Early this spring, my wife Nancy bought a little seed planting kit from Ferry- Morse. It was a Smart Start kit with 8 tomato seeds in capsule form. “Water and grow” were the instructions. Of the 8 capsules, 4 managed to sprout and two finally made it to plant hood. One that did has been keeping us in fresh tomatoes. We get two or three each day and have been for a couple weeks. It is doing so famously that I asked Nancy exactly what kind of tomatoes she planted. They turned out to be Early Girl Hybrids. I have never planted this variety before, but rest assured, I will from now on. In fact, I just ordered two more kits for next spring’s garden. Seeds have been hard to get in many cases and I want to be prepared.
Early Girl, apparently, is a long-established variety. In fact, it may be the most popular hybrid of all in early production. They eat well, too. A medium size, firm tomato, we have enjoyed them in sandwiches and as a side vegetable almost daily. This variety will jump-jump-start a garden and continue to produce. One study in Alabama with a long growing season showed an average of 300 tomatoes from each plant. They also say you can plant this variety in mid to late summer and get tomatoes from it before the first frost. It’s worth a try.
Bottom line: Plant an Early Girl Hybrid tomato or two next year is you want an early, bountiful, crop.