Black Beauty Tomato
A favorite here at Carmel Bella Farm since 2016. Black Beauty is swiftly gaining popularity throughout the nation as the world‘s darkest tomato...but these fruits are not just good looks!
With their rare, purple pigmented skin and deep raspberry-colored flesh, these fruits contain extremely high anthocyanin content resulting in amazing nutritional value and complex flavors. Tasing notes can be described as rich, sweet, earthy and robust, yet with a hint of fruity blueberry notes that linger on the tongue. Quite a sensational flavor likely attributed to their high antioxidant content.
The skin is thick yet very tender, allowing for a longer shelf life than most and hang on the vine capability. Perfect for market!
This diverse tomato is a perfect slicer for salads, sandwiches and more, but is absolutely rich enough for sauces and roasting.
The fruits are ripe mid to late season (80-85 days) and do well in warm climates. They are born on productive, indeterminate vines with gorgeous purple hues showing up in the stem and leaves. They shine bluish/black in the sunshine and ripen with deep purple-black shoulders and a burgundy base. A true gem in the Tomato world!
Click here for Black Beauty Seeds
Black Beauty was bred by Brad Gates in Napa, California and is the result of crossing Pink Berkeley Tie Dye and Indigo Apple. He hit a home-run with this one!
Fun growing facts:
The more sun exposure these fruits receive, the darker purple/black they will become, but do take caution with allowing too much direct sunlight as it can cause sun scald. You will notice a similar affect when this plant is exposed to cooler temperatures, like when first planting in the spring and later during cool fall evenings. The cold temperatures significantly enhance the purple coloring in both the fruits and the plants (similar to brassicas producing more purple tones in cool weather, these tomatoes do the same). The perfect recipe for the darkest and healthiest fruits possible, is to keep a small amount of foliar coverage to protect the fruits from excessive sun exposure, but remove just enough leaves to allow filtered sunshine! Our Black Beauty tomatoes at Carmel Bella Farm are often completely black in color due to our extra long sunny days and cooler night temperatures we experience in Summer.
TOMATO STATS
Name: Black Beauty
Origin: California
Breeder: Brad Gates
Tomato Type: Beefsteak
Fruit Size: Varies 6-12 ounces
Growth habit: Indeterminate
Foliage: Regular (often purple)
Days to maturity: 85
Season: Mid-Late
Production: Medium- heavy yields
Disease Tolerance: Moderate
Exterior color: Purplish-black with a burgundy base
Flesh color: Raspberry red
Flavor notes: Rich, sweet, berry, earthy, complex
Texture: Firm, juicy, dense
Purpose: Slicer, fresh eating, sauce