Growers’ Notes and Photos (USDA Zones 4-5 Experience)
Hugo is a Czech release from Moravoseed. Known for high resistance to LB (late blight), gray mold, and Verticillium (V). Indet, mid-late season. Does great in-ground or under poly. DTM is around 105-115 days.
Fruits are blocky, pepper-shaped, red, with 3-4 seed locules and a thick skin. They weigh in around 7 oz (200 g) and run 3 to 4 inches (8-10 cm) long. Awesome for fresh eating and canning/sauce, and they handle getting knocked around in a basket really well. The breeder says they can store and ripen for up to 4-6 months in a cool, dry spot.
The plant gets tall, really sturdy vine. Flowered heavily, though I had a lot of blossom drop because of the heat, but it still managed to set a solid crop. Grew it in the greenhouse in full sun. It was a brutally hot, dry year and my well was running dry, so watering was pretty sparse. The fruits did get some yellow shoulders and radial cracking around the stem, but they never rotted or went bad. Had a touch of BER on a few early fruits, but the plant totally shrugged it off and corrected itself — I didn’t spray with cal-mag or treat it with anything. The foliage caught a bit of leaf mold late in the game, but that didn’t stop it from pumping out fruit right up until mid-October.
Despite the stressful conditions, the flavor was great. We ate almost all of them fresh, and the ones I sun-dried were absolutely killer. Mild flavor, really meaty tender flesh… honestly, it eats like a tomato sausage 🍅
Edited March 28, 2022 by Natalia79
On 3/28/2022 at 09:42 AM, Natalia79 said:
Mild flavor, tender flesh, kind of like a tomato sausage 🍅
Natalia, my grow list is already totally locked in and I’m done starting seeds, and now I’m gonna be kicking myself all summer that I won’t get to try this “tomato sausage” until next year! 😂😂
Thanks for the heads-up. 🙏
Full Summary: Hugo
- 🌿 Plant: Indet, mid-late season. Sturdy vines with a solid disease package (LB, V, leaf mold). Handles heat well, though you might see some blossom drop during severe heatwaves.
- 📈 Yield: Reliable. Sets a good crop even under drought stress with sparse watering.
- 👅 Taste: Mild and tender. The texture is extremely meaty, earning it the nickname “tomato sausage.” Perfect for fresh eating and makes killer sun-dried maters.
- 📦 Storage: Breeder claims insane shelf life — up to 4-6 months in a cool, dry place. Resists rotting even if it develops yellow shoulders or radial cracking.
- 🌎 Who Reviewed It: 1 grower in Zone 5a, plus some serious seed envy from another forum member.
