Tomatoes in dark colors: growing anthocyanin varieties

Black or anthocyanin tomatoes have a dark purple coloration on the shoulders or the entire fruit. A selection of varieties from private owners and well-known companies.

Hello everyone and good health!

Nowadays, anthocyanin tomatoes are in fashion; they are also called blue, black, and purple.

Tomato Steel Damascus

It is believed that they contain a lot of anthocyanin, which slows down cell aging and prevents the development of cancerous tumors. Although they say that chocolate-colored tomatoes contain more of them (Black Prince, Black Crimea, Black Truffle, Viagra, etc.).

I haven’t checked this fact, you can challenge it in the comments, only culturally!

Anthocyanin tomatoes are also credited with an unusual taste, almost fruity. When I first grew them, it seemed strange to me too, because the fruits themselves look like fruits.

I’ll tell you about the varieties that I grew myself, my impressions and add reviews from my readers.

Blue forest

An early ripening variety, it bears fruit until the onset of frost, has stable yields, and is very resistant to diseases.

The fruits have excellent taste, reach a weight of up to 90 g, have a dark blue color and a round shape.

When fully ripe, the top of each tomato acquires a bright red color.

More than 10 thousand varieties of tomatoes exist on Earth, the smallest fruits are up to 2 cm in diameter, and the weight of the largest reaches 1.5 kg. Only up to 100 varieties of crops are grown on an industrial scale.

Pink Siberian tiger

The variety ripens in medium terms. The bush is strong. Productivity is high and disease resistance is also high.

Pink Siberian Tiger is the largest of the anthocyanin varieties. The fruits have a sweet taste and are very tasty.

The shape is flattened, the color is purple, they reach a mass of 300 g. But there are specimens weighing up to 600 g.

What are anthocyanins?

Anthocyanins began to interest scientists back in the 17th century and today are almost completely studied. These are substances that give plant tissues purple, scarlet, red, pink, orange, dark blue and cyan shades. Anthocyanins are biologically active molecules, and therefore are responsible not only for the beauty, but also for the usefulness of dyed fabrics.

The benefits of anthocyanins are great, adding them to the diet:

reduces the likelihood of developing certain types of cancer;
activates metabolism;
provides prevention of the gastrointestinal tract and cardiovascular system;
strengthens the retina of the eye;
delays diseases of old age, including senile dementia;
reduces swelling;
has an antibacterial effect;
improves the condition of connective tissues;
reduces blood pressure;
increases immunity.

To summarize, anthocyanins are powerful antioxidants that protect the cells of the human body from degeneration and aging. However, they are not synthesized in the human body. To maintain health, you need to consume 15 ml of the substance per day, and in a state of illness twice as much.

The leaders in the amount of anthocyanins are considered to be berries and vegetables of black and dark purple color. These include tomatoes, especially blue and purple colors.

Varieties with blue skin but red inside are obtained by crossing two varieties.

Blue pineapple

The bush is powerful and tall. The variety is mid-season. Tolerates light shade, unlike other anthocyanin varieties.

It is distinguished by good health, high yield and simultaneous ripening of fruits. Round tomatoes, up to 250 g, yellow with lilac shoulders.

The flesh is also yellow and pink. The taste is pleasant, sweetish.

Purple tomatoes.

Again the same rake. Anthocyanin tomatoes were created using interspecific hybridization with the participation of Tomato Peruviana, from which the Aft, atv genes were transmitted. Due to them, the anthocyanin content in fruits, leaves and stems increases; the anthocyanin side is added to the color (it is in the light; the main color will always appear on the shaded part of the fruit). Such varieties are like “Indigo rose”, the first and only Russian “Zemba” and many others. etc. The color of their pulp corresponds to the color of the main carotenoid (lycopene - red, beta-carotene or prolycopene - red, lutein - yellow) or chlorophyll (green in the mature state).

T.n. “F1 Black Bunch” from the most unscrupulous company is, apparently, some kind of wild mixture or a stolen foreign variety, which is interesting - not a hybrid. A unfortunate company, which does not have much selection, which has broken all records for low-quality seeds and mis-grading, cannot ensure the production of a hybrid (!) anthocyanin tomato. And why the tomato needs hybridity in this case is generally unclear; most likely this is just another quackery in their style.

Tomatoes are uniformly brown (so-called black tomatoes, cumate) in color (usually the names of Russian varieties contain the word “chocolate”) - they do not contain anthocyanin, their surface and flesh color is caused by the fact that with incomplete breakdown of chlorophyll and the generation of lycopene, a brown color is formed shade - genotype RR gf gf.

Previously, raspberry tomatoes (genotype RR yy) were called “purple tomatoes” - they have a pink color due to the fact that the film of the fruit is not yellow, like that of red (RRYY) tomatoes, but transparent. The B gene also has alleles B^c, B^og, which block the production of beta-carotene and increase lycopene - their color is slightly red with a reduced yellow component, similar to pink-violet - on the left in the picture https://www.esalq. usp.br/tomato/crimson.pdf. They also don't have anthocyanin.

