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one of the best things about summer: the fresh tomato
tomatoes check all the boxes if you are looking for a summer garden treat that's both delicious and healthy.
jul 14 2020
2 minute read
cherokee green tomatoes. photo courtesy of harrowsmith magazine
i was fortunate enough to come across the book epic tomatoes , by craig lehoullier soon after my crazy tomato obsession started. i just loved it! i read, and reread it, and decided that i just had to meet the person behind it. and it turned out, the person behind it was also the guy who named one of the most well-known heirloom tomatoes: cherokee purple.
as well as naming the cherokee purple tomato, craig lehoullier co-leads the dwarf tomato breeding project , has introduced more than 100 tomato varieties, and has inspired many gardeners. he lives in north carolina, where he has grown over 1,200 varieties, and is well-known for growing tomatoes in straw bales on his driveway.
unnamed seeds in the mail
in 1990, craig received a package in the mail from john d. green of tennessee, which included a letter and a packet of seeds. the letter explained that john’s neighbour’s family had been given the unnamed tomato variety about 100 years earlier by cherokee indians. when craig grew the seeds he was amazed by the purple colour of the ripe tomatoes — because tomatoes described as “purple†were usually pink. craig named the tomato cherokee purple. it has exploded in popularity since.
cherokee purple is a well-known purple heirloom tomato.
on year one of his cherokee purple plants produced tomatoes that ripened to more of a brick red colour rather than a purple, but had all the other qualities of cherokee purple. it could have been caused by a mutation or cross-pollination. he called it cherokee chocolate. cherokee green came from cherokee purple too.
in the kitchen
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all three tomatoes have the same incredible flavour — the perfect mix of sweet and tart. they’re just so good. i love them in sandwiches, salads, or eaten as is, like an apple.
grow your own
all of these varieties have mid-season maturity, and the plants are indeterminate. if you don’t have a ton of growing space, i recommend training your plants by trellising, caging, or staking. if you just let them roam free, add a layer of mulch on top of the soil to prevent the fruit from rotting.
cherokee chocolate ripens to more of a brick-red colour. the squirrels beat me to his one.
where to get them
the cherokee tomato family is widely available. check your favourite seed company, and ask your gardening friends if they have any, because you don’t want to miss out on this one.
also, don’t miss out on craig’s book. it tells you everything you need to know, from planting to saving seeds and even breeding your own varieties. find out more about craig, his books, and check out his blog at craiglehoullier.com.
emma biggs is a 13-year-old gardener and garden communicator. emma is the co-host of the garage gardeners radio show. she hosts kids gardening videos on the from dirt to dishes gardening channel on youtube. her latest book, gardening with emma, helps kids find the fun in gardening (and helps adults remember how much fun gardening is) www.emmabiggs.ca
this story previously appeared in harrowsmith magazine. published by moongate publishing inc., harrowsmith provides a purely canadian take on country living, the environment, and the sharing of useful information for country dwellers and city folk.Â
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