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Cherokee Purples
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Posted by
VoiceofParadise 6 (
My Page) on
Sun, May 5, 13 at 14:52
| I live in Oklahoma and gardening for the first time. A good friend gave me a Cherokee Purple plant as a gift and I would like to be able to keep it alive and produce fruit. I've heard it's a difficult variety and would like some advice on how I can accomplish my goals. Thanks! |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| I don't think it's any more difficult than most heirloom tomatoes. Mine was pretty productive last year, and better than many others I've grown. Give it full sun, good soil and fertilizer, and protect it from insects and disease. Read other posters on the forum and ask questions, and you'll be OK. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Below is a link to Tania's page about CP. As you can see seeds were given to Craig LeHoullier in 1990 and Craig has been my best tomato friend for a long time so I'm one of the first to grow it, and as noted, also included it in my book. It's a very vigorous grower, you don't need to do anything for it that you wouldn't do for growing any other variety. There's now a CP heart as well as two PL CP's. A sister variety is Indian Stripe and it also exists as a PL, as well as a heart version. I can't think of anything to tell you that will improve anything about having success, and I'm assuming you've grown tomatoes before. ( smile) Carolyn Carolyn |
Here is a link that might be useful: Cherokee Purple
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Agree with the above. i grow it almost every yer and it is no different from growing any other tomato plant. How successful it will be depends on if you will be growing it in the ground or in a container. Preparation for those 2 methods are very different and the needs of the plant will be very different too. Dave |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Not difficult at all. One of my top five! |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| It isn't any harder to grow than any other variety in fact the seedlings are stocky and vigorous. But the tomatoes it produces are more fragile and will rot if they split when it rains or if a worm makes a hole. I love the taste and would not trade them for Celebrity. Celebrity and some others have skin like plastic will not rot as easily. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| It'll be in a container since where I live has horrible soil, and we want to move in the future. It has some dry tan spots on the leaves and that has me worried. I'll be moving it to a much larger container this week. It's in a 1 gallon right now. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Yes. It will be a big plant given the right care. I recommend the biggest container you can find. It would do much better in 10-15 gallons. Even then, in Oklahoma, you will probably need to water every day if temperatures are over 90 or you experience drought. I grew mine in a 20-gallon container using a large cage. It's a great tomato and worth the effort. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Make sure it's at least a 10 gallon container. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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- Posted by bets z6A ID (My Page) on
Tue, May 7, 13 at 20:41
| The dry tan spots on the leaves sound like it might be wind or sunburn, meaning that it was not hardened off properly before going outdoors full time. Betsy |
Here is a link that might be useful: Hardening Off and Physiological Changes
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Thanks Betsy! These we're hardened off before but then winter decided to come back and they had to come back inside. So I guess I have to start the hardening off process again. Will they recover? And I'm gonna have it in a 18 gal. container. Thanks for all the advice everyone!! :-) I'm very new at this and all the help is very much appreciated! |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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- Posted by loomis Z6a Western MA (My Page) on
Tue, May 21, 13 at 19:35
| It's a wonderful, delicious tomato. You should have no problem growing it. One of my favorites! |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| The first time I grew CP it did really badly, but that was a few years back when we had that scorching hot summer--I planted too late to beat the heat then fruitworms ate the few tomatoes that made it to ripeness. (I use BT now and don't have problems with worms.) Since then I've grown it with no problems and it's been really productive and healthy. I'm glad I didn't judge the variety by that first year and stop growing it. So it could be that your friend was just unlucky with growing conditions or something. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| Becoming a favorite already! Great tomato flavor! Did you have a positive outcome with your CP plant Voiceofparadise? 
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RE: Cherokee Purples
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| I have grown CP few years back. I liked it and will grow one next season. To me it s very similar to Black Krim, in color, shape and texture. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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| I had ten plants this summer and had the best luck yet with CP and Indian Stripe....several were one pound or a little bigger. I have a clay 40x40 but grew these in a 8x12 spot of looser soil with bagged manure, topsoil and granular 6-12-12. My neigbor loved them and his daughter who is a missioary saved some seed to take back to Africa. These are coming to the top of my favorites list in a hurry. First clusters sometimes had six tomatoes in one spot. They did blight early but so did all the other 60 plants in the big garden. Too much rain I suppose. |
RE: Cherokee Purples
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CP has been one of my best performers this year, and the first to ripen.
John A |
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