Tomato Red Charcoal is a beautiful, unusual and vigorous tomato variety with fruits that are somewhere between a cocktail tomato and a beefsteak tomato in size. We refer to this type of tomato as a salad tomato or simply a tomato. Tomato Red Charcoal originates from the United States. Tomato Red Charcoal produces round to slightly flattened fruits with spectacular colouring. The lower part of the fruits ripens to a deep red, while the shoulders become dark purple to almost black. This creates an attractive colour contrast. The colouring is reminiscent of glowing charcoal, which is where this tomato gets its name. The tomatoes grow to approximately 6 - 8 cm in diameter and weigh around 100 - 200 grams each, although the weight can vary considerably from fruit to fruit. The juicy, firm and fleshy pulp has a full, rich and slightly sweet tomato flavour with delicious fruity notes. This makes these tomatoes delicious in salads, on sandwiches and in all kinds of dishes containing tomatoes. The attractive and unusual combination of excellent flavour, a good fruit size and striking colours makes Red Charcoal an interesting tomato for enthusiasts of unusual tomato varieties. Tomato Red Charcoal can be grown both in a greenhouse and outdoors.
Use these tomatoes in pasta sauces, salads, soups, ketchup, on bread and directly from the plant as a delicious and healthy snack. This plant needs plenty of sunlight, warmth, water, nutrition and good support for the best results. Tomatoes contain a lot of vitamin C and lycopene. This is best absorbed by the body if the tomatoes are heated. Blue tomatoes contain a lot of anthocyanins. According to some studies, the anthocyanins (antioxidants) that cause the purple colour of these tomatoes are very healthy. These health benefits include: anti-inflammatory, eye health, blood sugar regulation, cancer protection, antioxidant and it is good for the heart. Non hardy annual. Height: 180 - 250 cm.
Indoor sowing: February - April
Germination: 6 - 14 days
Germination temp: 20 - 25 °C
Sowing depth: 2 - 3 mm
Transplanting: when the seedlings are about 20 cm tall
Transplanting in garden: in May, after the last night frosts
Plant spacing: 45 - 50 cm
Planting position: sunny - sheltered (greenhouse)
Days till harvest: 60 - 90
Sow indoors from February on in trays filled with moist pottingsoil. Sow shallow and press the seeds gently in the soil, don't cover them with soil, because tomatoes are light germinators. Put the trays away somewhere warm at 20 - 25 °C and cover them with clingfilm or a lid. Keep the temperature as even as possible and don't let the temperature drop during the night. Keep moist, but not to wet to prevent rotting of the seeds. Remove the clingfilm or lid when the seedlings emerge. Transplant the seedlings to seperate pots approx. 10 days after emerging. Put them away a bit cooler at approx. 18 - 20 °C.
Harden the tomatoes of, from the middle of May, when there's no longer any danger of nightfrosts. Put the pots at a temperature of 15 - 18 °C for a week and reduce the amount of water for this week. Put the plants outdoors after this week on a sunny and sheltered plot with well draining soil or put them in a greenhouse. Make sure that there is no longer any nightfrost.
Tomatoes need some maintenance to ensure a good harvest. Give the plants a sturdy support with some sturdy and large bamboo sticks. Remove all suckers that will form in the axils of your plants. Remove all the leaves below the lowest hanging fruits by the end of July till the beginning of August. Remove all the leaves of all plants together with the tops of all plants from the end of August till the beginning of September to ensure the ripening of most of the green tomatoes. Harvest the tomatoes by cutting them with scissors. Tomatoes can't be kept for a long period. Don't keep your harvested tomatoes in the fridge. So use them a soon as possible after harvesting. Tomatoes used in sauces can be kept frozen to store.
