🌱 Origin & Story
Black Cherry was developed by Vince Sapp, co-founder of the Tomato Growers Supply Company in Fort Myers, Florida. Sapp noticed a naturally occurring cross among his tomato plants — a dark-fruited variant showing up where it shouldn't have been. Rather than discard it, he selected and stabilized the offspring over multiple generations until the variety bred true.
He introduced Black Cherry in 2003. It was one of the first dark-skinned cherry tomatoes widely available to home gardeners, and it filled a gap nobody had quite articulated: people wanted that rich, complex, "black tomato" flavor in a size they could snack on.
As a modern open-pollinated variety, Black Cherry isn't an heirloom in the traditional sense — it's too young for that. But because it's open-pollinated and stable, you can save seeds and get true-to-type plants the next year. It's become one of the most popular dark cherry tomatoes in the seed-saving community for exactly that reason.
🍴 Flavor & Fruit
One-inch round cherries, mahogany to purple-black, produced in long clusters on vigorous indeterminate vines. The skin is thin and the flesh is juicy — pop one in your mouth and it bursts.
The flavor is where Black Cherry earns its reputation. It's sweet, yes, but with an earthy, smoky undertone that you normally only get from large dark heirlooms like Cherokee Purple or Black Krim. There's a richness here that most cherry tomatoes don't even attempt. Eat a handful and you'll notice the complexity building — it's not one-note sweetness, it's layered.
Side by side with a standard red cherry, Black Cherry tastes like it's from a different category entirely.
🌿 From Our Garden
We grow Black Cherry because we needed a dark tomato for our mixed cherry bowls — and because every time we set out samples at market, it's the one people walk back for. It's the variety that starts the conversation about why dark tomatoes taste different. And it's a lot easier to hand someone a cherry than to slice a whole Cherokee Purple at a market table.
📅 Your Oklahoma Season
Plant after mid-April, or May 1 for extra caution. Tulsa's average last frost is early April. Expect first flowers in late May, with first ripe fruit in early to mid-July. Once production starts, it's continuous — Black Cherry is a prolific, steady producer through the summer and into fall, continuing until first frost in early November.
Blossom drop begins when daytime temperatures reach 85–90°F and nighttime stays above 72°F, becoming severe above 100°F. Cherry types generally recover faster than large-fruited varieties after heat breaks. The fall flush on Black Cherry is generous.
💧 Care for Optimal Health
Water deeply twice a week at the base, never overhead. Mulch 2–3 inches to keep moisture consistent and soil temperatures stable. Cherry tomatoes are more forgiving than large-fruited types, but erratic watering still causes cracking — and on thin-skinned dark fruit, cracks are especially visible.
Feed steadily throughout the season. Prolific producers need consistent nutrition.
DIY mix: 2 tbsp fish emulsion + ½ tsp kelp per gallon, every 2–3 weeks.
Calcium at planting is good practice, though blossom end rot is uncommon on fruit this small.
☀️ Oklahoma Heat
Black Cherry handles Tulsa heat well. The small fruit size reduces sunscald risk, and the vigorous foliage provides solid self-shading. These vines get big — let them. That canopy is working for you.
During peak heat weeks, deep morning watering before temperatures climb is your best strategy. The plant's natural vigor carries it through heat stress better than many open-pollinated varieties.
🛡️ What to Watch For
Black Cherry carries no formal disease resistance ratings. As an open-pollinated variety, it relies on good cultural practices rather than built-in genetics for disease management.
Stay ahead of these:
• Early blight — lower leaves in late summer. Remove affected foliage at the stem, don't compost. Copper fungicide preventively every 7–10 days after wet stretches — follow your product label for exact rates.
• Leaf spot diseases — good air circulation matters. Don't crowd these plants. Prune lower branches to keep foliage off the ground.
• Hornworms — the dense foliage hides them well. Check leaf undersides weekly. Hand-pick or apply Bt (1 tsp/gallon, evening spray).
• Aphids — 2 tbsp neem oil + 2 tsp dish soap per gallon.
• Cracking — common on thin-skinned cherries after rain. Consistent watering and mulch help, but some cracking is inevitable with this type. Pick ripe fruit promptly.
🍽️ In the Kitchen
Fresh: By the handful, straight off the vine. This is Black Cherry's highest calling. No knife required.
In Salads: Halved and tossed with fresh mozzarella, basil, and good olive oil. The dark color against white cheese is stunning.
Roasted: Whole or halved, roasted at 400°F until they blister. The smokiness deepens with heat. Toss with pasta, spread on crostini, or eat them off the pan.
On a Board: Put these on a cheese board or charcuterie spread. The color, the flavor, the size — they're built for it.
Preserved: Dehydrate for intensely flavored dried tomatoes, or slow-roast and freeze. The smoky-sweet flavor concentrates beautifully.
🪴 Why Our Starts?
Six weeks of professional growing before they reach you — proper lighting, careful watering, hardening off. Black Cherry vines are vigorous from the start, and our transplants are grown to develop strong root systems that support the heavy, sustained production this variety is known for. A good start means earlier fruit and more of it.
