Hungarian Heart

Family: Solanaceae Vegetable

Planting Schedule

Provide your location or planting zone to unlock dates and add Hungarian Heart to a garden.

Sink your senses into Hungarian Heart’s rich, warm aroma and its famously heart-shaped presence—meaty slices with a velvety, seed-studded interior and a balanced, sweet-tang finish.

The fruit ripens to a deep, rosy-red that feels almost satin-smooth, delivering exceptional body for bold slicing and show-stopping fresh salads, plus luscious sauce potential when you want tomato flavor with substance. For gardeners who love a statement harvest, this 85-day oxheart brings reliable performance and a romantic, heirloom-like silhouette to the bed.

Light: Full SunMaturity: 85 DaysHabit: Determinate

Botanical illustration of Hungarian Heart

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Hungarian Heart Planting Dates by USDA Zone

Estimated US hardiness-zone windows for sow, transplant, and harvest. Enter a US ZIP above for exact local dates, or open a zone below.

Zone	Start Indoors	Sow / Transplant	Harvest
Zone 1a	Protected Environment Only
Zone 1b	Protected Environment Only
Zone 2a	Apr 6th	Jul 20th	Oct 13th – Aug 29th
Zone 2b	Mar 27th	Jul 10th	Oct 3rd – Aug 25th
Zone 3a	Mar 27th	Jul 10th	Oct 3rd – Sep 1st
Zone 3b	Mar 31st	Jul 14th	Oct 7th – Sep 21st
Zone 4a	Mar 27th	Jul 10th	Oct 3rd – Sep 24th
Zone 4b	Mar 25th	Jul 8th	Oct 1st – Sep 27th
Zone 5a	Mar 20th	Jul 3rd	Sep 26th – Sep 30th
Zone 5b	Mar 16th	Jun 29th	Sep 22nd – Oct 5th
Zone 6a	Mar 13th	Jun 26th	Sep 19th – Oct 10th
Zone 6b	Mar 7th	Jun 20th	Sep 13th – Oct 16th
Zone 7a	Mar 2nd	Jun 15th	Sep 8th – Oct 20th
Zone 7b	Feb 20th	Jun 5th	Aug 29th – Oct 28th
Zone 8a	Feb 11th	May 27th	Aug 20th – Nov 5th
Zone 8b	Feb 2nd	May 18th	Aug 11th – Nov 12th
Zone 9a	Jan 16th	May 1st	Jul 25th – Nov 26th
Zone 9b	Dec 22nd	Apr 6th	Jun 30th – Dec 9th
Zone 10a	Continuous Production
Zone 10b	Continuous Production
Zone 11a	Continuous Production
Zone 11b	Continuous Production
Zone 12a	Continuous Production
Zone 12b	Continuous Production
Zone 13a	Continuous Production
Zone 13b	Continuous Production

Crop Details

Trait	Value
Days to Maturity	85
Sun Requirements	Full Sun
Growth Habit	Determinate
Support Needed	Cage
Planting Depth	Deep
Germination Temp (°F)	75
Min Soil Temp (°F)	60
Min Night Temp (°F)	50
Harden Off (days)	10

Culinary Notes

Chef's Note

Hungarian Heart is an oxheart built for the knife: the flesh is meaty and satiny, so it won’t collapse into a puddle on your plate. Use its balanced sweet-tang to carry bold dressings and reductions—this is tomato with body, not just acidity.

Best Uses

thick slicing on sturdy bread—juicy but not watery
caprese-style salads with balsamic and slick dressings
slow-cooked tomato sauce that clings and reduces
grilled tomato stacks where flesh stays intact

Flavor Profile

meaty, velvety slices with seed-studded interior balanced sweet–tang acidity warm, rosy tomato aroma tender flesh that holds its shape

Kitchen Pairings

burrata balsamic vinegar garlic olive oil black pepper aged pecorino

Frequently Asked Questions

What pest or disease most commonly affects Solanum lycopersicum (Hungarian Heart/oxheart tomatoes), and how can I stop it?

Watch for early blight (dark, concentric spots) and leaf spotting, which are common on Solanum lycopersicum in warm, humid spells. Remove and discard infected lower leaves, water at the soil line (not overhead), and keep plants well spaced for airflow. If problems persist, spray a labeled fungicide for tomatoes according to label intervals, starting at the first signs of spotting.

How often should I water Hungarian Heart tomatoes during the main growing phase?

During fruiting, keep soil consistently moist but not soggy—aim for about 1–2 inches of water per week, delivered in deep soakings. Water when the top 1 inch of soil dries out, and use mulch to reduce swings that cause cracking and blossom-end rot. Avoid frequent light watering, which encourages shallow roots and more stress during hot weather.

How do I know when Hungarian Heart tomatoes are ready to harvest?

Harvest when the fruit is fully colored (typically deep red), feels firm but not hard, and reaches the expected size for an oxheart shape. The blossom end should be firm with no dark, sunken rot, and the fruit should detach with a gentle twist once mature. For best flavor, wait until the fruit is ripe on the vine rather than picking early.