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I have sown 10 tomato varieties. 4 of these, Alicante, Gardeners Delight, Moneymaker and Sungold are in the top 5 tomatoes chosen by home gardeners to grow from seed. I profile them all (and Shirley) in the Tomato Lover’s Top 5 Tomato Seed Guide.
However as yet I haven’t said much about the other 6 tomato varieties. Time to put that right.
My other seed choices were Black Cherry, Carbon, Garden Pearl ( Gartenperle), Red Robin, Tigerella and Tumbler.
Starting today, over the next week or so I will profile each variety. Today’s profile is of Black Cherry.
To eat, Black Cherry is:
- Sweet, rich complex, very sweet, rich smoky flavour, sweet and juicy flavour, very rich and sweet
- Cherry size, round, perfect round cherry
- Purple skin, deep red blackish hue, dark red flesh, purple skin, dusky purplish black, deep mahogany brown
To Grow, Black Cherry is:
- Cordon Interderminate
- Glasshouse or outdoors
- High yield, huge yield, abundant, huge clusters, large clusters, prolific
- Vigorous, tall, large, sprawling
- Early maturing, early season
- Crack/spilt resistant
- Very easy to grow
To buy Black Cherry:
Available packet size tended to be between 15 and 25 seeds. Average seed priced worked out at 8 pence per seed. Seeds are stocked by Nicky’s Nursery, Thompson & Morgan and Ready to Grow
All my research on Black Cherry makes me very excited to be growing it. It seems the perfect combination of exotic, delicious fruit AND an easy to grow plant.
Have you grown Black Cherry? Am I right to feel excited about its dark mystery and sweet promise?
Photo by old tasty
{ 35 comments… read them below or add one }
Hello, I’m enjoying your website. I grew Black Cherry this year from Thomson and Morgan seeds. Mine were deep red to purple with green shoulders when ripe. Mine weren’t quite as productive or as quick to ripen as Gardener’s Delight, but I germinated them a month later. well worth it. They have a sweet, tangy and subtly nutty taste, not as sharp as G.D. They also keep well; the last few of mine are on the windowsill. A definite for next year and well worth the wait.
Thanks for the feedback – glad you are enjoying the site.
Great to hear that you still have some from this year to eat fresh . So much better ( & cheaper) than what’s avaliable in the supermarket right now !
I’ve just come across your website whilst looking for info. on costoluto fiorentino. This year I found loads of old seeds that we brought from England when we moved to Greece 4 years ago. These included Tiny Tim, Sub-Arctic Plenty, San Marrano and the Costoluto. Although old and, in some cases, opened packets, they have all germinated well with only the Arctic Plenty seemingly reluctant to grow on. I must have over 200 plants either in the ground or still in the greenhouse and most of the produce will end up on friends’ tables or in our local taverna.
The Black Cherry sounds interesting but I’m not sure how the tourists would take to the colour in a Greek salad.
Thanks for the website as it’s nice to know there is someone dafter than me about growing toms.
Dave
Zakynthos, Greece.
Hello
Thank you for stopping by and getting in touch. I was trying to count on my fingers how many years it is since I found myself eating a Greek Salad on Zakynthos – and when I had counted on both hands, twice over I stopped – before depressing myself any further !
But I tell you if I was served one that had Black Cherry tomatoes in – I would be so impressed !! Perhaps it can become the Taverna’s signature dish !
However on the other hand, maybe you’re right to be cautious – when I grew them last year someone did say to me that they couldn’t eat a black tomato as it didn’t seem ‘right’. On the other hand all the adventurous types who gave it a try – loved its flavour.
I love the idea of having 200 plants ( apart maybe from all that pinching out) and as Summer shows absolutely no sign of arriving here in England anytime soon, pls keep in touch and let us know how yours flourish !
Just got some of these black cherry toms can you tell me do you take off the sideshoots or are they bush type.
Thanks
Very good choice! A lovely tomato – in looks and flavour. A bit prone to splitting if they get too over watered (by rain – if you grow outdoors like me) but well worth growing.
They are indeterminate – which means they grow like a vine – so not the bush type. So yes – take off the sideshoots – and they are quite vigorous so throw out quite a few.
