Old Carolina Tomato
Organic
Sold as a single plant in a 3.5x5 inch pot
Full Sun.
Semi-Indeterminate- Will still need staking or a medium weight cage.
Garden Planting - Plant 18 to 24 inches apart in rows 36 inches apart.
Container Planting – One tomato per 20x20 inch pot or 5 gallon bucket
Large sized yellow and orange tomato with a beautiful red core!
Average weight = 1 pound each.
This super rare tomato was revitalized by Bevin Cohen owner of @small_house_farm
Here’s the story of this rare tomato from @slowfoodusa :
Nell Bryson was an avid gardener. A housewife, she lived in North Carolina, and like many southerners, saving her seeds was an essential part of keeping her garden going. She probably saved seeds in her freezer most years, but in 1948 she happened to save one pack of just ten little tomato seeds that for some reason or another wouldn’t see the light of day until 68 years later.
The Nell Bryson tomato, also known as the Old Carolina Tomato, has two names because its full story is still being uncovered. What we do know however, is that it’s an unusually big tomato. It’s fruit can grow to be between 1-1 ½ pounds, and unlike most large tomato breeds it doesn’t seem to stop producing after just a few tomatoes have grown. Bevin Cohen, the owner of Small House Farm, and the provider of these seeds, was shocked when he first grew them and they continued to produce all season right up until the first frost.
Orange and yellow striped, with a red core, they don’t lack for flavor either. Their intense production, and beautiful flavor are what sent him digging for their origin story when he first grew them. He first came across them somewhat by chance, at a seed swap in Kentucky, in 2016. When asked by a stranger if he wanted these unknown seeds that had been sitting in a freezer for over 50 years, he couldn’t resist. Unusual and rare seeds are what keeps Bevin up at night.
To share them is to honor the work of Nell Bryson all those years ago, and carry on a small part of the work she did on her plot of land in North Carolina over 70 years ago.