Black Cherry Tomato advice needed

[Grayson]

Originally Posted by gorbelly

Tomato plants can be tougher than we think, and the cherries particularly so, from what I've seen.

This makes me thankful I ended up growing a tomato plant out of all the choices in the store.

It could be wind damage then, since the winds aren't letting up at certain times of the day. Still getting used to the weather. Do birds mess around with tomato plants? I've seen a couple fly by (fortunately not crows, which are unafraid of people back in Japan).

Oh yeah, if these are what I think they are, I wish to share the good news with the Tomatovillians:



Anything I should add to my daily regime? Like fertilizer changes and stuff?

[Cole_Robbie]

Birds will eat horn worms, which is a benefit, but they don't have very good aim, and typically stab the fruit with their beaks as they peck at the worm. They also like to sit on top of my tomato stakes and poop on everything.

[Grayson]

Two of the main four plants have fruits measuring almost an inch in diameter (the other two don't have fruit yet).



At what size should I pick the fruits? Or do I need to wait for them to change color?

Also, my 5 gallon buckets are all set. Is it ok to pot up within the week? Or do I wait for these fruits to mature before the final transplant so as not to stress the plants?

[Antipodean]

yes, wait for them to change color....despite the name, they don't turn black but a brownie marron colour. also they will get softer.

ideally they should have been potted-up before they start flower/fruiting. i would pot up as soon as possible. by the time these fruit mature, you'll prob have dozens more flowers and fruit so you have to do it now.

[gorbelly]

Originally Posted by Grayson

At what size should I pick the fruits? Or do I need to wait for them to change color?

With tomatoes, you should wait until they at least start changing color before you pick them, otherwise, they may never ripen. Here is some info on ripening changes. Note that this is for red tomatoes, so you'll have to extrapolate for other colors. http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/files/datastore/234-2498.pdf

There is a lot of back and forth about whether tomatoes taste better when you ripen them fully on the vine or whether they taste just as good when you pick them any time at the "breaker" stage, when they start to change color, and let them ripen indoors.

This may be just a matter of opinion for the larger tomatoes, but I learned from personal experience that cherry tomatoes taste best when allowed to ripen almost fully on the vine. The ones picked too early and allowed to ripen off the plant have a very noticeably inferior taste. The ones I took in early because of frost did NOT taste good compared to the ones I let ripen on the plant over the summer.

So unless you have pest, disease, or frost threatening your tomatoes, I suggest you let them ripen on the plant. A little bit early is OK, i.e., they are almost the ripened color, but they are still a little on the hard side. I frequently picked my black cherry tomatoes at this stage when heavy rain was in the forecast because they are prone to splitting after heavy rain when they are at this almost ripe stage. Those tasted good when allowed to finish ripening for a couple days on the kitchen counter.

Do not ripen or store tomatoes in the sun indoors. A lot of people seem to think they need to go on a sunny windowsill to ripen. Don't do that; keep them out of direct sun but somewhere not too cold. Do not put in the refrigerator when they are underripe--they will never ripen in there. Don't refrigerate raw whole tomatoes from the garden at all if you can help it--the cold will diminish their flavors. Obviously, if it's a choice between them rotting or putting them in the fridge, that's different, but try to eat and use them before that point.

Be patient. Black cherry tomatoes can be later to ripen than other cherry tomatoes. Tomatoes in general always take longer to ripen than you expect

ADDED: By the way, my current avatar photo is a black cherry. Here is a photo under different lighting.

[NarnianGarden]

Lovely pic. That's a pretty plate!

[Grayson]

Thank you, Antipodean and Gorbelly! I will now definitely wait for them to change color. Thus far they seem safe from birds or pests and frost is non-existent here so there will be no harm in waiting.

Also, I hope my fruits would turn out to be as scrumptious as the ones on your avatar image.

Originally Posted by Antipodean

ideally they should have been potted-up before they start flower/fruiting. i would pot up as soon as possible. by the time these fruit mature, you'll prob have dozens more flowers and fruit so you have to do it now.

Yeah, the soil order was delayed but they are definitely outgrowing their 2.8 gallon pots. Will get started on this over the weekend. The fruits on the vine can take the move, right?

I will also be buying pvc pipes to act as stakes. I was thinking they could also double as a deep watering method.

[gorbelly]

Originally Posted by NarnianGarden

Lovely pic. That's a pretty plate!

Thanks! The plate is old and has seen some wear, but I think it gives it some character. As for the tomatoes--that's just how nature grew them. Sometimes I think black cherry doesn't get fully appreciated for how pretty it is because it's a cherry.

Originally Posted by Grayson

I will also be buying pvc pipes to act as stakes. I was thinking they could also double as a deep watering method.

Just a heads up that, although your plants will be smaller than their potential because they are in containers, black cherry is a plant that grows many vigorous vines. It's not a plant with a tree or bush habit. You may find your stakes are soon overwhelmed unless you plan to prune fairly ruthlessly. Caging or trellising would work better for a plant that grows like black cherry.

[Grayson]

Quick update:


So I will have to wait until they completely darken, right?

As for the tomato cage, I'm back in the searching game after the supplier here failed to deliver on his promise (what he offered turned out to be soft mesh for keeping chickens from wandering). If all else fails, I shall attempt to DIY one.

[gorbelly]

Originally Posted by Grayson

So I will have to wait until they completely darken, right?

If you have problems with critters eating your tomatoes, you can pick the dark ones now and let them sit in a warm spot away from direct sunlight inside for a while to finish ripening, IMO, they will taste better if you let them get ripe on the plant. I would personally let them get riper and pick them based on feel--when they start to have more give to them when you give them a gentle squeeze. Regardless, you should experiment with eating them at different stages of ripeness so you know when they taste best to you. People's preferences can be different, and the acid/sugar balance, texture, and predominant flavor notes change from day to day.

Oh, also, if you haven't moved them to bigger containers yet, it might be a good idea to pick all the tomatoes that have color on them before you do that to try to reduce some of the stress on the plant.

[Gerardo]

Congrats! Ripen on the vine.

[Grayson]

Thanks! I'll just wait for them to ripen on the vine. How dark should I let them get - like grape-dark or like gorbelly's avatar photo? Sorry, I still don't have a measure yet.

Here's a photo of them in daylight:



Also, I found this strange insect lurking near the leaves. Not sure if friend or foe, but I crushed it by reflex (and with a hint of paranoia):

[Cole_Robbie]

It looks like a stink bug, which is bad, but I have no idea what your bugs are like, so that is just a guess.

[AlittleSalt]

It looks a lot like a Brown marmorated stink bug http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...0H2zF1EKbu7ifs=

[Grayson]

So far, that was the only incidence of this bug. The shape of its head looked different, but the markings are unmistakable. Thanks! Would've felt bad if it were a friend.

This is how the tomatoes look almost a week later:

Do I still wait for them to darken further? Also, how does one pick them from the branch? Do I just tug or twist or cut?

And finally, how did you guys enjoy your first tomatoes?