Last updated: · rewritten as a full seed-to-harvest guide with step-by-step sowing, hardening off, deep planting, watering, pruning, pest and disease notes.
A tomato picked warm from the vine and eaten standing in the garden beats anything you can buy. Black Zebra cherry tomatoes are a good way to find that out. They look odd in the best way, with dark, brownish-red skin streaked in green, and they taste rich and sweet with a deeper edge than a plain red cherry.
They are also forgiving. Two or three plants will keep you in snacks and salads from midsummer until frost. This guide follows the plant the whole way: sowing seed indoors, repotting, hardening off, planting deep, staking, watering, pruning, dealing with pests and picking at the right moment. I've also added the organic feeding and companion planting that keep the plants healthy without chemicals.
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.
Quick answer
Sow Black Zebra seed indoors about six weeks before your last frost. Harden the seedlings off for 7 to 10 days, then plant them deep, with two-thirds of the stem buried, 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) apart in full sun. Stake at planting time, water deeply once a week (1 to 2 inches, or 2.5 to 5 cm), mulch, and start picking about 85 days after transplanting. It is an indeterminate vine, so it keeps cropping until frost.
| At a glance | Details |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | Solanum lycopersicum |
| Growth habit | Indeterminate vine, needs support |
| Grown as | Annual (zones 3 to 11) |
| Days to maturity | About 85 days from transplanting |
| Height | Up to 6 ft (1.8 m) |
| Sun | 6 to 8 hours of direct sun |
| Soil | Fertile, well drained, rich in organic matter, pH 6.0 to 6.8 |
| Temperature | 50 to 95 °F (10 to 35 °C) |
| Sowing indoors | About 6 weeks before the last frost |
| Spacing | 18 to 24 in (45 to 60 cm) |
| Water | 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5 cm) per week |
| Container size | At least 5 gallons (19 L), bigger is better |
| Fruit | Small, burgundy-brown with green stripes, rich and sweet |
Meet the Black Zebra Cherry Tomato
Black Zebra is a fairly recent striped tomato, stabilized from a cross between a dark "black" tomato and the classic Green Zebra. Like every garden tomato it belongs to Solanum lycopersicum. The fruit is small, with dark burgundy-brown skin and green striping that deepens as it ripens. The flavor carries the smoky richness black tomatoes are known for, plus enough sweetness to eat them like candy.
The plants are indeterminate, which means the vines keep growing and flowering all season rather than ripening one big batch. That suits a home garden well: you get a small handful of fruit every few days instead of a bucketful you have to deal with in one weekend. The trade-off is that the vines need strong support and a bit of pruning attention.
One honest note on disease. The plant is vigorous and adaptable, but I wouldn't count on any special resistance to blights or wilts. Good spacing, mulch and watering at the base do more for you than the variety does.
Starting Black Zebra Seeds Indoors
Tomatoes love heat, and most gardens don't have a long enough warm season to start them from seed outdoors. Starting indoors gives you a head start: the plants flower earlier and fruit for longer before the first autumn frost. Black Zebra seed germinates quickly. Sow about six weeks before your average last frost date, no earlier, because oversized seedlings sulk in small pots.
What you'll need
- Black Zebra tomato seeds
- Seed-starting soil mix. A compressed coconut coir block works too: add water and it swells to about eight quarts.
- Clean seed-starting pots. Yogurt pots or egg cartons with drainage holes will do, but biodegradable pots and seed-starting trays are easier to manage.
- A warm spot with good light, or grow lights
- A mild organic fertilizer for seedlings once the true leaves appear
How to sow tomato seeds
- Moisten the mix first. Use a good seed-starting mix. Cheap, lumpy mixes are behind many seedling failures, so this is not the place to save a few dollars.
- Fill the pots or cells to about ½ in (1 cm) below the rim and firm the mix gently without packing it down.
- Sow two or three seeds per cell, then cover with about ¼ in (6 mm) of mix and press lightly.
- Or sow in one shallow pot. This is what I usually do: sprinkle seeds evenly over the mix, cover with a thin layer and prick the seedlings out later.
- Water with a fine spray. You only need to dampen the top layer, not soak it.
- Cover with a plastic bag or wrap to hold moisture, and put the pots somewhere warm.
- Check daily. Keep the mix moist, never soggy. Seedlings usually appear within one to two weeks.
