielding crops throughout each season for an extended period.
Expectations can be high as far as the fruit size is concerned. The tomatoes are comparable to beef steaks when it comes to size, and we all know they’re some of the largest tomato varieties. That says it all.
Jet Stars don’t fall too far behind Big Beef tomatoes (that produce 10-12 oz fruits), coming in at around with 8 oz on average.
This indeterminate variety benefits from being grown in cages or staked on a trellis, where they get significantly taller than the average height of about five feet; they appreciate extra support.
Why Grow Jet Stars in Your Garden?
Why would you opt for this specific variety over other types of tomatoes available on the market? What differentiates these variety from others?
There are several advantages that every gardener will appreciate which makes this variety so popular depending on preferences.
High Yields
Jet Stars consistently rank among the highest in fruiting and exceptional jet star tomatoes grow bountiful yields. Researchgate even claims them to be the best performers in a study on tomato yields.
These fruits mature early with the longest wait time of just 72 days until harvest. They also adapt well to different climatic regions, ensuring wide availability across numerous farmers and greenhouses.
Disease Resistance.
Referencing their popularity, this tomato variety is easier to grow compared to others as it is disease-resistant from Fusarium wilt and Verticillium wilt.
Since these diseases are common among tomatoes, this is one of the reasons Jet Star is cultivated so widely.
Crack Resistant
Jet Stars do not attain blemishes during growth which makes them ideal for indeterminate seasons. Their tomatoes retain that perfect red globe shape even through the latter half of the season.
Jet Stars also scar resistant and fully able to bruise free ensuring stunning globular shapes all through the season.
Great Tasting
Most will describe the sweet Jet Star tomatoes as low acid, when infact its because they are firm and meaty with high sugar content that gives them their mild bite tempered sweetness.
Across all types of tomatoes, the acidity levels are more or less the same.
Lesser-Known Facts About Jet Star Tomatoes
Let’s take a short glimpse at the lesser-known facts of these tomatoes. Some will make you smile in recognition while others may surprise you. Whichever category they fall into, they are sure to amuse everyone.
Jet stars grow best at temperatures between 60 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit but show tolerance even towards blistering hot days above 90.
Consistent warmth helps Jet star tomato plants shape and retain their size, as they won’t show any signs of heat stress even during prolonged scorching weather.
This does not hold true for many other varieties of tomatoes.
Tip: The bland taste of jet star is frequently mentioned by gardeners, however many people do know when to harvest them for optimum flavor. If you allow your plants to fully ripen on the vine then you’ll obtain better balanced flavor from the flesh and juice of the tomatoes so enjoy more rounded taste with less acidity.
The effectiveness of Jet Star tomato varieties for canning is still up for heated discussion among seasoned gardeners.
Some reviews say Jet Star’s flavor profile excludes them from the canning process while others claim successful canning outcomes.
Tip: In case these tomatoes are too low in acidity for your taste or USDA standards, you may counteract this using lemon juice or citric acid during the safe canning procedure. For every quart of tomato mixture, add 2 teaspoons to meet acidity requirements.
Here is a rare treat meant to help your Jet Stars achieve their full potential: If you’ve been treating your plants with fresh manure, stop immediately. Yes, it is detrimental.
Instead of refreshing your plants and helping put forth blooms, this will lead to excessive foliage for a long time in addition too devoiding fruits. To counteract this poor calcium supply make use of well-rotted cow manure combined with compost along with broken egg shells at planting time which boosts calcium ensuring vigorous health on growth for the tomatoes.
Ready to Capitalize on Your Tomato Knowledge?
There are warranted justifications for the buzz surrounding Jet Star tomatoes in recent years. This indeterminate variety of tomato possesses characteristics that make it a must-grow in your garden. And there is no two ways about this fact.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, though.
This cultivar does provide high-yielding perfect fruit and if you happen to be an impatient person, then you do not stand to lose much time. These tomatoes are early maturing and quite easy to grow.
So with this option in mind, all you need is some Jet Star tomato seeds and a sunny location in your garden where they can be grown full-sun. With such fast growth as offered by Jet Star tomatoes, limitless potential lies ahead for gardeners.
The nice part about having different varieties of tomatoes is that this understanding can be useful elsewhere too.
Learning from experienced fellow gardeners is something invaluable, especially for novice gardeners who have had to build their gardening skills from the ground up.