My black tomatoes finally ripened!

[Jenise]

DSCF1178.JPG

They're a variety called Indigo Rose. See the green spot on the one to the right? That one feel off while I was picking the others, but it demonstrates the unripe state. When it ripens, the green spot turns a pretty coral color.

They look great; have to try them next year.

How do they taste?

Carl will tell us next year.

I've been buying them from various farmers market people, of course they can be delicious when grown well, but that's always the case. Not the supersweet kind of tomato that lots of people look for in cherry tomatoes, but I like variety. Plus the color and texture are so nice when you don't need something small and squishy.

Hi Jenise

I saw Indigo Rose growing at the RHS Wisley gardens in July this year and took a photo with the intention of growing Indigo Rose next year. as the fruits I saw were perfect black and very glossy. Here is the pic I took.

indigo-rose-Wisley.png

This year I'm growing 'Chocolate Cherry, which are an indetermiante (cordon) tom said by the seller to have chocolate coloured fruit and to be 'an especially tasty variety, nicely sweet and fruity with a good balance of acid.'

The fruits start off green, turn a browny colour then seem to lose some of the brown to red. Another merchant says the colour is 'n attractive combination of port wine and chestnut' which seems more accurate.

The flavour is good as is the texture. Cut upen they are darker inside than a red tom.

choc-cherry.png

(the photo shows them redder than they looked to me)


Ref Tomatoatoes, have you seen Epic Tomatoes: How to Select and Grow the Best Varieties of All Time" by Craig LeHoullier?

Mouthwatering coffee table book with lots of info on everything to do with growing toms by some one that has been

Best tomatoes I've ever grown were Black Prince, but second year we tried to grown outbreak of blight.

This year I bought my plants at a fundraiser. Lost sheet with names (two varieties). One has been much more productive, but can't say most flavorful. Not sure if variety or soil nutrients, or maybe I overwatered, or something (I'm a poor gardener). Better than supermarket tomatoes, but never "wow" . Red, fruit is a bit angular, gets very red but never gets really soft.

[Jenise]

Re the flavor of the Indigo rose, the ones I tasted on Salt Spring Island last year were more flavorful than the ones I've grown. But the plant itself was never robust. Leaves curled up from the getgo and stayed that way. Plenty of fruit, though. And like Rahsaan, I love variation in colors and flavors on the plate. You can't beat the Indigo Rose for adding color.

Last night I put out one each of the 7 varieties* I'm growing and asked Joan and Toby to vote on them, 1=Love it, 2=Good, 3=so-so.

Did the same last year. Idea is to grow only the most flavoursome varieties.

Chocolate Cherry, new this year, was one of the 'love-it's. Has a great flavour, good texture and looks good. Also it's productive.

*
Sungold
Angelle
Millefleur
Tumbling Tom
(following are new this year)
Chocolate Cherry
Gold Nugget
Henry's Dwarf

I gew indigo rose tomatoes about two summers ago. I didn't care for them. I thought the skin was a little tough and the flesh was almost flavorless It also doesn't fare any better when cooked. It was beautiful on the plate but did nothing to elevate a dish IMO. I'd like to hear everyone else's take. On the other hand, I really love black cherry, which I couldn't find at any of the nurseries I frenquented this year.

[Robin Garr]

I wonder if those Indigo golds are related in any way to Kumatos. Our local produce markets, Paul's, get Kumato's from Mexico in the winter, and we've found them the only winter tomato worth eating. I see from this link that TJ's has, them, too. They sure look similar!

http://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article/1102

I wonder if those Indigo golds are related in any way to Kumatos.

It would appear not.

The Indigo Rose is the result of work at Oregon State University but forebears of the species were begun in the 1960s. The conscious goal was to produce a healthier-for-you tomato, meaning to include anthocyanins (which are purply but look muddy brown when combined with the tomato's greenish flesh). Seeds will breed true, by the way.

The Kumato is a Spanish cultivar named Olmeca. It is owned by Syngenta and only selected growers are allowed to have seeds. Syngenta retains control of the cultivar all the way through its life (i.e., you pay fees and royalties all the way along the supply chain).

Robin

It'd be worthwhile to save seeds from a Kumato to plant.

Though it's a hybrid and won't breed true you may well get an almost exact fruit.

I've been saving seeds for the past two years from a supermarket bought tomato (Angelle) the family loves and which doesn't appear to be available to the public as seeds, and I have got very similar fruit, looks the same, tastes the same, and very very prolific.

[Robin Garr]

Robin

It'd be worthwhile to save seeds from a Kumato to plant.

Though it's a hybrid and won't breed true you may well get an almost exact fruit.

I've been saving seeds for the past two years from a supermarket bought tomato (Angelle) the family loves and which doesn't appear to be available to the public as seeds, and I have got very similar fruit, looks the same, tastes the same, and very very prolific.

Actually, Peter, we did that, albeit unintentionally. A bunch came up in the compost, whereupon Mary transplanted them to the garden. They certainly seemed to breed true.

[Jenise]

I wonder if those Indigo golds are related in any way to Kumatos. Our local produce markets, Paul's, get Kumato's from Mexico in the winter, and we've found them the only winter tomato worth eating. I see from this link that TJ's has, them, too. They sure look similar!

http://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article/1102

Uh, Indigo roses not golds. But regards your question, in person they look nothing alike. The Indigo roses have true black skin and are smaller and more elongated in shape, or at least pointy on the bottom. The kumatos are dark green. And the kumatos have superior flavor. As Jo Ann mentions, the Indigo Roses don't have a lot of flavor--they add beauty to a place of mixed toms, but they won't win any prizes based on flavor.