Costoluto Genovese is a beautiful and versatile Italian tomato. The large, healthy plants (5 ft / 150 cm) produce loads of very flavourful small to medium sized highly ribbed tomatoes. The tomatoes mainly range in size from 40 g to 100 g.
Costoluto Genovese has that old fashioned tomato flavour you are looking for. At first bite, you will recognize the balance of sweetness and tang — which explains why it is a staple in Italian cuisine.
This is a versatile tomato – it is great in salads and as a cooking tomato. We made batches of pasta sauce with its abundant harvest. Although we will point out it is a later season tomato for us in Zone 4 (despite its smaller size compared to the other Italian tomatoes in our collection), but the unripe tomatoes we brought inside ripened well indoors.
What is the difference between Costoluto Genovese and Costoluto Fiorentino?
Costoluto Genovese was traditionally grown in northern Italy in the farmlands around the city of Genoa. It is also a smaller tomato and more highly ribbed than Costoluto Fiorentino.
Costoluto Fiorentino was traditionally grown in the farmlands around the city of Florence (Fiorentino in Italian) in southern Italy. The tomatoes are a bit larger than Costoluto Genovese and less highly ribbed.
Please see the picture comparing the size of Costoluto Genovese and Costoluto Fiorentino – Costoluto Genovese is the smaller tomato (right); Costoluto Fiorentino the larger tomato (left).
Our original seed source for Costoluto Genovese was a seed saving organization in Italy.
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How to Grow Tomatoes? Start seeds indoors 6 weeks before the last frost. Plant seed 5mm (¼ inch) deep. Transplant after the danger of frost has passed/later spring.