I’m not growing them this year – having had them for the past 2 years I decided I must try something new – so am trying Chocolate Cherry instead. But they will have to very good to compete!
SAME AS PAULS QUESTION – BLACK CHERRY TOMS ARE THEY BUSH TYPE OR DO YOU PINCH OUT SIDE SHOOTS??
Hello – Pinch out sideshoots – it will throw out lots – it’s very “vine” like in its growth habit!
I PICKED UP TWO BLACK CHERRY TOMATO PLANTS AT A MARKET IN VERMONT AND CARRIED THEN BACK TO WESTERN PA ON AN AIRPLANE. I PLANTED THEM AND WOW! DID THEY GROW – AND GROW – AND GROW! THEY WERE RICH AND HEARTY. ONE DAY I MADE A SANDWICH OF MEAT, BLACK CHERRIES SLICED IN HALF, A SPRINKLING OF CHEESE. I HEATED IT ENOUGH TO MELT THE CHEESE. THE FIRST BITE WAS A SURPRISE. THE FLAVOR EXPLODED! INTENSE, ROBUST, JUST KICKED IT UP TEN NOTCHES. NEEDLESS TO SAY, BLACK CHERRIES WERE A HIT AND I WILL GROW THEM AGAIN THIS YEAR 2011.
What a great description! I loved their airbound journey home – and you are absolutely right about their growth habit- just like Sungold they really like to see what’s going on over the fence – or anywhere they can “scramble” to. They are a great tomato and I am with you on it being one that rightly earns its place in the garden each year. Enjoy this year’s crop !
A very interesting and tasty tomato indeed. Over here in Sydney Australia, I planted one I grew from seed in late March on the recommendation that it was a tomato that could survive up to our winter (June – September) – we have no no frost or below zero conditions and live on the coast. What a surprise! It just grew and grew, was impervious to very wet weather, disease and pests and in the end I had to pinch out the top. It kept flowering in cool to cold wet weather and the fruit kept coming. I don’t know how this tomato will go in our summer months but I am certainly going to try it. I have picked fruit as of June 3 and there is more to come. If this tomato continues to emulate its (Australian) autumn performance – I have found the “Golden Egg”!
Hello – Thank you for getting in touch. It is wonderful to hear from tomato growers about their experiences with different varieties. And even more wonderful to hear from growers in different countries and climates. And I like the idea of a “Golden Egg” tomato! I like it because of its colour, flavour and wild calyx! It’s good on its own and it adds a certain something when mixed in with other tomatoes in a salad etc – esp if you grow varieties in shades of orange – like Sungold – or yellow – like Balconi or even paler -Snowberry. And you are right on its love of growing – it’s very much a vine!
I had decided not to grow it this year – to try Chocolate Cherry instead – but was regretting that decision – so was surprised and delighted to find it as a plant in a garden centre this week – which not only allowed me to add it back into this year’s collection – but made me think that it is gaining in popularity – and for all the reasons you have said – rightly so!
I hope you continue to have great success with it – and do let me know – it’s wonderful to think of us all enjoying home grown tomatoes the world over!
I too am growing Black Cherry tomatoes for the first time this year. I have so many it’s amazing. They are wonderful! I’m just waiting for all the other Heirlooms to ripen now
Hello,
Thank you for stopping by and getting in touch. Am very glad to hear you have a good crop. They have such a good flavour and add lots of colour and character to salads.
Hope you have a fully ripe garden shortly.
I grew heirloom tomatoes last year for the first time, and loved the Cherokee Purples. This year, I have 11 varieties in the ground that I got from friend and seed collector Al Anderson of Ohio. Al sent me Black Cherry seeds in the batch. We are in South Florida, so we planted the seed in early August and will grow them all winter. We picked the first Black Cherry tomato today, and cut it in half and ate it tonight. Tastes wonderful, just like a small Cherokee Purple. Can’t wait for the rest to ripen.
How Wonderful! I love that you are just picking your first “winter” tomatoes!!
I am a huge fan of Black Cherry. It’s interesting and versatile and gives a whole other colour dimensions when used in salads etc. Have you also come across “Sungold” – slightly smaller, a golden orange and the same vigourous growth as Black Cherry – a glass bowl – half filled with Black Cherry and half filled with Sungold is a heartlifting sight to the tomato lover!
