Starfire Tomato
Price: $3.45
SKU: 3402121Developed by Dr. Charles Walkof at the Morden Experimental Farm in Manitoba, Canada and released in 1963.[1] It was bred to excel in the Canadian Great Plains but does well in other areas. Here in Oregon it was one of the most prolific and healthy looking varieties in our 2007 grow out. Our original source seed was from USDA, ARS accession number PI 302990.
Harvest Timing: Early/Short Season
Growth Habit: Determinate
Full light and cooler temps (60° to 70°) will help to prevent the seedlings from becoming too leggy. If plants become rootbound before you can safely set them into the ground, transplant them into larger pots.
Harden off plants before planting outside. Young plants are very susceptible to frost and sunburn damage. Avoid too much nitrogen. Water evenly but not in excess.
Click here to view our full tomato growing guide.
- Canadian Journal of Plant Science, 1963.
Customer Reviews:
By Catherine (Ellicott City MD) on June 11, 2025
Tomatoes are beautiful and meaty like a Celebrtiy.nfoliage has curled, yellowed and wilted. Isolated from other tomatoes. Hope they ripen. Want to try again next year, maybe with new seed.
By Catherine (Ellicott City, MD) on May 24, 2025
May 24:
My garden is sun challenged. (Recently upgraded sun exposure 6-7 hours.)
I get 5 1/2 to 2 hours of direct sun over the course of a season and have been growing tomatoes for four seasons now, including this one. Began encountering: Leaf Diseases, Hornworms, and the wasp larvae. Deer, Birds, Squirrels, Slugs and Bugs. Molds and Mildews. Low Yield.
The Starfire has the biggest tomatoes of all the 18 varieties I have planted in containers this year. It sprouted well, has been strong and produced fruit before all the others including another similar Canadian variety called Manitoba:
Started the plants in mid February. All the container tomatoes have "greenies" now but Starfire was first.
The two biggest tomatoes are small, 1 1/2 " diameter greenies that appear to be changing color. The shoulders are lightening. I think they're beautiful and I look forward to tasting them.
I sprouted and planted several Dwarf Tomatoe Project tomatoes, some regular cherries and an Early Girl. All in 5 gallon buckets with a blend of peat moss, vermiculite, compost, and worm castings. They all appear in very good health and Starfire is doing great; good foliage, strong stalk, lots of flowers, itty bitty greenies, and visible greenies. And a couple of small tomatoes that are turning color. And it's not even June.