Caring for seedlings after germination
As soon as the first sprouts appear, take off the cover and move the pots into a sunny window or under a grow light. Hang the light just an inch or two (2.5 to 5 cm) above the tops of the seedlings and raise it as they grow. Aim for around 64 °F (18 °C) or a little warmer. A windowsill works, but early spring light is weak and the days are short, so seedlings often stretch and flop. An LED grow light makes a noticeable difference.
If you're on a windowsill, turn the pots every day or two so the stems don't lean and bend toward the glass. Label every pot too. It is surprisingly easy to lose track of which tomato is which once you have three or four varieties going.
When the second set of true leaves opens, begin feeding with a diluted organic fertilizer. At that point, crowding becomes the main risk. Seedlings competing for light and nutrients stay small and weak, however well you water them. You have two options: thin them or pot them on.
Thinning seedlings
If you sowed several seeds per cell, thin when seedlings are two to three weeks old and about 3 to 4 inches (8 to 10 cm) tall. Keep the sturdiest, best-developed seedling in each cell. Snip the others off at soil level with scissors. Pulling them risks tearing the roots of the one you want to keep.
Repotting seedlings
Seedlings grown together in one pot need to be separated before their leaves start to overlap, or they turn tall and leggy. Once a seedling has two or three sets of true leaves and stands about 4 inches (10 cm) tall, it is ready for its own, larger pot. The extra room lets the roots expand.
- Lift each seedling out gently with a spoon, supporting it by a leaf rather than the stem.
- Poke a hole in the new pot's mix with your finger.
- Lower the seedling in as deeply as you can without bending the stem. Tomatoes grow roots from buried stem.
- Firm the mix around it and water gently.
- Set the pot in a bright spot and keep the mix moist. Never let it dry out completely.
Watch: How to Transplant Tomato Seedlings
How to Transplant Tomato Seedlings
A close-up look at lifting seedlings, potting them on and burying the stem for stronger roots.
Prefer YouTube? Watch it there.
Hardening off tomato seedlings
Seedlings raised indoors have lived a soft life: steady warmth, no wind, filtered sun. Plant them straight into the garden and the leaves can scorch and the stems snap. Hardening off is the fix. Start 7 to 10 days before planting. Put the plants outside for a couple of hours in a spot sheltered from direct sun and wind, then bring them back in. Each day, add some time and some sun, until they are outdoors all day, and finally overnight if nights stay mild.
Plants that are hardened off properly settle into the garden quickly and start flowering sooner than ones that were rushed.
Watch: How to Successfully Harden Off Tomato Seedlings
How to Successfully Harden Off Tomato Seedlings
See the day-by-day routine for acclimating seedlings to sun, wind and cooler air.
Prefer YouTube? Watch it there.
Preparing the Soil and Planting Out
Tomatoes are only as good as the soil under them. Time spent here pays off in vigor, yield and flavor, so don't rush it.
Check the pH and loosen the bed
Tomatoes do best at a soil pH of about 6.0 to 6.8. Test every three to five years with a soil pH test kit. If the soil is too acidic, add lime according to the test results. Before planting, loosen the bed with a garden fork to a depth of 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm). Deep roots reach more water and nutrients, which gives you a bigger, tougher plant, and forking also pulls up a lot of weeds.
Feed the soil with organic matter
Tomatoes like moderately fertile soil with plenty of organic matter. Light sandy soil that drains too fast and heavy clay that stays cold and wet in spring can both be improved with leaves, compost and well-rotted manure. I use well-rotted chicken manure on my beds. Manure has been feeding gardens for centuries because it adds nitrogen and other nutrients plus humus, and it supports the soil life that keeps nutrients available. For more on feeding naturally, read my guide to organic fertilizers.
Organic fertilizers come from plant, animal or mineral sources with little processing. Besides the main nutrients, they add organic matter, which improves structure, drainage and water holding. They release nutrients slowly and feed soil microbes rather than harming them. One firm warning: raw manure burns roots and can kill plants. Always compost or age it first, for at least six months.
Watch: Chicken Manure Benefits for Garden Soil
Chicken Manure Benefits for Garden Soil
How well-rotted chicken manure improves soil and when it is safe to use it.
Prefer YouTube? Watch it there.
Where to plant
Pick a spot with at least 6 to 8 hours of direct sun a day. Space plants 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) apart. It is tempting to squeeze more in, but crowded plants stay damp and breed disease. Airflow is as important as sunshine.
Plant deep
Tomatoes are unusual: the buried part of the stem grows roots. Bury about two-thirds of the plant, right up to the first set of leaves, and you get a bigger, sturdier root system. That also rescues leggy seedlings.
