Similarity of black currant tomato Black bunch: characteristics and description of the variety

A little about the history of selection

Photo: Seeds "NK Russian Garden"
Tomato variety Black bunch is a hybrid of the first generation F1. Work on its breeding began 50 years ago. Breeders have tried to cross the varieties of "domesticated" tomatoes with the wild forms of the vegetable growing in the Galapagos and Chile.

The aim of the selection was to create a fruit containing the maximum amount of anthocyanins (strong antioxidants), giving the fruit a purple hue.

Black tomato is a unique vegetable with a rich, extraordinary taste and a high content of nutrients. It is characterized by:

• increased sugar concentration;
• harmonious combination of sugar-acid index;
• the maximum balance of useful microelements.

Anthocyanins (natural antioxidants) have a beneficial effect on the body by preventing cancers. Regular consumption of such tomatoes has a positive effect on:

• working capacity of the heart and brain;
• the vascular system, clearing cholesterol;
• condition of the skin, nails and hair;
• elimination of toxins and toxins.

Tomato Black bunch is a source of health. It is especially useful for children, adolescents and the elderly.

Bush characteristic

Photo: Tomato bush
Dark cream tomatoes are an indeterminate crop. The type of bush is not standard. The height of the plant reaches about 150 cm. The stem of the tomato is strong and thick, strongly curled, characterized by abundant foliage.

Several clusters with a large number of fruits develop on the bush. The root system is well developed and diverges in all directions, not going deep into the ground.

Tomato leaves are diamond-shaped, which is not typical for its counterparts. They are colored dark green, wrinkled to the touch, without pubescence. The inflorescence on the bush is intermediate, simple. It is laid over the 7th sheet and develops further through one.

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One inflorescence bears over 10 ripe juicy fruits.

The black bunch is considered an early maturing variety. Tomatoes reach maturity in 75-90 days. The hybrid is resistant to most diseases.

Advantages and disadvantages

Gardeners' reviews were divided over the taste of the variety. Some people do not like the "non-tomato" taste, and some rank it as one of the main advantages of tomato. The same goes for the color feature of the Black Bunch.

The indisputable advantages of the variety are considered to be a good harvest, unpretentiousness of plants in care, quick ripening of fruits and resistance to diseases. This variety is bunchy, with many fruits on the branch, and the color of the tomatoes is truly black. And in order to understand for yourself its pros and cons, you need to plant several bushes for testing.

Description of fruits

Despite the small size of the fruits, about 6 kg can be harvested from one bush. Good yields are achieved when cultivating tomatoes outdoors. Description of tomato F1 is as follows:

• the vegetable has a low-ribbed rounded shape with a diameter of 5 cm;
• tomato weight - 50 -70 g;
• the skin is smooth, thin, but quite dense;
• fleshy flesh, its color is from dark red to dark purple in ripe fruits and dark green in unripe tomatoes;
• seeds - 1-2 chambers;
• high solids content.

The hybrid has an unusual taste - a sweet aftertaste with hints of plum fruits. The tomato is considered a versatile variety. It can be used both fresh and in second courses. Dark cherries are not suitable for preservation; severe cracking of the fruit is noted.

Black tomatoes make excellent sauces and tomato paste with an extraordinary flavor.

Description of the Black bunch variety, its characteristics, yield, growing region

Tomato Black bunch, the seeds of which are sold on behalf of, is not on the list of tomatoes registered in the state register of the Russian Federation. It is almost impossible to find official information about it; to study the characteristics of the variety, one has to use mainly the reviews of gardeners who have tested this variety on their own. More precisely, a hybrid: it is known that the tomato appeared in the course of breeding work, and it was assigned the index "F1", which means that it is a hybrid of the first generation, and seeds from their harvest are unsuitable for sowing.

At the same time, even here it was not without absurdities: experienced vegetable growers assure that the seeds of tomatoes grown by them, when sown, give exactly the same plants and fruits, without changing their properties. And besides, often the marketing information on the seed package is far from completely true. Therefore, the Black Bunch should be considered a tomato for the experimenters; at least the mass planting of this hybrid in their gardens should not be engaged.

The Dutch scientists, who bred this hybrid, pursued the goal of obtaining tomatoes that are maximally enriched in anthocyanins: these are biologically active substances with very high antioxidant activity. It is the presence of anticyanins in high concentrations that gives many plant products an almost purple color, which is even called anthocyanin. There is evidence that a new hybrid was obtained by free pollination of flowers of various cultivated varieties with the pollen of wild tomatoes from the Galapagos Islands.

This tomato is grown both in greenhouses and in open areas, depending on the climate of the region. And they tried to plant it, it seems, everywhere, but the hybrid reveals its real bouquet only in warm climates. Many gardeners are prejudiced when buying Dutch seeds, as there are reports that some seeds are genetically modified. However, there seems to be no information in the literature on this for a specific hybrid.

Tomato Black bunch is indeterminate, grows as a bush up to one and a half meters high, with a powerful root system. Usually it is formed into two or three stems, but some gardeners leave four, or even completely let the branching bush "float freely". In terms of ripening, according to the information on seeds, it belongs to early maturing. But this information must be treated with caution: many sources indicate that the fruits may be ready for harvest 75 days after germination, which is not true. In fact, the fruits ripen about this time after planting the seedlings.

As with all indeterminate varieties, it is imperative to tie up the bushes.

