Is anyone on this forum growing any Cherokee Purple tomatoes? I have 6 heirloom varieties on my balcony right now in pots and my cherokee purples seem to be fairly prone to what I believe is blossom-end-rot. None of my other tomatoes seem to be showing any sign of B-E-R, does anyone else have this problem with this variety?

On a side note this is my first year growing tomatoes since a kid and out of what I have growing my Green Zebras seem to be the earliest and most productive! Great flavor and ripen fairly quick (also good early as a green tomato). That said only my green zebras and green grapes have ripened so far.

Blossom end rot is cauesd by calcium deficiency--especially when there is water stress.

Skeet, is correct. Tomatoes with BER are deficient in root zone calcium. Fertilize with Calcium Nitrate (a water soluble form of calcium) for fast relief, or apply some form of calcium (calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate) into the medium when first starting your plants, and your tomatoes should not have any trouble. - Millet. (1,257-).

I will give that a shot! Thanks for the input gentlemen.

Has anyone tried growing any Cherokee Purple tomatoes before? They seem to be the most finicky of the 6 varieties I'm growing (which seems to be pretty consistent with what I've read on other forums before about that variety). I hear they are suposed to be worth the hassel though as they are highly prized taste-wise.

Also, I read somewhere that it was a good idea to let tomatoes dry out inbetween waterings and to let them show you that they need to be watered. Is there any truth to this? Skeeter you say that water stress could also be contributing to my blossom-end-rot, so should I not be letting my tomatoes dry out inbetween waterings? They are all being grown in containers currently if that matters.

What kinds of tomatoes are you folks here growing? Any suggestions or insight from you experiances about anything?

There are many causes for Blossom end rot; some others are uneven watering, hi or low temps, high constant winds, acidic soil, excessive deep cultivation near the plant and high nitrogen fertilizers.

I have been growing better boy for years--not the best looking--almost always has green top with splits, but I like the taste and it produces well here. Recently have grown Arkansas Travler--it also has good taste to me and does well here. A new one for me this yr was Black Plum--a small plum size tomato that works well for some of my cooking--does not last as long in our heat.

I had Better Boy and several kinds of tomatoes for growing before.My opinion:The best kind of tomato for growing in the Pensacola - Celebrate,because it more resistant for humid and hot weather.Look photo

Very nice healthy plants. Congratulations. - Millet (1,256-)

I grew purple cherokee few years back. It grew OK but I never thought they were that great. Give me my favorite - beefsteak or Betterboy. They look ugly sometimes..not round & splits but they are so good.

Patty I do not think I will be growing the cherokee purples again. I've lost every fruit so far to B-E-R and am not very impressed with the plant in general. None of my other tomatoes have given me any problems and they all receive the same attention. That said I have not gotten to eat any of the fruit off of it so that might sway me, but I doubt it. I just recently started a steak tomato seedling that I am going to try to grow in my house this winter under a couple of lights, so I hope it does well. I always see better boys in all the local garden centers every spring but have never tried one. Next spring I will make it a point to give one a shot.

Joe

Now that I think of it, purple cherokee mostly turned to mush but I did taste one - not so great. The name was interesting. You should also try the golden, low acid ones. Those grew huge & they were excellent eating. Not good for canning though as not enough acid. Another fav is the little cherry & little yellow (pear?) ones. I keep a salt shaker in my pocket when I pick those

I cannot wait until some of the other ones begin to ripen! I am pretty sure I will be growing the green zebras and black princes (taste-test pending) again as both plants are very productive. Next year I hope to give Paul Robinson's a shot as they are one of the best rated black tomatoes and many peoples favorite variety. If anyone is interested in a few good places to get tomato seeds/plants for next year here are a few good resorces:

Gary Ibsen's site is great for seed selection:
http://www.tomatofest.com/heirloom_tomato_seed_store.html

Laurel's site is great for pre-started plants:
http://www.heirloomtomatoplants.com/

This site is good for a wide selection of various heirloom plants (including tomatoes): http://rareseeds.com/seeds/

Joe

What's the diff between BER & blight? One year all my mater's turned to mush & I forgot what it was called.

Septoria Leaf Spot, Early Blight and Late Blight are caused by fungi and are worst in very rainy seasons. The spores need water to spread to other plants. Blossom-end rot is a physiological disease caused by a deficiency of calcium in the fruit. Just adding calcium is not enough to control BER. If you have the correct amount of calcium in the soil it may not be utilized by the plant because too much water interferes with the balance of calcium in the tomato. Adding calcium needs to be done well ahead of tomato planting because it takes time for it to be helpful.
The other factors that I mentioned earlier favor this physiological disease include early planting in cold soils, poor fruit setting, high temperatures, and waterlogged soils. The fertilizers with high levels of ammonium nitrogen in the soil can contribute to BER by affecting calcium uptake by the plant. Chicken manure, is the worst of the organic fertilizer.
Blossom end rot is common to the first few tomatoes but if you do everything right, it should go away.
Down here growing tomatoes is a challenge and a few of the heirlooms will produce a few tomatoes. Cherokee purple is one of the better survivors with Brandywine being the most disease prone. My biggest surprise was the “New Big Dwarf” tomato. It has very good tomato flavor with disease and heat resistance. It’s a determinate tomato with upright growth looking like a huge broccoli plant and is considered an heirloom. My favorite hybrid is Big beef. It is very disease resistant and produces lots of tasty 10-12 ounce tomatoes.
Karl

Thanks Karl