3 different black cherries

[dokutaaguriin]

Hi Suzie,
nihongo wakarimasuka. Here is a link to the Tokita Seed Company webpage:
http://www.tokitaseed.co.jp/my/my.htm
Here is a link to a San Francisco Chroncile article about Sungold:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...OGMT6G6A91.DTL
Which seed supplier did you visit while in Japan?

Jeff

[feldon30]

The irony is some people don't like Sungold because it has a thick skin in their garden. Eat the tomato and spit out the skin is how I eat my first few and last few Sungolds as the temperatures and weather conditions change, affecting the fruit.

Sungold appeals to Japanese tastes because they like intense fruit flavors. Momotaro is a medium sized tomato which is known for being mild and exceptionally sweet and is popular in Japan.

[peebee]

DOMO ARIGATO Jeff-san, for that link to the Tokita Seed Co. I have to wait for a reply from my friend in Japan for the name of the one I visited, cuz I forgot the name but I'm almost sure it was not Tokita. I'm from the Yokohama area, I see you used to live in Hokkaido. I'm HAF-FU.
Now I'm gonna email my friends and family to get me all those cherry tomato seeds I see. The heart-shaped cherry called "Berry Garden(?)" if I read it right looks very similiar to some I ate on my last visit to Japan--very, very good. I'm excited it they are the same and can't wait to try them.
Now I will look next for this Brandysweet Plum mentioned on this post. Has anyone tried it and can tell me about the skin thickness? You can tell by now I have a thing about thick skins! Any more cherries with thin skins?

Suzie

[Bobbisox]

Hello, My name is Bobbi and every time I have grown Sungolds, they have a thin skin, almost too thin, when I want to give them away they squish.
My Black Cherry tomatoes are going to be planted in a richer soil it looks like if that is a requirement to make them sweeter. I only started those seeds back in June as I have little room so figured some plants would be taking a permanent break in July if the year was hot like usual. I like many black tomatoes and I get the seed from Thompson and Morgan, just like the Sungold. I haven't tried the Suncherry but would imagine it would be thin skinned too.
When my husband was in Japan he brought me bok choy and napa cabbage seeds, those things came up in 2 days. Good luck with finding the seeds you want.

[dokutaaguriin]

hafu...boku no kodomo mo. okaasan nihonjin desuka.
tsuma ha hokkaidono shushin desu. I was suppose to go to Yokohama this summer as part of an exchange with Yamate gakuin (koukou) but for various reasons I gave the chaperone position to a colleague.
Thin skins and cherries do not usually go together. To prevent the cherry tomato from splitting breeders have focused on thick skins, Sungold being the exception. I grew Brandysweet plum last year and thought that it was okay. Perhaps I will have to grow it out again sometime and see if I get different results.
The Tomato Berry Garden certainly looks interesting. If you do get some seeds, I would love to trade with you. I have a great many Japanese tomato seeds, piiman, nasu, etc.
Jefu

EDIT: If you went to a garden centre in Yokohama- the one that is a short walk from Yokohama station- then it was probably SAKATA (no Tane). When I visited there I was absolutely blown away by their orchids!

[peebee]

Hai hai Jeffu-san it was Sakata! I went there in April and they had some demostration tomato plants in a protected area and they were absolutely the most healthy, beautiful toms I have EVER seen--was kinda suspicious that they were probably sprayed and given all kinds of supplement, but you know how the Japanese growers like perfection. I was going to send some of those seeds to you but did not mention it earlier as I do not know when I am going next, but I have to go next year again anyways. If I have anyone visit I will demand they bring me those seeds.
But you know what was weird about those heart-shaped mini toms? My mom bought them already bright red and ripe, and she just left them out on the table room temp., and everyday I kept putting off eating them as I was always too full from gorging on other stuff. Well, after more than a week, I thought I should at least try one even if they were too ripe and squishy, before I threw them out. I was shocked by how firm (but not hard, just right) they were...and they were the same the next day and the next! Kinda creeped me out, but they were delicious I had to admit. Actually all vegetables tasted super good over there, no matter where you bought them. Must be the soil and water, etc.
Okay good to know cherries mostly all have thick skins. Will only try these Japanese varieties. I'll post my results if I get to grow them, you too Jeff if you beat me to it.

Suzie

[barkeater]

My problem with Sungold is not how thick or thin the skin is, it's how completely inedible they are, like cellophane. They are left sticking in my teeth after swallowing the rest of the fruit. Gross!

Also, I'm surprised noone brought Purple Haze into this discussion, as it is the hottest new (on this board, anyway) black cherry tomato!

[rsg2001]

I have loved Sungolds ever since I tried them several years ago, from a free seed packet from a U.K. seed maker in a direct mail piece. They always grow ridiculously. They do typically have thin skin - you have to learn when is the optimal time to eat them, because if you wait too long they get squishy and a little sour.

I also love Black Cherry - disappointed this year in that my seedlings were not robust enough. I had a new packet of seeds, too. I will buy another pack next year and hope for the best. I don't think my garden will be the same without them. Every year, though, when the Black Cherry plants seem exhausted (usually around 100-125 yield), the leaves just start to brown up and dry in no particular pattern, until all the leaves are gone. It doesn't follow any particular pattern of other foliage or systemic diseases I have seen. I assume it's some sort of a blight and that the plant has reached an exhaustion stage. It's usually toward the end of the growing season.

Besides Sungold, I'm also trying Sprite (a red grape type), and Dr. Carolyn.

[Bobbisox]

The Sprite seeds I got, were from the TGS and I figured if the plants are small like they say, I will just grow them this fall in my Aerogardens which work pretty well for tomatoes. I still have some in the kitchen, ripe, which seems a waste as the plants outside are doing great but I can't bear to get rid of a perfectly productive plant no matter how much light the garden requires. I figure I will put in some pepper seeds at the same time to extend the season, ours slow down but never really stop here. They produce all year long but the tomatoes stop setting in the end of November. I used the Aerogarden to help start some of the plants earlier this year but once our heat sets in there is no use to do so. I have some other black tomato seeds and the cherrys just sounded so good in a Greek salad.

[Fert1]

The year I grew Black Cherry, I found it to be bland, until I tasted one a friend grew. She let hers get overly ripe, but it had so much more flavor. So from my experience, you have to let Black Cherry get extremely ripe, almost rotten-ripe, in order to get the full flavor. Whereas, I like to pull my Sungolds a little on the early side, that way they're not excessively sweet.

Sungolds also have a thick, almost inedible skin in my garden, but I love them just the same. I just spit out the skins after eating the tomato. I also don't see all the splitting problems that others report, but that could have something to do with pulling them a little early.