Green Zebra
What's special about Green Zebra
Ripens striped green-and-gold. Tangy, tart. Ripe when soft, not color.
Growing this variety
Green Zebra follows the same growing basics as Tomato. Variety-specific maturity above; everything else below applies to the whole Tomato family.
Germination
Spacing & depth
How to plant
Start indoors under lights 6–8 weeks before last frost. Pot up once. When transplanting, bury 2/3 of the stem — roots form along the buried stem for a stronger plant. Cage or stake at planting.
Grower's tip
Prune suckers on indeterminates for airflow and bigger fruit.
Soil preferences
Deep, rich, well-drained loam with lots of organic matter.
6.2–6.8
Bury a handful of crushed eggshell + a spoon of bone meal in each planting hole to prevent blossom-end rot. Side-dress at first fruit.
Watering
1–2 in per week — steady is more important than heavy.
Drip at the base; wet leaves spread early and late blight.
Overwatered: split skins, blossom-end rot, yellow lower leaves. Underwatered: rolled leaves, dropped blossoms.
Prefers top-watering — Top-water at the soil line with drip or soaker. Wet leaves spread early and late blight fast — never overhead in the evening.
Temperature tolerance
70–85°F (21–29°C) for warm-season; 60–75°F (15–24°C) for cool-season
55–65°F (13–18°C)
Warm-season crops (tomato, pepper, squash, cucumber, bean) are frost-tender. Cool-season (brassica, pea, spinach, radish) tolerate light frost, some (kale, spinach) sweeten after one.
Container growing
Yes — great in containers
5+ gal (19 L) for determinate; 10+ gal for indeterminate
Determinate ('bush') types finish and fall over — perfect for pots. Cage every container tomato.
Succession planting
One main sowing per season indoors 6–8 weeks before last frost. Sow a second batch 4 weeks later for a fall crop in mild climates.
Detailed harvesting
Pick when color is even and fruit gives slightly to a gentle squeeze — twist gently or clip. Ripen borderline fruits on the counter, never the fridge.
Post-harvest storage & preservation
Cure winter squash and onions in a warm airy spot 2 weeks, then store cool. Freeze most vegetables blanched. Ferment or can surplus.
Culinary, medicinal & other uses
Fresh eating, cooking, preserving. Save the biggest and best specimens as seed stock, not for the table.
Medicinal or traditional uses are shared for interest only — this is not medical advice. Consult a qualified professional before using any plant medicinally.
Seed saving
Self-pollinating (95%+); a light shake helps set fruit.
10 ft between varieties. Currant and potato-leaf types cross more readily.
Squeeze a ripe fruit into a jar of water; ferment 3–4 days until it molds; rinse, sink the good seed, dry on a plate 2 weeks. Keeps 5+ years dry.
Your zone's planting calendar
Pick your USDA hardiness zone and we'll estimate the key dates for tomato in your area. These are regional averages — always check your own last-frost forecast before sowing.
My Green Zebra Tomato notes
Green Zebra Tomato seeds on hand
Track packets and loose seeds you already have. Private to your account.
Par level — leave at 0 for no alert. Anything below par shows on Seed Starting and your shopping list.
From your kitchen — grow tomato from what you already have
Tomato seed is easy to save from any ripe open-pollinated (heirloom) fruit — a store tomato works too, but hybrids like Roma or Cherub won't grow true.
- 1Scoop the seeds and gel from a fully ripe tomato into a jar with a splash of water.
- 2Loosely cover and leave at room temperature for 3–5 days — a mold layer forms as the gel ferments off. This kills seed-borne disease.
- 3Rinse under a fine sieve. Viable seeds sink; floaters and pulp float off.
- 4Spread on a paper plate (not a coffee filter — they stick) and dry 1–2 weeks until snap-brittle.
- 5Store in a labeled envelope. Sow next spring on a heat mat like any other tomato seed.
Storage: Fermented, dried seed keeps 4–6 years in a cool dry drawer.
Order more seeds
Running low? Reorder from one of these seed stores.
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Other Tomato varieties
Cherry (Sungold, Sweet 100)
60 daysIndeterminate. Prolific, candy-sweet. Trellis or cage — grows 6 ft+.
Roma / Paste
75 daysDeterminate. Thick-walled, meaty. Made for sauce and canning.
Beefsteak (Brandywine, Cherokee Purple)
85 daysIndeterminate. 1-lb heirloom slicers. Fewer, huge fruit.
Slicer (Better Boy, Early Girl)
70 daysReliable mid-size hybrids. Disease resistant.
Grape
65 daysElongated cherry, firmer flesh. Excellent shelf life.
San Marzano
85 daysThe classic Neapolitan paste tomato — thin skin, low seed count.
German Pink
Large pink beefsteak heirloom — meaty, low-acid, few seeds. Great slicer.
Rutgers
Classic red slicing tomato bred in New Jersey — balanced flavor and productive.