Norton (Norton WR) Tomato

100 days, indeterminate — Also known as 'Norton WR' and 'Wilt-Resistant Stone', the 'Norton' tomato has regular leaf vines and is very hardy and productive. Its fruit are bright red in color, oblate in shape and range from four to twelve ounces each. The skin is thin yet crack resistant with flesh that is meaty and juicy (thick pulp), with a pleasantly tart flavor. It is a late variety that is highly resistant to tomato wilt (Fusarium lycopersici) and somewhat resistant to leaf-spot (Septoria lycopersici).^[6]

In 1912, John B. S. Norton of the Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station, began selecting tomato plants for disease resistance. In the spring of 1915, he sent Fred J. Pritchard of the USDA samples of unnamed seeds from selections that he had made from plants originating in a highly infected field of 'Stone'.^[6] Pritchard started his own disease-resistance work that year. After further selection work, he released the 'Norton' tomato in 1917. It became one of the leading disease resistant tomato varieties, especially in the Eastern tomato growing regions, for some years.^[1]

As one of the first disease resistant releases, 'Norton' was of commercial significance to the large tomato producers. It also quickly found its way into the catalogs of many home garden seed suppliers. In Livingston's 1923 seed annual, they stated, "This variety is commanding quite a little attention on account of its wilt-resisting qualities. It is similar in habit of growth, color, and season to our Livingston's Stone. The Norton should be a valuable sort for the South where the wilt is prevalent." Our parent stock source was USDA ARS accession number PI 644795. Each packet contains approximately 20 seeds.