Yellow Pear Tomato

Solanum lycopersicum 'Yellow Pear'

vegetable

Yellow Pear is a prolific small-fruited heirloom grown since at least the 1800s, producing hundreds of bite-size, pear-shaped yellow tomatoes on a single plant all season long. The flavor is mild and sweet with very low acid, which makes the fruit popular with children and as a cheerful addition to salads, kebabs, and garnish plates. The indeterminate vines are vigorous and sprawling, easily reaching 6 feet, and they keep setting clusters until frost. What it lacks in intensity it makes up for in sheer abundance and ornamental charm.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Basil — Deters aphids and whiteflies while improving fruit flavor
• Carrot — Loosens soil around tomato roots
• French Marigold — Suppresses root-knot nematodes in the soil
• Parsley — Draws hoverflies that prey on aphids

❌ Keep away from

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Tomato hornworm →

  Handpick caterpillars at dusk; plant borage nearby to attract parasitic wasps

• Aphids →

  Blast off with water; introduce ladybugs or lacewings

• Whiteflies →

  Yellow sticky traps; reflective mulch on the soil surface

• Cracking →

  Keep soil moisture even with mulch and consistent deep watering

🌾 Harvest & storage

First fruit ripens around 75 days from transplant and then comes in heavy waves. Pick when the little tomatoes are fully yellow and just slightly soft to the touch; they are best eaten at room temperature within a day of harvest. Because the thin-skinned fruit cracks quickly after rain if left on the vine too long, check the plant daily in late summer and harvest the clusters as they color. The sheer volume means picking every day or two through peak season, and the firm small fruit holds up well once gathered.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Yellow Pear tomatoes are rich in vitamin C and potassium and stay very low in calories. Yellow types often taste sweeter and less sharp than red ones because of their sugar balance, though their actual acidity is similar; their color comes from carotenoid pigments such as beta-carotene rather than the red lycopene. Eaten by the handful they make a wholesome fresh snack that needs no preparation.

⚠️ Toxicity & safety

Eat the ripe fruit only. Tomato leaves and stems (and large amounts of very unripe green fruit) contain solanine-type compounds and are not for eating.