🌱 Origin & Story
Indigo Cherry Drops came out of the tomato breeding program at Oregon State University, led by Dr. Jim Myers — one of the foremost tomato geneticists working today.
The project started with Indigo Rose, the first tomato variety ever bred specifically for high anthocyanin content in the fruit. Anthocyanins are the same powerful antioxidant pigments found in blueberries and blackberries — compounds that had never been expressed at meaningful levels in a ripe tomato until Myers made it happen.
To get there, he crossed cultivated tomatoes with wild species from Chile, the Galapagos Islands, and Peru. Those wild relatives carried the genes for anthocyanin production in fruit tissue. Through years of careful crossing and selection, the team moved those genes into a domesticated background that actually tastes good and yields well.
Indigo Cherry Drops built on that foundation — taking the anthocyanin genetics of Indigo Rose and packaging them into a cherry-sized fruit with better flavor, higher sugar content, and staggering productivity. Under ideal conditions, a single plant can produce up to 1,000 fruits in a season.
This isn't a novelty. It's the leading edge of nutritional tomato breeding.
🍴 Flavor & Fruit
Small cherry, roughly 1 inch — the shoulders turn deep purple-black where sunlight hits, while the bottom ripens to a rich reddish-pink. The contrast is stunning. You know they're ripe when the dark shoulders develop a slight give and the bottom color deepens.
Flavor is sweet and well-balanced with a fruity complexity you don't usually get from a cherry. Not as candy-sweet as Sungold, but more interesting — there's depth there. The anthocyanin-rich skin adds a subtle tang.
They come in heavy clusters. Expect to be picking handfuls every couple of days at peak season.
🌿 From Our Garden
We started growing Indigo Cherry Drops because we wanted something we could hand to a kid at the farmers' market that would genuinely blow their mind. Purple tomatoes do that. The fact that they're legitimately one of the healthiest things in our garden is the part we tell the parents.
📅 Your Oklahoma Season
Plant after mid-April, or May 1 for extra caution (last frost averages early April in Tulsa). With 65–75 days to maturity, expect first ripe fruit by early-to-mid July — among the earliest in your tomato patch. Production ramps up fast and stays heavy through September and into October. The season often extends into early November before first frost.
Flower drop begins when daytime temps push above 85-90°F and nights stay above 72°F. It gets severe above 100°F. Cherries recover faster than large-fruited varieties — Indigo Cherry Drops will bounce back quickly once temps ease.
💧 Care for Optimal Health
Water deeply twice a week at the base, never overhead. Cherries are more forgiving than beefsteaks on moisture swings, but consistent watering still means better flavor and less splitting. Mulch 2-3 inches to keep soil moisture stable and roots cool.
Feed with balanced fertilizer through early growth, then shift to phosphorus/potassium-forward once flowering begins.
DIY mix: 2 tbsp fish emulsion + ½ tsp kelp per gallon, every two to three weeks.
These are heavy producers — they'll tell you if they're hungry. Yellowing lower leaves mid-season usually means they need a feed.
☀️ Oklahoma Heat
Indigo Cherry Drops handle Oklahoma summers well. The anthocyanin pigments in the skin actually function as a natural sunscreen for the fruit — this is one of the few tomatoes where sun exposure improves the fruit rather than damaging it. More direct sun means darker, more anthocyanin-rich shoulders.
That said, the plants still benefit from deep morning watering during the worst heat weeks. 30-40% shade cloth is rarely necessary for cherries but can help during extended stretches above 100°F.
🛡️ What to Watch For
As a modern open-pollinated variety, Indigo Cherry Drops don't carry formal disease resistance ratings, but they show good general vigor in the field.
Stay ahead of these:
• Early blight — lower leaves in late summer. Remove affected foliage at the stem, don't compost it. Copper fungicide applied preventively after wet stretches (follow your product label for exact rates).
• Hornworms — 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 — less prone than thin-skinned heirlooms, but heavy rain after dry spells can still split fruit. Consistent watering is your best prevention.
🍽️ In the Kitchen
Fresh: Straight off the vine, still warm from the sun. These are the ones that disappear before they make it inside.
Salads: Halved and tossed with fresh mozzarella, basil, and good olive oil — the purple-black and pink color is gorgeous on the plate.
Roasted: Toss whole clusters with olive oil and salt at 400°F until they blister. The sweetness concentrates and the color deepens into something almost jewel-toned.
Preserved: They dehydrate beautifully — intense, chewy, sweet. Like candy you grew yourself.
🪴 Why Our Starts?
Six weeks of professional growing before they reach you — proper lighting, careful watering, the right timing, hardening off. With a modern variety like this one, getting the early weeks right means the difference between a good plant and a great one.
You plant when the ground is ready and skip straight to the growing season.
