creating a cherry for the ages!! please share your input.
 

My goal is to create a slightly larger and even better tasting black cherry than Black Cherry, while maintaining its prolificacy and vigorous growth.

One cross has already been made for this purpose. I have saved Paul Robeson X BC seed. Rather than progressing with this cross only, I'd like more genetic diversity.

[B]I have two seperate ideas, and am in need of guidance from those who are more experienced than myself. [/B]

[U]IDEA 1[/U]: include another excellent tasting larger tomato in the parentage and cross to BC for another F1 parent...The Robeson x BC would then be crossed to this new BC cross. This leaves these options for the other set of parents. If you like this approach, please tell me which cross you would like to see and why.

Persimmon X BC
Green Giant X BC
Black Trifele X BC
BC X OPALKA
Gold Medal X BC

[U]IDEA 2[/U]:

I like the idea of Paul Robeson x Isis Candy, and this could be my second parent. I probably wouldn't have much trouble maintaining a black tomato.

I hope I haven't gone on and on about elementary stuff here, and that some of you can weigh-in on this. Please tell me which approach you like and which parents you would like to see going into this bad boy. Thanks for the help!!!;)

Have you grown Purple Haze? It's an F1 but there are some later generations being trialed.

My goal is to create a slightly larger and even better tasting black cherry than Black Cherry, while maintaining its prolificacy and vigorous growth.

****

Which so called blacks do you think have better taste than Black Cherry and I think I'd go from that point in terms of crosses. Since small fruit size is dominant to larger fruit size.

Morgan has suggested some selections from Purple Haze F1 which is a good suggestion, but I'm wondering what your views are in terms of ones that you think taste better than Black Cherry that you could use.

(Persimmon X BC
Green Giant X BC
Black Trifele X BC
BC X OPALKA
Gold Medal X BC)

Are these the ones that you think taste better than BC?

It's your call completely but I think I'd approach the challenge in maybe a different way with different varieties, but that's just my own opinion and the way I might proceed.

I like Black Cherry as it is BTW.:lol:

I definitely like the purple haze suggestion...I think those flavors are more in sync with the ultimate goal, as opposed to just seeing what crosses will take and if somehow there is a ton of flavor.

To answer your question Carolyn, I prefer the flavor of Robeson, CP and Jbt to black cherry, although I really really like BC.

Any suggestions on how to get my hands on some Purple haze f2 seeds?

I would suggest a post in the wanted thread I know there are allot of people on the F3, F4 and maybe even F5 that probably still have some F2 seeds availble for trade or SASE.

Craig

[quote=Gobig_or_Gohome_toms;176117]I would suggest a post in the wanted thread I know there are allot of people on the F3, F4 and maybe even F5 that probably still have some F2 seeds availble for trade or SASE.

Craig[/quote]

You beat me to it Craig. It's so darn hot in here I've been turning the computer on for a bit, a look around and then off.

I've seen tons of pictures and info about Purple Haze F1 selections here and folks comparing tastes and more, so I don't think that it' absoluteyl necessary to ask for F2 seeds IMO b/c some later generations of some selections may have impressed someone as having taste even closer to the F1.

And is Purple Haze the ONLY great tasting variety out there to use to X with BC? I don't think so, but that's just me.;)

[quote=heirloomdaddy;175986]My goal is to create a slightly larger and even better tasting black cherry than Black Cherry ... [/quote]

The deed already is done. Purple Haze is larger, tastier and better than Black Cherry in all regards. And I've tried two F2s so far that are as good or better than the F1 hybrid.

I have MANY thousand PH F2 seed. Send me a PM.

I have a few seeds from a Clementine x Dice's Mystery Black
cross. Dice's Mystery Black is about tennis ball sized, very
sweet flavor, creamy texture, but it does not hold its firmness
very long (not really an issue with me, as they get eaten as
soon as they are ripe). Clementine is a small, grape sized
orange cherry that is multiflora, something you might want
to introduce into your cherry for the ages. Clementine and
Rose Quartz Multiflora would be options to add in this trait,
with RQM having larger fruit.

I am just growing the first F1 plant this year. It started out
tiny, in not the sunniest spot in the garden, and with the
weather we have been having up until this week, it is still
fairly small. So I have not tasted the F1 yet.

