Tomato 'Livingston's Magnus'

Try to plant in a location that enjoys full sun and remember to water moderately. Keep in mind when planting that Livingston's Magnus is thought of as tender, so it is really important to plant out well after your last frost date. Planting Livingston's Magnus in loamy soil with a ph of between 5.5 and 7.5 is ideal for as it does best in weakly acidic soil to weakly alkaline soil.

Start seeds indoors six weeks before last frost date.

Sow at a depth of approx. 0.39 inches (1.0 cm) and aim for a distance of at least 0.78 inches (2.0 cm) between Tomato plants. Soil temperature should be kept higher than 12°C / 54°F to ensure good germination.

By our calculations, you should look at sowing Livingston's Magnus about 42 days before your last frost date.

Plant to the first set of true leaves to promote strong root growth.

As Livingston's Magnus is tender, ensure temperatures are mild enough to plant out - wait until after your last frost date to be on the safe side.

This variety tends to be ready for harvesting by late summer.

Introduced in the Livingston Seed Co. catalogue in 1900.

Identified as a crucial historic variety by Craig LeHoullier after he purchased a 1900 Livingston catalog in the early 1990s. Magnus was Livingston’s “cover” variety that year. Craig found Magnus when perusing the USDA GRIN database, listed as NSL 27381. Craig requested and received seed, which was of very low germination. He shared the seed with Carolyn, who managed to germinate a potato leaf seedling, which she mailed to Craig. The tomatoes grew in alignment with the catalog description – seeds saved from tomatoes from the plant in Craig’s garden are the source of Magnus that is now available from Victory Seed Company, the SSE yearbook, and other commercial sources. ¹

Livingstons Magnus

Livingston Magnus, Magnus

¹ Tatiana’s TOMATOBase – Magnus