Moneymaker Tomato Plants: Proven High-Yield Variety for Bursting Red Tomatoes

Moneymaker tomato plants deliver 10 pounds of juicy red tomatoes per plant—that’s the kind of harvest that makes neighbors ask for cuttings. 🌱 I grew my first batch last summer, and what started as two plants turned into enough tomatoes to feed my family for months, with extras to share.

The secret isn’t luck; it’s matching their needs to the right conditions. These beefsteak tomatoes thrive in full sun (6-8 hours daily) and rich, well-draining soil with a pH between 6.0 and 6.8.

Plant them after the last frost when soil reaches 60°F, spacing them 3-4 feet apart to give their vines room to sprawl. Stake or cage them early—they grow fast, and without support, those heavy fruits can snap stems.

By midsummer, you’ll see glossy green leaves and clusters of bright red tomatoes the size of softballs. Prune suckers regularly to focus energy on fruit production, and water deeply at the base (not overhead) to prevent disease. The payoff?

A harvest that lasts from July through frost, with tomatoes so flavorful they taste like summer in every bite. Works in containers (5-gallon pots) or in-ground beds, and handles heat better than many varieties. Here’s how to keep them productive all season—no greenhouses required.

What you need

Step-by-Step guide to growing Moneymaker tomatoes for maximum yield

This classic beefsteak variety thrives with the right approach—here’s how to coax those signature 12-ounce fruits from your plants.

Fill 2-3 inch deep seedling trays with a sterile seed-starting mix and press it down lightly to eliminate air pockets. Plant 2-3 seeds per cell at a depth of ¼ inch—any deeper and they’ll struggle to break through. I like to use biodegradable pots so I can transplant without disturbing roots later.

Cover the tray with a clear plastic dome or plastic wrap to retain warmth and moisture. Place it in a warm spot (around 75-85°F) until germination, which typically occurs in 7-14 days. The moment you see sprouts, remove the cover immediately—condensation under it invites damping-off disease, which can wipe out seedlings overnight.

Moneymakers need strong, consistent light to prevent leggy growth. Position seedlings under a full-spectrum LED grow light within 2-4 inches of the plants. You’ll notice strong seedlings have thick stems and deep green leaves spaced closely together—anything pale or stretched needs more light.

Rotate the tray a quarter turn daily so plants grow evenly toward the light. Without this, seedlings will lean dramatically, making them weak and prone to breakage. After 4-6 weeks, when seedlings have 3-4 true leaves, it’s time to transplant them into larger containers.

Moneymakers are heavy feeders, so they need 5-gallon containers or deep garden beds with well-draining soil amended with compost or aged manure. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and place the seedling in, ensuring the soil line on the stem sits just below the container’s rim.

Water deeply right after transplanting to settle the soil and eliminate air pockets. Space plants 2-3 feet apart in the garden or stagger them in containers to maximize air circulation. This prevents fungal diseases like early blight, which can devastate Moneymakers if conditions get too humid.

Moneymakers need 1-2 inches of water weekly, delivered at the base of the plant to avoid wetting leaves. I water in the morning so foliage dries quickly, reducing the risk of fungal diseases. Let the top 2 inches of soil dry out between waterings

Start fertilizing with a balanced 10-10-10 or tomato-specific formula when flowers appear. Switch to a low-nitrogen, high-phosphorus feed (like 5-10-10) once fruit sets to encourage sweeter, larger tomatoes. Over-fertilizing with nitrogen now will produce more leaves than fruit—something you definitely don’t want with Moneymakers.