Sweet Success
Gardeners World|February 2022
Want to grow the tastiest cherry tomatoes this year? Head gardener Lucy Chamberlain trialled 14 varieties to find the sweetest and shares her complete growing guide
By Lucy Chamberlain. Photographs by Burpee Europe, Sarah Cuttle, Neil Hepworth, Getty, Ozgurdonmaz, Paul Debois, John Fielding, Jason Ingram and Mr Fothergill's
Sweet Success

What is a Brix rating?

The Brix scale measures the level of sugars in plant sap or juice, as a percentage, and is used by commercial plant breeders to give an impartial, accurate assessment of sweetness. To get a measurement, we put droplets of juice from each cherry tomato variety onto the refractometer plate of a Brix meter, and the results were read from a calibrated scale. This is the ultimate test of sweetness!

Bite-sized, juicy and full of flavour, cherry tomatoes are the epitome of summer and one of the most delicious crops to grow. Popping a freshly picked cherry tom into your mouth is one of life's best treats. But if you want the sweetest fruits, which are the best varieties to grow?

We set out to discover this, last summer, when we trialled over a dozen varieties bred to be among the sweetest. All were grown in a greenhouse to boost sugar levels, and with 2021's wet summer this also kept the plants dry, helping them to evade destructive tomato late blight fungus, which runs rife in damp conditions.

We taste-tested for flavour and, for 100 per cent accuracy, donned our lab coats to measure specific sugar to sugar levels using the recommended industry standard - the Brix scale. So whether you want a conventional red-fruited variety or some yellow, orange, black or green options, we'll help you grow a successful crop of cherry toms that are the sweetest they can be.

‘Black Cherry'

This cordon variety produces large tomatoes with purple-brown skin and flesh, held in multi-branching trusses. It is open-pollinated, so if you save seed, the resulting plants are likely to be true to type.

Taste-test results These tomatoes had a pleasant soft texture and thin, crunchy skins. A good balance between sweet and acid, making the fruits nice and tangy.

'Cherry Baby'

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der February 2022-Ausgabe von Gardeners World.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der February 2022-Ausgabe von Gardeners World.

Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.

WEITERE ARTIKEL AUS GARDENERS WORLDAlle anzeigen
A new plot for tasty crops
BBC Gardeners World

A new plot for tasty crops

Taking on a new allotment needn't be hard work. By simply following a few easy tips you can have bumper crops in no time, just like Alessandro Vitale

time-read
7 Minuten  |
July 2024
We love July
BBC Gardeners World

We love July

July is an island floating between the joy of June and the slightly fatigued month of August. It's a grown-up month: the year has shrugged off its adolescent exuberances, the weather is (hopefully) warm enough for ice cream to be one of your five a day, the sea should be swimmable without (too much) danger of hypothermia and thoughts will be of holiday shenanigans and family barbecues. School's out this month, the next tranche of glorious summer colour is washing across our borders and it's my birthday. Lots of reasons to give three rousing cheers for July!

time-read
3 Minuten  |
July 2024
YOUR PRUNING MONTH
BBC Gardeners World

YOUR PRUNING MONTH

Now, at the height of summer, Frances Tophill shows how to boost your plants' health and productivity with a timely cut

time-read
3 Minuten  |
July 2024
Hassle-free harvests
BBC Gardeners World

Hassle-free harvests

Flowers are out in abundance this month and for Jack Wallington, many of these blooms make delicious, low-effort pickings

time-read
4 Minuten  |
July 2024
Bite-sized bounties
BBC Gardeners World

Bite-sized bounties

Glorious doorstep harvests can easily turn into gluts, so let Rukmini Iyer's recipes help you savour every last bit

time-read
3 Minuten  |
July 2024
Upcycled outdoor living
BBC Gardeners World

Upcycled outdoor living

Create unique and stylish garden features for minimal cost using reclaimed materials and simple DIY skills. Helen Riches shares four step-by-step projects and more inspiring eco tips

time-read
6 Minuten  |
July 2024
Secrets of a COLOURFUL GARDEN
BBC Gardeners World

Secrets of a COLOURFUL GARDEN

Buildings and landscapes can play a vital role in supercharging your space, as Nick Bailey demonstrates

time-read
4 Minuten  |
July 2024
Greening up a city balcony
BBC Gardeners World

Greening up a city balcony

Looking for sustainable, small-space gardening ideas? Take inspiration from Oliver Hymans' transformed balcony garden in north-east London - now a lush, green haven for humans and wildlife

time-read
3 Minuten  |
July 2024
The dry and mighty garden
BBC Gardeners World

The dry and mighty garden

As we adapt our gardens to a more volatile climate, Alan Titchmarsh reveals how to create a drought-tolerant plot and picks his top plant performers

time-read
6 Minuten  |
July 2024
Nature knows best
BBC Gardeners World

Nature knows best

Carol Klein explains how to choose plants for specific growing conditions, based on what has naturally adapted to thrive there

time-read
5 Minuten  |
July 2024