Tomato HAWAIIAN PINEAPPLE Beefsteak

Solanum lycopersicum ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’

They’re indeterminate tomatoes, meaning they will continue to produce fruit from the time they mature until cold weather halts the harvest.

As we say in East Tennessee, “they’re big ‘uns,” with sturdy, regular leaf vines that reach six to eight feet tall and spread a couple of feet wide.

The mature fruits will weigh between 16 and 32 ounces each, so this variety could be a contender if you’re vying for neighborhood “biggest tomato” honors.

Regarding Solanum lycopersicum ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’ tomatoes, I have good news and possibly bad some news for home gardeners.

These pretty, bicolor heirloom tomatoes taste mildly sweet and fruity, and look glorious cut into sunset-hued slices.

What Are ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’ Tomatoes?

They don’t have a connection to Hawaii, but ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’ heirloom tomatoes have so many other positive attributes, their puzzling cultivar name becomes irrelevant.

They’re considered beefsteaks, or slicers, and have the firm flesh and few seeds that make them ideal for BLTs and tomato sandwiches. Lots of BLTs, actually – one fruit’s enough to fill three or four sandwiches.

The fruits are renowned especially for their looks.

They ripen to a yellow-orange hue streaked with red inside. Not exactly a pineapple color scheme, more like a sunset. But this variety does have a distinctively sweet, fruity flavor with a spike of citrus.

It was introduced to the public by the name ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’ by Merlin Gleckler of the famed family-owned seed business “Glecklers Seedman” in the 1950s.

Merlin’s son George Gleckler thinks there’s a possibility that ‘Hawaiian Pineapple’ is the same cultivar as other tomatoes called ‘Georgia Streak’ and ‘Marizol Gold.’

You’ll want to sow the seeds indoors four to six weeks before transplanting, which you can do once the soil and air have warmed and all threat of frost has passed.

Since the number of days to maturity for this variety hovers around 90, it’s necessary to carefully time indoor sowing. You’ll want to have plants that are big enough to transplant in plenty of time to harvest fruit before cool weather arrives.

Count back 28 to 42 days from your average last frost date to get an idea of when to sow, and be sure to mark the date in your gardening journal or set a cell phone reminder to sow the seeds on time.

While you want the starts to be ready when the weather gets warm enough, especially in areas with shorter growing seasons, it’s also important not to sow or plant them out prematurely.

Tomatoes sown indoors can quickly get spindly if you start seeds too early. Those leggy transplants won’t produce as well as stocky, healthy starts between four and six weeks old, or eight weeks old max,