Can anyone identify this tomato?

Last year my husband I discovered heirloom tomatoes at the supermarket, they always have a generic bunch of crazy looking tomatoes in a basket for $5.99 a lb. or some insane amount. We usually buy one or two as a treat and they are wonderful. I especially love the one in the picture below but we don't know what it is called. It's a nice red tomato with dark green on the top of the tomato. We almost forgot to take the picture before we ate this tomato. Yes, we've saved seeds from the tomato but I didn't get them started in time for this season so I may have to either buy another one at the end of the summer for seeds or if anyone can identify it I may be able to find the seeds in a catalog.

Thanks

I'm not a tomato expert, but one of the other forum members posted this site at some point and I thought it was really cool! Take a look and maybe you can find some of your heirlooms here...

http://www.tomatofest.com/heirloom_tomato_seed_store.html

UnderTheBlackWalnut wrote:I'm not a tomato expert, but one of the other forum members posted this site at some point and I thought it was really cool! Take a look and maybe you can find some of your heirlooms here...

http://www.tomatofest.com/heirloom_tomato_seed_store.html

+1 Great link!

Here are a couple I picked out just by looking at the pics and comparing to yours:
http://store.tomatofest.com/Black_Krim_p/tf-0063.htm
http://store.tomatofest.com/Black_Sea_Man_Heirloom_Tomato_Seeds_p/tf-0065a.htm


They're both fairly common heirloom varieties from what I understand, so I imagine that there's a good chance your tomato could be one of these.

His name is "Stephen" and he adores cats and and movies with subtitles.

No expert here, but it does look more like the Black Krim because of the shape (lumpiness) of the shoulders.

The Black Sea Man also has a smoother round shape than Miss Mousie's picture.

I have grown Black Krim and Cherokee Purple, and it could be either one.

Oh great! Thanks for the link and the suggestions. An NaturesApprentice, thanks....."Stephen" will fit in just fine around here.

What about this tomato:
http://store.tomatofest.com/Carbon_Tomato_Seeds_p/tf-0099.htm

It says it's becoming popular to grow for commercial markets. This might be it.

Thanks

I hate to burst your bubble, but tomato seeds can be cross-pollinated while growing which means the following year they won't be the same as the seeds you save from that tomato. Even heirlooms.
Unless the tomato was spaced sufficiently from other varieties or was bagged so bees and insects wouldn't cross-pollinate the flowers last year, you may have a whole new tomato variety when you plant that seed this year

I'll be interested to hear whether it breeds true for you this year and I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.

Oh, well that makes sense I guess. I'm not going to be planting that tomato this year because I didn't get the seeds started but my husband did start some seeds from a yellow heirloom tomato. I'll tell him that he may not get what he thinks he will be getting.

But what about people who save seeds from year to year. Don't they typically count on getting the same thing from year to year?

It looks like a cherokee purple to me. I have one in the garden now. What do they taste like? I planted it because it looks exotic to me.

You can save seeds for next year with just a few precautions.
Distance being one. I understand varieties need to be at least 6' from each other.
Then you tap the branches as soon as blossoms appear so they pollinate themselves before bees arrive.

If you have different varieties growing side by side and you tap to pollinate, the pollen can easily cross from one plant to the next. If the same varieties are side by side they will distribute the same pollen variety so its ok.

If distance is a problem for you, as soon as a blossom appears, you can tap the branches to pollinate them and then 'bag' (use a net bag tied around the branch) the blossoming branch until a small green tomato appears. At this point the tomato seed can no longer be compromised. Then you can remove the net bag but tag the tomato it so you know which one to save seed from in the fall.
Of course you must be on the lookout for those very first blossoms.

Okay, sounds like I'll be buying seeds from now on!!

Thanks for the info Quiltbea, sounds like you know your tomaters.

My first thought was Cherokee Purple, and they taste wonderful! Sweet, rich flavor.

I looked up Black Krim, though, and it looks nearly identical. Soooooo...