A GMO tomato with anthocyanin was created based on the snapdragon gene insert https://elementy.ru/novosti_nauki/432029/Budushchee_za_fioletovymi_pomidorami.
Its flesh is purple, which is impossible in nature and non-GMO varieties. Why anyone needed this is completely unclear; it seems to me that this idea will soon fail for primarily economic reasons, just like “Flavr Savr”. The likelihood that you will come across this tomato is extremely low. These are cheap wild mixtures that were grown by a would-be farmer on the outskirts of Volgograd, and packaged by a would-be company in colored bags under 30 names of different varieties with impossible characteristics. And GMO seeds are more expensive. Modified on July 11, 2022 by Artemy

Purple pumpkin

The bush can grow up to 2 m. A variety with medium ripening periods. High-yielding, disease-resistant.

Prefers brightly lit areas in the garden. The fruits have juicy, sweet pulp and excellent taste.

The shape is interesting, reminiscent of a pumpkin, ribbed, flat. The color is dark purple. Weight - up to 400 g.

Varieties of blue tomatoes

"Indigo Rose" is a late-ripening tomato. Determinant. Grows in a greenhouse up to 1.5 m, in open ground up to 1 m. Blue-black tomatoes are round, weighing up to 70 g, universally used. The flesh is pink-red. It tastes sweet. Resistant to late blight.

“Amethyst Jewel” or “ Amethyst Jewel” is a medium-ripening tomato. Indeterminate. Grows to approximately 1.2 m in open ground and 1.5 m in a greenhouse. The blue-pink fruits have the shape of a steak weighing up to 200 g. The flesh is pink and sweet.

“Blue Beauty” is an anto-tomato of medium ripening. Indeterminate. Grows up to 1.5 m. The fruits are beefsteak-shaped, weighing about 150 g, with sweetness. The flesh is red. Resistant to major diseases.

“Dancing with the Smurfs” or “Dancing with the Smurfs” is an anto-tomato of medium ripening. Indeterminate. Grows up to 1.8 m in a greenhouse, in open ground - up to 1.5 m. The fruits are round, small, weighing up to 30 g. The pulp is red, very sweet. Resistant to late blight.

“Blue Pear” is a medium-ripening tomato. Indeterminate. Grows up to 1.5 m in open ground and slightly higher in a greenhouse. The fruits are pear-shaped, weighing up to 150 g. The pulp is red.

'P+20 Beauty King' is a medium-ripening tomato. Indeterminate. It grows up to 1.7 m. The fruits are slightly flattened, weighing up to 200 g. They have a golden-orange color with a pronounced purple “tan.” On the cut - yellow.

“Black Bunch F1” - medium ripening, indeterminate. Grows up to 1.8m. The fruits are round, weighing up to 70 g. When cut, they are pink. It tastes like a sweet plum.

Alice's dream

The seeds are sometimes sold under another name - Alice's Dream. Ripens early, the bush is powerful and tall. The variety is high-yielding, and bears fruit well even in cold summers.

The fruits are of different shapes: from round to flat, large, weighing up to 350 g. They are colored dark orange with red stripes, and purple shades appear on the shoulders when ripe.

The pulp is tasty, sweet, devoid of sourness, juicy. Disease-resistant variety.

General characteristics of blue tomato varieties

The very first varieties of tomatoes with blue fruits were bred in Bulgaria. But since they did not differ in special taste, the project was stopped. Later, American scientists got down to business. Their task was not just to breed an unusual branch of tomatoes, but one more saturated with anthocyanins, since more and more is becoming known about the benefits of the latter every year.

Today, there are not one or two varieties with blue and purple colored fruits, but many. And they all surprise. However, finding yours is not so easy. And all because, as in the issue with ordinary tomatoes, everyone is looking for something special in “their” tomatoes: some for size, some for taste, and some for keeping quality. And in this category there is plenty to choose from.

Blue tomato seeds can be bought not only from collectors, but also on the open market. Many of them have already been tested by gardeners and have their own assessment. However, as with any other cultivated plant, there is an unshakable rule - the variety reveals itself differently in different conditions. Therefore, if you want to find the best variety of blue tomatoes for you, you will have to resort to your own variety testing, and not just take their word for it.

But general recommendations are still worth considering. Firstly, tomato fruits become almost black only when ripe, and the color is more intense on the side exposed to the sun. The reverse side remains deep red. If the plant does not receive enough sun, the desired color may practically not appear. Conclusion - blue tomatoes must be planted in the most illuminated areas.

Second, all blue varieties are medium and late ripening. Therefore, in regions with short summers, it is better to grow them only in greenhouses.

Thirdly, the overwhelming majority of blue tomatoes have small fruits, weighing up to 100 g.

Fourthly, although they have an interesting color, this group does not have an interesting taste, so it is not recommended to plant them in large quantities. However, blue tomatoes have their own specific taste, which can only be understood by trying it.