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Today’s post was going to be on the progress of the Easter weekend sowing of Garden Pearl and Tumbler. However I’ve experienced a technical hitch on the accompanying photo front. (It’s not that they are determinate (ly) hiding their light under a bush (el) but more of an uploading issue!)
So instead I’ll profile Carbon, one of the 10 varieties of tomato I am growing from seed. (To date I have profiled : Alicante, Black Cherry, Gardeners Delight, Moneymaker, Shirley and Sungold. Still to come : Garden Pearl (Gartenperle), Red Robin, Tigerella and Tumbler.
To eat, Carbon is:
- Medium to large fruit, 8 to 12 oz in weight, nice big fruit.
- Good meaty core, creamy texture.
- Good taste, rich and sweet, tasty, complex flavour, exceptionally rich yet sweet, delicious, rich flavour, tangy, smoky flavour, rich earthy sweet flavour, outstanding taste, season with salt and pepper and it tastes like meat/steak/bacon.
- Nice shape, mostly round.
- Skin – purple brown, dark purplish brown, dark red with blackish overtone, pinky brown, burgundy, deep pink/purplish, reddish black.
- Flesh – deep brick red, dark red, deep red.
To grow, Carbon is :
- Cordon Interderminate.
- Glasshouse or outdoors.
- Not a lot of it, not a big producer for quantity, not very prolific
ALSO - High yielding, prolific
- Tall.
- Mid season
- Little cracking
To buy Carbon:
I bought my Carbon seeds from Nicky’s Nursery. 10 for £1.90.
Opinion seems divided on whether Carbon will deliver lots or little in the way of quantity of tomatoes. What it seems unanimous on, is that they will be delicious!
Its regular shape and appearance also came in for praise, not being as ‘rugged’ as other heirloom/heritage tomatoes. (The photo I’ve used is beautiful but probably not doing Carbon justice in that respect – maybe I’ll be able with my own tomatoes!)
Have you grown Carbon? What was your experience in terms of the quantity of tomatoes you were able to pick?
Photo by kthread
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I grew Carbon for the first time this year. Production was sporadic, but we didn’t have a normal growing season (is there such a thing any more?). I did notice that most of the fruits harvested had moderate to severe cracking around the top. Size and shape were all over the place, too. Flavor was full bodied and nice, but I thought the texture was a little too ‘soft’.
I also grew Black Prince (Russian heirloom) for the first time this year. Comparing the two varieties, I would have to say I prefer the Black Prince. The flavor was more ‘rich’ and complex, the texture was firmer, and the fruits were much better formed (consistently nice round globes) and unblemished.
Both fruit varieties averaged about the same size and color, several looking identical to each other. And both plants grew to about the same size and gave me comparable harvests. I will definitely give Carbon another try next year, along with Black Prince. But if results are similar next year, I will most likely stick with growing the Black Prince in future years.
While talking about black tomatoes, I would like to mention that I also grew Russian Black Cherry for the first time this year. I have one word to describe it…WoW! Talk about a cherry with a punch! Excellent and intense flavor with a wonderfully sweet residual. And they are so perfectly beautiful! This plant produced like a champ, and the fruits grow in clusters. Everyone who tried them immediately fell in love with them. It has earned a permanent place on my annual ‘to grow’ list.
Hello
Thank you for stopping by and getting in touch. Information on black tomatoes is especially of interest at the moment – as I definitely want to find another variety to try in 2011. I’m happy to hear that you also had assorted sizes – the shape I’d assumed was down to the variety – but I thought may be my ‘care’ had resulted in differing fruit sizes so its reassuring to hear it’s not just me.
From your description of Black Prince – I will now add to my long list for consideration
I am wondering if your Russian Black Cherry is the same as my Black Cherry ? From your description I think it may be. The flavour and the fruit growing in clusters sounds similar. If so I am in complete agreement. It’s a great tomato – the only minus – I find the skins split . This will be the 2nd year I’ve grown in – and if I were to experiment with another black cherry – it will have a lot to live up to ! It also really adds something to the ‘tomato bowl’ in the kitchen in terms of colour contrast . Like you I’d highly recommend it as one to grow !
Have found the plants to be hardy with the Carbon variety. (seed started)
Last years try with standard Black tomatoes found plants to be somewhat of a primadonna in the garden. Lots of cracking despite efforts to prevent same.
Looking forward to this new lady’s output. The flavor of black tomatoe varieties is simply put – AMAZING.
Thanks for the picture of the Carbon variety. Mine seems to be on the right track, all gnarled & funky too….
I found that I didn’t get many tomatoes per plant but those I did get were very special. And yes their beauty is in the flavour!
Just picked my first three carbons! Delicious! Going to eat a tomato sandwich for lunch. Complex like the Krim but with a little extra “ping” on the roof of your mouth. Extra hot here in Utah (USA) and I have over 30 tomato on the vine and that is with above 93 deg. F ( 34 deg) daily.
I hope you can hear the big hurrahs from a very wet and for this time of year chilly England ! Right now at 9 in the evening it’s 15C and it hasn’t been much warmer all day!
So I am celebrating your Carbon harvest and my mouth is watering at the very idea of a home-picked tomato sandwich.
Love the description of the flavour extra “ping”! I will remember that for future tomato tastings!