Fejee Improved / True Beefsteak Tomato Seeds

Fejee Improved / True Beefsteak

Fejee Improved, also known as True Beefsteak, is a genuinely old American tomato with a history going back to the 1880s. It appeared as a new selection or cross around 1883 and was offered by Philadelphia seed houses including David Landreth and Robert Buist. By the 1890s, catalogs were also calling it Beefsteak. The variety was later preserved in the family collection of heirloom seed historian William Woys Weaver and was used by Dr. Harold E. Martin as a parent in creating True Black Brandywine.

Indeterminate, late-season plants produce large, flattened beefsteak tomatoes around 4–5 inches across. The fruit has unusual maroon to brownish-purple flesh with a deep red center, giving it the appearance that helped inspire the old “Beefsteak” name. Meaty with a rich, balanced smoky-sweet flavor, this is a really special piece of American tomato history that nearly disappeared.