Thank you for getting in touch and I hope you have a long and delicious tomato season.
Sally, we can plant two crops of winter tomatoes in South Florida, so I might try to find some seed for Sungold and try it after Christmas in crop 2. Picked our first Alice Roosevelt today. Can’t wait to try that for the first time. Have you tried Royal Chico, a plum tomato? We have those in pots this year for the first time and they seem to be fruiting heavily and the plant is gorgeous. Can’t wait until they ripen.
Two crops of winter tomatoes! You are really making me jealous. The temperature has just dropped here – today was the day for wooly hats and gloves! So I will have to enjoy the thought of tomatoes – and what great names – Alice Roosevelt and Royal Chico – I haven’t come across either – but then Alice in particular sounds like a very all American lady! So maybe that’s why!
Hello Sally!
I tried black cherry in Israel where the seller told me it was the tomato with most nutrients, so I came across this article while trying to find out the truthness about this fact!
Now I got impressed with these variations and I really want to know more before buying seeds!
By the way the black cherry tasted like heaven =)
Growing the Black Cherry for the first time here in Burgaw, NC. Built a second raised bed this spring, and this bed is dedicated to nothing but tomatoes. I have 10 different varieties in the bed, one plant being a black cherry. Planted in April, now beginning of June and I am watching and waiting for my tomatoes to ripen. I picked my first one last week, it was a Solar Fire. Today or tomorrow I will be picking my first Black Cherry. Its driving me nuts not knowing exactly when to pick it, how dark should I let it get? Should I pick when dark dark, or lightly dark and then let counter ripen? I guess Ill get brave and just go for it and use trial and error on the first couple fruits to test for optimal picking time. I have never had so many varieties of tomatoes at once. And growing them in a dedicated bed it makes them look so much happier!
As it’s taken me a while to reply, my guess is that you are now enjoying the harvest from that dedicated bed. Are you liking the Black Cherry as much as you thought you would. I really like it – along with Sungold. And together in a salad, they look amazing. Even just sat mixed up in a bowl on the counter. I found with both – if I left them near to ripening and then it rained heavily – the skins would split. Which was very annoying! So if it was forcast to be rain then I might pick earlier to avoid that. But you might not be “blessed” with as much rain as we are here in the UK. Back in April a hosepipe ban came into place as there was a water shortage and it was going to have to be in place for an indefinite period of time. And then we had about two years worth of rain in as many months – and now we can all water our gardens using hosepipes again. Except of course that we don’t need to – as it just keeps on raining!
I am growing my first cherry tomatoes and have a couple of questions. Do they turn red before the turn a dark color? Also, what do you mean when you say to pinch the sideshoots?
Please use only my first name when posting this comment!!! Thank you!!!
Hello – if you are growing Black Cherry – you have chosen an excellent variety as your first variety – lots of flavour and lots of fruit per plant. But the only downside is – they definitely don’t turn red first – if I remember rightly they go from green – with a darker green at the top of the tomato – and then almost turn a brownish colour before going purply/black.
When you think they look an even dark colour – pick one and try one – then you will get a feel for when that variety is ripe.
And next year – if you want to try some more varieties – in colours to complement Black Cherry – then do try Gardener’s Delight for red tomatoes and Sungold for a very vibrant orange.
Sideshoots are the shoots which you will see growing in the V between the stem of the plant and a branch which bears leaves. You don’t have to remove them – but they will grown a whole other “vine” and especially with Black Cherry – this makes for a very unwiedly plant.
I think I have some clear photos somewhere on my site – so will give you a link to them when I find them.
First time for the black cherry tomatoes….plants are growing well, but I was shocked to learn how big these get!!! Is there a way to pinch these back so they do not grow so tall? We live in a condo community…..so these are planted in 1 foot deep patio containers……and I’m sure my stakes will not be tall enough. Help!!!! P.S. We llive in N.E. Ohio.
Hello
Have copied and pasted your question above. I did smile when I read your comment on Black Cherry. They are unruly plants!! I always think of Black Cherry ( and Sungold) as the nosy varieties – who want to be up over the top of the fence and having a look into the neighbours garden. It’s like I am happy to put down roots – but the rest of me is off travelling.
