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| Tomatoes | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 17 2018, 07:26 AM (39 Views) | |
| Cerwin | Mar 17 2018, 07:26 AM Post #1 |
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11 Pro Secrets for Growing the World’s Sweetest, Tastiest Tomatoes BY LINDA PARKER · PUBLISHED JUNE 17, 2017 · UPDATED MARCH 14, 2018 Is there a better feeling than eating a fresh tomato in the summer, or a delicious tomato salad made with love? It is hard to imagine a garden without tomatoes growing in it, and although tomatoes are not difficult to grow, there are some general rules you should respect in order to have the best homegrown tomatoes. Take a look at these 11 secrets and learn how to grow the tastiest tomatoes ever! Select flavorful varieties You have to remember that not every type of tomato is red, juicy, plump or flavorful as another. There are plenty of varieties of tomatoes. So, when you grow your own tomatoes you are not restricted by any conditions. Get the sweetest and the juiciest ones you can find or grow, for instance, you can grow acidic ones for salsa, sweet ones for salads, or fleshy ones for slicing and grilling. Some of the heirloom varieties that have the most amazing flavor are: Aunt Ginny’s Purple, Burpee’s Globe, McClintock’s Big Pink, Big Ben, African Queen and Brandywine. In hybrids: Glacier, Crimson Fancy, Beefy Boy, celebrity, Jet Star, Red Sun, Dona, and Scarlet Red. Grow varieties suitable for your area Not only your tomatoes should be chosen according to your needs and liking, but according to your climate and soil conditions as well. Some gardeners carry the seeds of their most wanted varieties along whenever they relocate, but they realize the tomatoes don’t taste the same in the new place. There are another differences such as: differences in soil pH, amount of rainfall, humidity, wind conditions. Therefore, look for varieties that will work well in your area, and try to find out what works best in that area. Start them early It is important to not be late when starting tomatoes. The last spring frost is the time when you should be using a guideline for seed starting and planting tomatoes outdoors. Sow the seeds at least eight weeks prior to the last frost, especially if you have a short growing season. When starting the seed, make sure the soil temperature in the seedling trays is between 70 F and 90 F. The seed germinate faster in warmth. When the small plants start to sprout, you should provide strong light from a sunny window or use artificial sunlight. It might take up to 1 month for true leaves to emerge. You can prick out the seedlings when they have a set of leaves. Then, plant them in separate containers and bury them up to the base of the cotyledon leaves. By doing this, they will develop more roots and grow into sturdy seedlings. Do not transplant seedlings into the garden before the danger of frost has passed and the soil has warmed up to 50 F or 55 F. If you avoid subjecting tomatoes to cold stress during their early life, you will have healthy tomato plants that will bear the best crop. Provide plenty of sunlight Tomato plants need at least 6 hours of sunlight in order to moderate fruit set, however, without a minimum of 8 hours they might not give the wanted results. The more sunlight you give to your tomatoes, the sturdier they will grow. If there are low light conditions, your tomatoes will be prone to pests and diseases, particularly fungal diseases. The flavor of the tomato depends by the amount of sunlight you will provide. You can also use artificial sunlight if you cannot provide enough sunlight, but they will need very bright sunlight in order to be able to compensate. Plant them in rich soil Another important thing you must have in consideration is soil. Tomatoes have high requirements when it comes to the supply of nutrients. They need rich soil and good quality compost. If you grow tomatoes in containers, use large ones and fill them with lots of organic materials including compost, manure, and leaf mold. Also include organic fertilizers like bone meal, blood meal, fish emulsion etc., in order to make sure they receive continuous nutrient supply. Another thing is to maintain a good drainage and aeration in the potting mixture by adding vermiculite or other materials. For some extra calcium and magnesium, mix some bone meal and Epsom salt, or crushed eggshells, and add them to your tomato plants. In order to balance the pH of the soil, you can use coffee grounds. Plant the tomato seedlings deep The tomato seedlings should be about 6 inches tall before they are transplanted into garden beds. They should be hardened off over a week by exposing them to the sun and gradually increasing the amount of exposure. Make them get used to spending the entire day outside. The planting holes should be deep enough to take the root ball and part of the stem. If you seedling is too tall, you should remove the lower branches. Gardeners in colder areas with short growing season, plant seedlings horizontally in shallow trenches. This helps the plant to develop roots all along the stems quickly, and take advantage of the warmth of the top soil layers. Provide extra warmth As we mentioned above, tomatoes love warmth, preferably in the range of 60-80 F during the day, and 50-55 F during the night. If you turn up the heat on the tomatoes, they will taste better and give flavorful fruits. Some gardeners use black plastic mulch on the tomato beds before they plant the seedlings. This warms the soil faster. Another gardeners, use aluminium foil to reflect more sunlight on the plants and protect them from some pests too. Aim for luxurious growth Tomato plants will appreciate your attention and will reward you for the efforts with delicious and sweet fruits. They need rich, well-tuned soil that allows good root run. Healthy tomato plants should have fat stems with closely placed nodes. You should always stake your tomato plants from the start. Too much nitrogen can produce vegetative growth that doesn’t translate to more flowers or fruits. If you find your vigorously growing plants not producing flowers, pinch their tips and add some phosphorous fertilizer. Water stress Tomatoes need plenty of water, especially while they are growing. However, this doesn’t mean you should water them every day. Deep watering is the best option. You should test the soil dampness by removing the topsoil with a shovel. If plants wilt during the hottest part of the day is okay, but if wilting continues during the evening, it means water stress. This can make the plant prone to fungal diseases. After your tomatoes have formed, reduce the watering. Trim tomato plants to get larger, tastier tomatoes You should trim indeterminate varieties to turn their attention to fruit production. Pinch the tips of all main branches at the beginning of summer. If tomato plants develop small branches on their main branches, remove them in order to channel the resources towards the good branches. Also, pick up the lower leaves that don’t receive sunlight since they are a burden to the plant. Sweeten the soil to sweeten the tomatoes Tomato plants are good in slightly acidic soil, yet, after the fruits start ripening, you should increase the alkalinity of the soil in order to get sweeter tomatoes. Add some wood ash to raise the pH levels. You can also apply limestone/dolomite to increase the calcium and magnesium level in your soil. Home gardeners use baking soda to reduce the tartness of tomatoes. Edited by Cerwin, Mar 17 2018, 07:30 AM.