But you can have some seeds if you want to try mixing that
into your Paul Robeson x BC cross. If you crossed the F1 with
your F1, you probably would not find the multiflora trait
again until the F3s, and how many plants you would need
to grow to find a selection with that trait could be "many".
It might be better to grow the F2 seeds that I will save this
year, pick a multiflora selection out of those, and then cross
that into your super-black-cherry line.

PM me for some seeds if you want to explore either of those
options.

You could also get some Clementine or Rose Quartz Multiflora
seeds and grow a plant of one of those, then cross it directly
with the best tasting of your PR x BC line. Figure a couple
of generations after that to find a multiflora plant in your
growouts.

I think a " cherry for the ages" would have to include SunGold or SunSugar in the pedigree. There are now numerous awesome tasting Cherokee Puprle/Indian Stripe x Sungold related crosses in testing. A few folks are also looking at SunSugar crosses. In my limited experience with this germplasm, it outpaces Black Cherry. etc. in the taste department.

Thanks for the input guys.

I'm avoiding Sungold on this one as I'm trying crossing that with a few others this season and seeing what comes of that. I'm probably just going to stick with dark tomatoes in this line. I love the idea of introducing a great PH f2 or f3 to the robeson f1 cross..It's very cool that I could also end up with a slicer which incorporates elements of robeson, cp and brandywine.

Vince- I'll shoot you a pm.

Dice- introducing the multiflora gene is an excellent idea. What more can you tell me about dice's mystery black? I think that you're probably onto something with this cross. When the time comes, after I can more-or-less lock-in what I'm looking for, I will definitely experiment with the multiflora concept. Doesn't reisentraube fall in this category as well? Any experience growing or tasting that?

[quote]Dice- introducing the multiflora gene is an excellent idea. What more can you tell me about dice's mystery black? I think that you're probably onto something with this cross. When the time comes, after I can more-or-less lock-in what I'm looking for, I will definitely experiment with the multiflora concept. Doesn't reisentraube fall in this category as well? Any experience growing or tasting that?[/quote]

Dice's Mystery Black, grown by Suze in SE Texas:
[url]http://www.feldoncentral.com/garden/photos/v/memberphotos/suze/09+Garden/fruit/dices+mystery+black.jpg.html[/url]

It came from a stray seed in a Galina's packet (from a vendor
that did not list any dark-fruited tomatoes), has been
genetically stable from the first plant, and it ripens about
the same time as more well-known cultivars that are listed
at 70 days on seed packets.

I have not grown Reisentraube. A Rose Quartz Multiflora
picture at Amazon:
[url]http://www.amazon.com/Rose-Quartz-Multiflora-Tomato-Seed-RARE/dp/B001PBK1GQ[/url]

Clementine clusters are shaped like that, but the fruit are
smaller and grape-shaped. Decent flavor, more balanced and
sweeter than I expected from the description.

[quote=dice;176194] A Rose Quartz Multiflora
picture at Amazon:
[URL]http://www.amazon.com/Rose-Quartz-Multiflora-Tomato-Seed-RARE/dp/B001PBK1GQ[/URL]

[/quote]

That is awesome! I have never seen a multiflora before, I have to try that. Anyone know where I can get seeds for this (besides Hirt's)? Is it listed at SSE?

The list for next year continues to grow... :D

a Black Cherry multiflora might be the ultimate cherry.

[Rose Quartz Multiflora]
One vendor in Canada lists it, Solana Seeds:
[url]http://www.solanaseeds.netfirms.com/TomatoesM-R.html[/url]

Tania's Tomatobase reports 5 listings in the SSE Yearbook
(members only) for 2010.

[quote=dice;180100][Rose Quartz Multiflora]
One vendor in Canada lists it, Solana Seeds:
[URL]http://www.solanaseeds.netfirms.com/TomatoesM-R.html[/URL]

Tania's Tomatobase reports 5 listings in the SSE Yearbook
(members only) for 2010.[/quote]

Thanks so much, I'm going to get some seeds for next year. I think I'll get Red Robin to try with a hydroponics system this fall/winter.