You can pinch out the growing tip. This will stop them growing upwards. I would normally do this when I have five or six trusses of tomatoes ( the branch on which the tomatoes grow is called a truss). Do you have as many trusses as you want yet?
If you pinch out the top tip – they will throw out more side shoots – as all the growth hormone has nowhere to go upwards – so goes back down into the plant and concentrates on sidewards growth ( part of its survival mechanism) – so do keep pinching these out – as otherwise it will just grow unruly but in a sidewards fashion.
I hope this all makes sense – I don’t know if you are regular growers and just growing Black Cherry for the first time or are completely new to growing tomatoes.
If it doesn’t make sense – reply and I will see if I can find the links to past posts I have written on pinching out growing tips and put them as links here.
first time growing black cherry tomatoes…..took a bite, it was alittle green inside….guess it’s not ripe yet…but the flavor was great….will be in my garden from now on……..how do I save seeds….thanks
Am so glad you liked the flavour. I would keep trying them and see what colour they are at the flavour point you like best.
To save the seeds for other years – just dry out some seeds by spreading them over a piece of kitchen towel – and when they have dried you can just separate them out into indivdual seeds – it doesn’t seem to matter if the paper is still attached – and store them somewhere cool, dry and dark until you are ready to sow next year.
Hi Grace and Sally,
There’s a great seed-saving guide here: http://daughterofthesoil.blogspot.co.uk/2008/09/saving-seed-from-tomatoes.html
Sally, I love that this 2009 thread keeps growing!
Hi Sally,
I’ve just had a pasta with a few of my newly ripened Black Cherries thrown in at the end… delicious! Mine are growing on a rooftop deck in a large black plastic container, and are already producing much more than the other tomatoes and peppers I have up here. These really are among the tastiest tomatoes I’ve ever had; plus they are nice and small so that you can just pop them whole into your mouth. I grew these from seed that I got from Baker Creek Heirloom seeds (my dad gave me $50 for seeds for a birthday present, so I’m set for the next decade or so!).
Hi Sally,
I bought a small plant in our local village garden fete in the Freemantle Hall in Bexley, Kent. The dear lady said they were delicious and so I gave it a go. Have never grown tomatoes before, but knew I had to keep them in a dry area and nip out the shoots in between the branches. I was of course expecting them to turn red, but then just felt them and realised they were ripe for eating and they are indeed delicious. Still have a couple more bunches waiting to turn colour. How do I go about saving this plant to grow more for next year – may even treat myself to a small greenhouse. Thanks Carol.
Hello
I am so glad you’ve been successful in your first year – and what a great variety to choose for your first variety. They do make homegrown make even more sense when you can get the great flavour of homegrown – and in a wonderful and unusual tomato. If you want to try another variety to complement it next year – I would really recommend Sungold. It’s got a similar growth habit – and throws out lots of fruit – smaller than Black Cherry – but great flavour and a vibrant orange which looks so pretty in a bowl with Black Cherry – and then chopped up and put in salads or would make a great multi-coloured cheese and tomato sandwich.
As for saving the seeds – if you look a few comments below yours – you will see that Kevs has posted a link to a really good article – but I’ve also posted the link here.
If you get carried away and eat them all before saving though – they are avaliable from a lot of seed merchants including Thompson and Morgan.
I hope you treat yourself to the greenhouse – happy growing!
http://daughterofthesoil.blogspot.co.uk/2008/09/saving-seed-from-tomatoes.html
My mouth is watering at the thought of your pasta dish. They work really well with pasta as they have such a good flavour. I also enjoyed making a pasta sauce with them – and comparing it in colour to a sauce I made using Yellow Balconi Tomatoes – completely different! Great to hear that you are picking so many.
And with $50 worth of seeds to get through ( presumably not all Black Cherry!!) plenty more where they’ve come from. It’s interesting that so many people seem to be really loving Black Cherry – it so goes against the grain of the all red tomato – but when people get past that – they seem on the whole to be totally converted.
one of my black cherry tomato plants is at least 6′, it’s out of control
They like to go explore! Up and over the fence – where ever they can get to! It lives up to its vigorous description. I hope it’s throwing out lots of fruit as well as showing off about how tall it can grow?!
It will grow a lot taller than 6 feet. Trust me.