The tomato - one of our best foods

By Al Lowe
Contributor

Apparently, the tomato first appeared in South America. These first ones had small yellow fruits, about the size of cherries, and were eaten by some of the native people. They were probably domesticated in Mexico. These wild varieties have a built-in resistance to many diseases, and their genes have been used in the development of many modern types.
The Tomato is related to the poisonous nightshade, belladonna, and others, and it itself was thought to be poisonous for a very long time. It was named the 'wolf-apple' and the 'death-apple', and people wouldn't have anything to do with it.
However, nowadays, the tomato is one of the most popular foods we have. As you already know, it is canned in many ways - soup, paste, simply whole tomatoes, and so on, and in many combinations with other veggies. It is fart away the most popular vegetable in home gardens.
Yield from tomatoes is really good, too. The plant in your garden can give you up to 6 pounds of fruit, or about 12 tons per acre, if cultivated properly. The overall yield in the United States is second only to corn.
The tomato plant itself has a lot of things going for it. It sends down deep roots and can be grown in almost desert conditions. In some places, tomatoes have to be watered only about every two weeks or so. Whenever tomato stems touch the ground, they develop more roots. The plants will easily grow to over 6 feet in height. They produce flowers in clusters, which turn into tomatoes in clusters, too.
When tomatoes are left on the ground, they very often rot, or develop moulds, so most folk hold them up with stakes, or trellises, or cages.
Tomatoes need anywhere from about 40 days to 60 days to ripen. As it starts to ripen, the fruit changes from green to whitish, and then later turns to the bright red we are all familiar with. It may be some other colour, though, say orange, yellow, white, even purple or striped. They may be big, the 'beefsteak' ones, to tiny, the cherry ones, or pear-shaped, long and skinny, and so on.
Tomatoes are way to grow. Most people who plant them in the home garden either buy plants from a greenhouse, or grow them in the cellar or on a window ledge. They are planted out in the garden when the weather gets warm (nights not much below 60F).
These fruits are good for you, too. They contain a substantial amount of vitamins A, B, and C. A medium sized tomato will contain 1/2 ounce of carbohydrates and an ounce of protein.
We used to get all of our tomatoes from the garden, or from the grower nearby. Nowadays, they are shipped from almost half the world - California, Florida, Mexico, Chile. However, those long distances mean that they are picked when they are still quite green.
They don't taste nearly as good as the ones out of your own garden. Just let them ripen right on the vine.
Are they ever good!