TZIMBALO SEEDS

Solanum caripense

COMPLETELY SOLD OUT FOR 2024!

Peculiar Solanum native to the west coast of South America. Rarely cultivated on a commercial scale, but foraged extensively. Produces many round striped fruits that take forever to ripen. But when they are ripe, the fragrance and flavor is wonderful: sweet and ambrosial, with a delicious subtle acidity. Very much worth eating by the handful.

On the YouTubes you will find that many people are tasting these fruits before they are ripe. Unripe, they are much more vegetal in flavor. Curiously umami, but not really anything I'd like to eat out of hand more than once. You must wait for the stripes on the fruit to become almost entirely black. At this point they will also waft a sweet fragrance that attracts nearby critters to eat them. In our garden fruits took months to ripen. Finally in early September we understood why anyone would bother growing these for food. Our joy was tempered somewhat by the loss of most ripe fruits to the local bunny population.

This species makes a great trap crop for potato beetles. Potato beetles really, really love these plants. I've never seen so many potato beetles at once, actually. The damage to the leaves did not seem to hamper fruit production, and in the end it was a boon to have several of these plants in 2020, because we had a bumper crop of potato beetles. Bien entendu, c'est 2020!

If your garden does not host potato beetles, the plants make beautiful container specimens. Attractive ferny foliage has more in common with a Lycianthes than a typical Solanum, spreading laterally and looking quite elegant, actually. Young plants indoors seemed perpetually unhappy, but once out in the warm sun they perked up and grew like gangbusters. A few plants survived the entire season in their 3" nursery pots without any protection or attention from me.

Start seeds indoors 8-10 weeks before the date of your last spring frost. Tuck seeds just below soil surface, or just press and cover with fine vermiculite. Mist generously and cover with plastic. Kept warm (around 85°F) and moist in bright light, seeds germinate in 2-3 weeks. Uncover promptly. Tiny seedlings are prone to damping off, so water from the bottom and provide plenty of air circulation. Keep an eye out for aphids and spider mites. Transplant seedlings once they have several sets of true leaves to individual 3" pots to grow on at warm room temperature and bright indirect light. Transplant outdoors once all danger of frost has passed.

In northern gardens, grow these plants in large containers on a sunny patio or in fully exposed well-drained soil far from other Solanum species, especially eggplant. Water just until established. Don't pamper plants too much or the foliage will become black and slimy.

Recommended for patient gardeners and for organic growers who understand the value of trap crops.

Packet contains at least 20 seeds.