- Fork a little compost, manure or organic fertilizer into the planting area.
- Dig holes deep enough for most of the plant.
- Slide the plant out of its pot by holding the stem base, turning the pot over and tapping it.
- Lower it so that about two-thirds is buried. You can pinch off the lower leaves, but you don't have to.
- For a tall, floppy plant, dig a shallow trench instead. Lay the stem on its side, bend it gently up at the end, bury the stem and leave the top two leaves above ground.
- Water in thoroughly (see the watering section below).
Watch: How to Plant Tomato Plants
How to Plant Tomato Plants
Watch how deep to set the plant and how to handle the stem and roots.
Prefer YouTube? Watch it there.
Stake or cage at planting time
Tomatoes are vines. Left alone they sprawl across the ground, where the leaves stay damp and slugs, rot and disease move in. Stake or cage every indeterminate plant. Do it on planting day: pushing stakes in later can slice through established roots. I use bamboo stakes, at least 8 feet (2.4 m) long and about 1 inch (2.5 cm) wide. Drive each about 12 inches (30 cm) into the ground, roughly 4 inches (10 cm) from the plant, and tie the stem to it loosely with garden twine as it grows.
Caring for Black Zebra Plants
Watering
For the first two weeks after transplanting, soak the root zone every two to three days if it doesn't rain, so the plants settle in. After that, switch to deep, less frequent watering. Soak the soil well about once a week, enough to reach the deeper roots, rather than sprinkling a little every day. In hot weather, check the top 2 inches (5 cm) and water again if it is dry.
Once flowers and fruit appear, keep the watering steady at about 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) a week. Swings between bone dry and soaking wet cause cracked fruit and blossom end rot. Water in the morning at the base of the plant, and avoid the leaves. A watering can or drip line is ideal. Wet foliage overnight invites mold, rot and wilt diseases.
Mulching
About four weeks after planting, once the soil has warmed, spread a layer of straw or finely shredded wood chips around the plants. Keep it a little back from the stem. Mulch suppresses weeds, holds moisture and stops soil splashing up onto the lower leaves in the rain, which is how many soil-borne diseases spread.
Feeding
Black Zebra is a heavy feeder. Use an organic fertilizer with moderate nitrogen and more phosphorus and potassium once flowers appear, because too much nitrogen gives you lots of leaves and few tomatoes. If you like making your own feed, see why nettles are great for your garden.
Pruning
To prune or not to prune is one of the great tomato arguments, and the truth is that both approaches work. A sucker is the shoot that grows in the angle between the main stem and a leafy branch. Left alone it becomes another fruiting stem. Removing suckers reduces the total number of tomatoes but usually gives larger fruit, and it keeps the plant tidier and more open to air. Leaving them gives you a bushier plant and more fruit overall, but heavier support needs.
Pruning also lets you plant closer together if you train the vines upward. If you only have room for a few plants and several varieties, heavy pruning on a single stem is a good way to fit more in. If you'd rather not fuss, simply remove the leaves that touch the soil and leave the rest.
Watch: How to Prune Tomato Plants for More Fruit, Not Leaves
How to Prune Tomato Plants for More Fruit, Not Leaves
A practical demonstration of which shoots to remove and which to keep.
Prefer YouTube? Watch it there.
Companion Planting for Tomatoes
Companion planting means growing different plants side by side so they help each other. Some pull in beneficial insects, some confuse or deter pests, and some simply use space that tomatoes don't. The evidence is stronger for the first group than the second, but a mixed bed is healthier than a single-crop row either way.
Good partners include basil, chamomile, beans, oregano, borage, chives, garlic, mint, marigolds, anise, nasturtium, onion, parsley, peppers and dill. Plant them near your tomatoes, but not so tightly that they shade the fruit. My full list is in companion plants for tomatoes.
Protecting Your Tomato Plants
Healthy plants resist problems far better than stressed ones. Give them good soil, regular feeding and steady water, keep the leaves dry, and rotate tomatoes to a different bed each year so soil-borne diseases can't build up.
Pests
Hornworms. These are huge (3 inches or more) but pale green and surprisingly well camouflaged. Look for chewed leaves and dark droppings, then pick the caterpillars off by hand. Some gardeners plant borage among tomatoes to discourage them. It's a popular tip, though hand-picking is what actually works.
Whiteflies. These tiny flying insects suck sap and leave a sticky residue that can grow sooty mold. Encourage ladybugs and lacewings, and if numbers explode, use insecticidal soap.
