Both Cherokee Purple and Black from Tula are called so called blacks, but they aren't.

Both have a clear epidermis and along with other clear epidermis so called blacks, I call them pink blacks. Red blacks with a yellow epidermis are much darker and aha, I call them red/blacks.

Both are indet and have RL foliage and both produce beefsteak type fruits.

I've never seen either of them produce a brownish fruit, although there is a mutant of CP called Cherokee Chocloate that does produce a mahogany brownish fruit.

The only difference I find is the taste and I prefer CP over BFT, but I also prefer Indian Stripe, a version of CP over CP itself.

I've grown all three many times and taste is for me is different and preferred by me for CP and IS over BFT. and they do have very different origins, that is BFT from Russia and CP/IS from the US as most would agree, but there are some naysayers..

Carolyn

With a bag of 3 variety mixed seeds, if you plant 3 seeds, it is possible that all 3 will the same one of them. Some vendors color coat their seeds in the bag. This way you can tell them apart and tag them accordingly from the tome of germinating.

For the above reason I will never buy mixed bags, no matter how inexpensive they are. UNLESS, as I said they are color coated .

This post was edited by seysonn on Tue, Sep 16, 14 at 2:12

Like Carolyn said, the best bet is to taste them to determine which is which. BFT has a slight smoky flavor to me.
And my CP tend to be somewhat larger than my BFT. Also, the BFT is an early variety, whereas, I think, CP is much later.

Identifying a tomato from plant and fruit itself is a difficult task. Doing it with tasting the fruit, I would think, would be event a harder thing to do. There are no solid standards a and gauge to make a judgment based on taste.

I think ultimately the fruits' physical characteristics is a more reliable gauge to go with. JMO. YMMV.

No, taste is NOT the way to ID a variety. I said above that I could but that's my own experience after growing both CP and BFT many times.

Summary?

There is no easy way to confirm which is which in this circumstance since they share so many traits as I posted earlier. If particular varieties are wanted it's best to buy those from a good commercial source, and not by trading seeds.

So save seeds if youwish for home use but since what you have cannot be IDed it would be best not to share seeds.

Carolyn

BUMP for a reason

I have grown CP and will grow it in 2015 again.
Now I got some Black from Tula seeds in trade and so I will grow that one too. Maybe when the fruits ripen, I can make my personal opinion.
But my main reason to add BFT, is to see how productive it is, what kind of growth habit it has (trying to stay away from huge plans). I have read few mixed reviews on BFT so I want to find out for myself. I am also going to grow Japanese Black T. I liked its taste but it was not as productive as I would've liked..

If you have grown it lately, feel free to review it for us. It would be appreciated.

Seysonn

Have grown both for years. CP is a bit more prone to cracking, more prolific but shorter vines, more variable sized, and thinner skinned than BFT...in my garden in Utah. Love them both.

"thinner skinned than BFT"

That sounds like something physical that can be gauged. I've noticed CP to have a very delicate skin, more like a berry than most tomatoes.

I agree with Seysonn's summary on physical attributes' priority and though I'm sure those who've grown them over time may develop a taste distinction, if the claimed distinction isn't easily perceptible to most and can't be can't be explained and reproduced all the time, for me it goes in the same file as miracle fertilizers and dubious pedigrees.

The original post seemed to apply to the fruit, but maybe the thread is changing; if we plant seeds as an question, is the foliage really too close to call too, as I don't think there is a genetic reason for that. I like mustgarden's observation about the vine length ... sounds encouraging to those of us who save seeds from the market in a special surprises for good fruits we've had the good luck to purchase.

PC

Hi PC,
Yes I agree . Plant's physical attributes, growth habit might tell more than the fruits. Though BFT's fruit shape is described as "fattish round". I thinks CP fruits are not that round and can be oblate and not quite round.

Tatiana say BFT plant grows about 4 ft. tall which seems to be shorter and less vigorous than Cherokee Purple.

So there it goes : My B FT, CP , Black Cherry, Arbuznyi and JBT are growing under light. So 3 Russians vs 2 Americans. It is going to be a tough competition in dark colored category : call it Black, Brown, Purple, Chocolate Brown, Coffee Brown,..
I choose my tomatoes based on a lot reviews not just from a single person or a seeds seller. The next stage is to try them out. This way I identify the varieties that "I" like and "THEY" do well in "MY" garden. Way to go.

Seysonn

Black From Tula