Read also: Late varieties of cucumbers

According to the name, the fruits on the bushes are formed in clusters, each of which contains at least a dozen tomatoes. They have a rounded shape, practically without ribbing, to the state of technical ripeness they become soft and acquire the so-called eggplant color. When fully ripe, the fruits are dark purple, almost black, with a very strong sheen. However, all the fruits are not able to completely turn black on the bushes, and they are usually harvested red-brown with black sides. During storage, unripe tomatoes "reach", but the taste becomes imperfect.

In each bunch, the fruits ripen at the same time, and within the bush - stretched out. They are small, the mass of each tomato is from 30 to 70 g. The fruits are quite fleshy, contain only two seed chambers, the flesh is bright red in color. Tasters estimate the taste as average, sweet and sour, reminiscent of the taste of plums. The aroma is almost absent. The application is universal, but it should be remembered that during thermal processing, the beautiful color of the fruit disappears and becomes brownish.

Since the number of ovaries on the bushes is quite large, the average yield of the variety is not too low and amounts to about 6 kg / m 2. The harvested fruits are capable of long-term storage, but they must be transported with care, because they are quite soft and the skin is thin. Like most Dutch hybrids, the Black Cluster should have a high disease resistance, but experienced growers assure that this expectation is usually not met.

Video: tomato harvest Black bunch

Features of plant cultivation

Before growing a tomato, you should know that seeds from grown fruits cannot be used for planting. For each summer cottage season, you will have to purchase a new seed (the price of one pack is from 30 to 100 rubles).

Tomato Black bunch is suitable for both open ground and greenhouses. The tomato is grown in a seedling way in a pot. Tomato is sown in early spring. Before planting the grains in a container, the seeds should be disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate. Seedlings are grown in a container for 55-60 days.

Landing in open ground and care

Review: Did not live up to expectations
Planting and caring for a tomato is straightforward. Seedlings are planted in a checkerboard or tape manner. The intervals between the holes should be 20-30 cm. Plant care is as follows:

1. The F1 variety requires regular feeding: at the beginning of planting seedlings and during the ripening period.
2. You can fertilize with manure and minerals. Top dressing is dissolved in a bucket of water and poured under the bush.
3. Do not forget to water the tomato, loosen the soil and remove weeds.
4. Bushes need individual supports.

Gardeners recommend performing the formation of a bush in one stem by pinching every 10 days. This allows for optimal yields at the end of the season.

Features of growing and care

To get an early harvest, tomato varieties are harvested through seedlings.

Getting seedlings

We will tell you about the rules for obtaining strong seedlings in stages:

• Sowing is carried out in the last days of February, then the fruits can be obtained a week or two before other varieties.
• Seeds, seeded in potassium permanganate, dry or pre-germinated, as you like, are sown in prepared soil. You can make the soil yourself or use the store option.

• The seed is placed at a depth of no more than 1 cm in steps of about 3 cm. The thickened plantings will make the seedlings weak.
• The seeds will grow in five days if the temperature is maintained at 22-24 degrees.
• After emergence, the temperature drops by 4-5 degrees, so that the shoots do not stretch.
• Adequate lighting is essential for a strong, stocky black bunch tomato hybrid seedling. If there is not enough light, you need to install a backlight.
• In the phase of 2-3 of these leaves, the seedlings are immersed in separate cups. Although it is possible to grow seedlings without diving. In this case, the seeds are sown directly into peat pots, tablets or paper cups.
• Caring for seedlings is reduced to regular moderate watering, surface loosening of the soil.

At the stage of growing seedlings, black bunch tomatoes are recommended to be fed with an extract of wood ash. This is necessary not only to maintain a balanced diet, but also as a preventive measure for one of the diseases of the nightshade - black leg.

By the time the seedlings are planted in a permanent place, it takes 60 to 65 days. Plants harden for two weeks before planting so that they can adapt to new living conditions.

Landing and care

Tomatoes are planted in a greenhouse or outdoors, respectively, in May or early June, when the threat of frost disappears. The time is chosen depending on the climatic conditions of the growing region.

No more than four plants can fit per square meter. In the future, agricultural technology is not much different from caring for the planting of other varieties of tomatoes:

• watering;
• loosening;
• weed removal;
• disease prevention;
• feeding with organic or mineral fertilizers.

Grow tomato Black bunch of 2-3 stems. The rest of the stepsons are removed as they grow. The leaves under the formed clusters should be torn off so that they do not retain nutrients.

Since the tomatoes are tall and bear fruit abundantly, pegs are immediately set for tying when planting. And not only the stems, but also the brushes are subjected to this operation.

Reviews of gardeners

Reviews of the Black bunch tomatoes are predominantly positive. This plum hybrid is considered a favorite among most gardeners. First of all, he fell in love because of his early maturity. About 80 days after planting outdoors, the vegetable is ready for consumption. A blue bunch and a black bunch of tomatoes look unusual on the beds.

The F1 hybrid does not require special care, is quite resistant to various diseases, and is not afraid of pests.

Black tomato is famous for its excellent taste. For this reason, it is widely used in the preparation of various dishes. Also, this unusual type of vegetable will look great in salads and vegetable casseroles.

Good harvests to you!

Diseases and pests

Based on the description and characteristics, the F1 Black bunch tomato has good immunity to many diseases, in particular late infestation. But since less resistant tomato plants always grow nearby, preventive measures should not be neglected:

• Spraying tomatoes with solutions of boric acid, iodine, potassium permanganate, fly ash extract helps to get rid of diseases.

• It is a good idea to spray with special antifungal or antiviral drugs as instructed.