Diseases
Early blight shows up in early summer as dry brown patches with concentric rings on the lower leaves. Remove affected leaves as soon as you see them, and strip the foliage off the bottom 18 inches (45 cm) of the plant to reduce splash-up.
Late blight follows long spells of cool, wet weather. Leaves develop pale brown, water-soaked patches, and whole plants can collapse within days. Good airflow and keeping the foliage dry are your best prevention.
Harvesting and Using Black Zebra Tomatoes
Expect your first ripe fruit about 85 days after transplanting. Indeterminate plants ripen all season, so from then on check the vines daily. Fully ripe tomatoes taste far better than early-picked ones, but overripe ones drop or split and rot quickly, so don't leave them too long.
To pick, hold the stem with one hand and the fruit with the other and snap the stalk just above the cap. About a month before your first expected frost, pinch off the growing tips of the main stems. The plant then puts its remaining energy into ripening what it already has.
Ways to use them
The best way to eat Black Zebra cherries is the simplest: straight off the plant, or halved into salads where the dark skin and green stripes show. Because the flavor is delicate, add them to cooked dishes right at the end, just long enough to warm through.
Tomato Seeds I Recommend
If you're ordering seed, these four are worth a look: Black Zebra seed itself in a 40-seed packet, Park Seed's Purple Zebra cherry (a close striped relative, not Black Zebra), Sow Right's cherry tomato collection, and a 12-pack organic variety collection for growing several types. The links below are affiliate links. See the disclosure at the end of this guide.
The variety this guide is about. Forty seeds is plenty for a few plants plus spares for swapping with friends.
A striped, purple-toned cherry in the same spirit as Black Zebra. A small 10-seed pack, handy if you want to compare the two.
A mix of cherry tomatoes for the home garden. A good way to try different colors and sizes alongside your Black Zebra.
Twelve packs including Roma, cherry, Black Krim and Yellow Pear. A broad collection for gardeners who want paste, slicing and snacking tomatoes.
Affiliate links above. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do Black Zebra tomatoes take to ripen?
About 85 days from transplanting. Start the seed indoors around six weeks before your last frost date. Because the plant is indeterminate, it keeps ripening fruit until frost, so check the vines daily once the first tomatoes begin to color.
Do Black Zebra tomatoes need staking?
Yes. The vines can reach about 6 feet (1.8 m), so they need a stake, cage or trellis. Put the support in at planting time, because adding it later can damage the roots. Keeping the vines off the ground also improves airflow and reduces fruit rot.
When should I start Black Zebra seeds indoors?
Sow about six weeks before your average last frost date. Keep the pots warm and moist, and put the seedlings under a grow light or in a bright window as soon as they sprout. Harden them off for 7 to 10 days before they go outside.
How far apart should I plant them?
Space plants 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) apart so air can move through the foliage. That keeps the leaves dry and lowers the risk of fungal disease such as blight. Crowded plants also compete for water and nutrients and crop less.
How often should I water Black Zebra tomatoes?
Water deeply about once a week, giving 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) in total, and more often in hot weather or containers. Water in the morning at the base of the plant, not on the leaves. Steady moisture helps prevent cracked fruit and blossom end rot.
What are the best companion plants?
Basil, marigolds, borage, chives, garlic, parsley and nasturtiums are all good neighbors for tomatoes. They attract beneficial insects and may help deter pests such as whiteflies. Keep them close enough to interact but not so crowded that they shade the plants.
What fertilizer do Black Zebra tomatoes need?
Work compost or well-rotted manure into the bed before planting. Once flowers appear, switch to an organic fertilizer with moderate nitrogen and more phosphorus and potassium. Never apply raw manure, which can burn roots. Aim for a soil pH between 6.0 and 6.8.
Can I grow Black Zebra tomatoes in containers?
Yes. Use a pot of at least 5 gallons (19 L), though bigger is better, with drainage holes and a strong stake or cage. Containers dry out faster than garden beds, so check the soil daily in summer and feed regularly.
Final Thoughts
There is nothing quite like the flavor of a homegrown tomato. Black Zebra gives you that, plus a plant that is easy to raise and fun to look at. The recipe is short: start seed on time, harden the seedlings off properly, plant deep, stake early, water deeply and keep the leaves dry.
You don't need to do everything perfectly. A tomato plant is more forgiving than its reputation. Get the basics right, pick the fruit when it's ready, and share a few with the neighbors so they know what they're missing.
More Tomato Guides
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