Solanum lycopersicum
Rose de Berne Tomato, Berner Rose: originally from Switzerland, it is one of the most sought-after tomatoes among enthusiasts—and one of the most fragile. Its very thin skin, which makes it impossible to transport and therefore absent from market stalls, is precisely what gives it its renowned flavor. This is a tomato you have to grow yourself to truly appreciate.
Characteristics:
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Very thin skin: almost imperceptible in the mouth, but fragile—it withstands neither transport nor rough handling.
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Sweet, fruity flavor: low in acidity, highly aromatic, and regularly ranked among the best.
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Good size: approximately 400 g per fruit, pink then pastel red when fully ripe.
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Staggered ripening: it produces steadily throughout the summer rather than all at once.
Sowing advice:
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Exposure: full sun and warmth.
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Soil: deep, rich, loose, and well-drained, enriched with well-rotted compost.
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Method: sow from March under cover, at a minimum of 20 °C—below this temperature, the seeds will not germinate. Cover with 5 mm of soil. Transplant into pots when the seedlings have two true leaves. See how to sow your seeds.
Planting advice:
- Transplant after the last frosts, spacing plants 70 to 80 cm apart. Bury the stem up to the first leaves: tomatoes produce roots along the entire buried section, resulting in a more vigorous plant.
- This is an indeterminate variety: install a sturdy stake as soon as you plant it.
Care advice:
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Always water at the base, never over the foliage, preferably in the morning: water on the leaves provides an entry point for blight. Apply a thick mulch.
- Water very regularly and evenly: because of its thin skin, this variety is particularly prone to splitting after rain or watering following a dry period. Here, a thick mulch is more than just a convenience.
- Remove suckers and limit the plant to 5 or 6 trusses.
- Use a three- to four-year crop rotation.
Harvesting advice:
- Harvest carefully, supporting the fruit: its skin marks at the slightest impact. Eat it quickly, as it keeps for only a few days.
- Never refrigerate it, as this destroys its aromas.
Beneficial companion plants:
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Its flowers are pollinated by vibration: only bumblebees fully exploit them. Welcoming bumblebees directly improves your harvest.
- An heirloom, open-pollinated variety excluded from commercial trade because of its fragility: growing it helps keep it alive. See our heirloom tomatoes to sow.
Uses:
- Raw, sliced, with a drizzle of olive oil and nothing else—that is how it shows itself at its best. Cooking would spoil its delicacy.
Saving your own seeds:
Take the pulp from a beautiful, fully ripe fruit and leave it to ferment for two to three days in a little water—this step breaks down the gelatinous coating that inhibits germination—then rinse: the healthy seeds sink to the bottom. Dry them flat. See how to store your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Auvergne volcanoes, we choose reproducible, non-hybrid varieties, tested for their germination rate, sorted and carefully packaged, without any chemical treatment. Our belief: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
Too fragile for market stalls: a tomato you have to grow to truly appreciate.
