Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds

Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds

$5.80
$5.80
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Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds
  • Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds
Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds

Red Fig Cherry Tomato - Seeds

$5.80
$5.80

Minimum 35 seeds per packet.

Postage included. Bundle to save. Raised from heirloom seed at Turtledove Farm.

Can't be posted to Western Australia.

Solanum lycopersicum


A small pear-shaped cherry tomato, 3–4cm long and deep glossy red, borne in generous clusters on a vigorous, sprawling vine. It is the red counterpart to Yellow Pear and one of the oldest documented tomatoes still grown. The fruit is notably sweet, lovely eaten straight off the vine or halved into a salad. It takes its name from an old preserving practice: the fruit was cooked in sugar syrup and dried in the sun, then eaten through winter like dried figs. It still dries beautifully today. Indeterminate (climbing) variety — requires sturdy staking or caging.

Days to harvest70–85 days from transplant
Fruit sizePear-shaped cherry fruit, 3–4cm long
Sowing depth6mm
Germination5–14 days, kept warm and moist
Spacing75cm–1m between plants. The vine is vigorous, so give it room.
AspectOpen, sunny position; well-drained soil rich in organic matter
Frost toleranceSensitive to frost. Plant out only once frosts have finished.
LifecycleTender perennial — almost always grown as an annual in Australia
Container suitableYes

Growing notes

A warm, sheltered spot in the garden or tunnel suits it best. This is a big, rambling plant, and it rewards firm support and regular feeding.

Soil preparation: Dig in well-rotted compost before planting, with a balanced feed high in phosphorus.

Support: Vines easily pass 2m in a long warm season. Use a tall stake, a sturdy cage, or a string trellis from planting out, and tie in the new growth often.

Containers: A large pot of 50L or more with a tall support works. Keep water and feed consistent, as pots dry out faster than beds.

Watering & feeding: Water deeply and consistently at the base. Overhead watering invites disease. Side-dress with a potassium-rich feed once flowering starts, and repeat through the season to keep this hungry vine cropping.

Harvest: Pick when the fruit is fully red and gives slightly to gentle pressure. Picking regularly keeps the vine setting new trusses. For drying, pick fully ripe fruit and dry it whole or halved in a dehydrator or on trays in hot sun.

Timing: First ripe fruit around 70–85 days from transplant.

Short season tips


Sow 6–8 weeks before your last frost. Grow on under cover until night temperatures stay above 12–14°C. In Coonabarabran and similar inland zones, plant out from mid-October; a hoop tunnel or cloche lets you plant earlier. The vine crops until the frost, so every early week adds to the harvest.

Origin


An American heirloom on record in Philadelphia by the early 1800s, and possibly older. It was grown widely through the nineteenth century for the kitchen tradition that gave it its name. Households scalded and peeled the ripe fruit, simmered it in sugar syrup, sun-dried it, and packed it away as a sweet winter treat eaten like dried figs. That preserving habit faded, but the tomato stayed in gardens for its sweetness and heavy crops. Today it's grown alongside its golden cousin, Yellow Pear, as one of the oldest tomatoes still in cultivation.

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