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:06 AM Post #2 |
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Problem type: Environmental Name of problem: Tomato leaf roll Plant name(s): Tomato Symptoms / Characteristics: The rolling or curling of tomato leaves can be a symptom of environmental stress, herbicide damage or viral infection. Physiological leaf roll may be associated with environmental stresses such as excess moisture, excess nitrogen, and transplant shock. Leaf roll may also be related to moisture conservation during periods of extreme heat and drought. Improper cultural practices such as severe pruning and root damage during cultivation can also cause leaf roll symptoms. Physiological leaf roll involves an initial upward cupping of the leaves, followed by an inward roll. In severe cases, the leaves roll up until the leaflets overlap. Symptomatic leaves become thickened and leathery. Symptoms typically appear first in lower leaves but may spread to the entire plant, depending on the severity of the condition. Leaf roll is more commonly associated with staking varieties of tomato, such as "Early Girl" and "Big Boy", rather than bush types. In most cases, the condition is temporary and will have little or no affect on plant growth or fruit production. Tomato leaf roll symptoms may also be a direct result of herbicide injury. 2,4-D is a hormonal herbicide commonly used on lawns to control broadleaf weeds such as dandelion and chickweed. Tomato plants that have been exposed to 2,4-D drift exhibit downward curling of the leaves and overall deformed, twisted growth. Leaf veins are light coloured and very prominent. The vein pattern may be more parallel in symptomatic leaves. Affected stems turn whitish, thicken and often split. Tomatoes may be deformed or "catfaced". Plant recovery depends on the severity of the exposure. Tomato leaf roll may be associated with viral infection. Tomato yellow leaf curl virus is transmitted by sap-sucking insect vectors and causes leaf roll symptoms in infected tomato plants. Purplish veins on the leaf underside will help to distinguish this virus from physiological leaf roll and herbicide injury. In addition, new leaves appear chlorotic (pale green) and cupped, and overall plant growth becomes stunted. Early infection often inhibits fruit production. Tomato mosaic virus has also been known to cause leaf roll symptoms. Other symptoms of this virus include mottled leaves and smaller than normal leaflets. Infected fruit appears brown on the inside and blotchy on the outside Control / Preventions: First of all, it is extremely important to examine the symptomatic plants and evaluate the environmental conditions to determine the true cause of the disorder. Once a cause has been determined, an appropriate control measure can be administered. If an entire mass of plants is exhibiting leaf roll symptoms, then the cause is more likely to be environmental stress or herbicide injury. If symptomatic plants are scattered throughout a planting, the disorder is more likely to be of viral origin. A sudden appearance of symptoms is usually indicative of herbicide injury or perhaps environmental stress, whereas a progression of symptoms over time usually indicates viral infection. Spreading of symptoms throughout the planting will also indicate virus transmission by insect vectors. Disorders related to environmental stress and herbicide injury cannot be transmitted from a symptomatic plant to a healthy one. Preventing physiological leaf roll requires effective water management and a balanced fertilizer program. Avoid overwatering and irrigate during periods of dry weather. Make sure that plants are properly hardened off before transplanting into the garden. Avoid severe pruning of indeterminate (staking) varieties and minimize root damage if cultivating around the roots. Plant growth and fruit production will not be affected if the problem is recognized early and the contributing factor is amended. Once herbicide injury has occurred, the damage is irreversible. However, plants that have experienced limited exposure will likely recover and new growth will be normal. Never apply 2,4-D (or any herbicide) in windy or dead calm conditions. Contrary to popular belief, dead calm conditions are often associated with a phenomenon known as temperature inversions. Spraying under such conditions can actually increase drift distance. Always follow manufacturer's directions and recommendations regarding application rates, timing, equipment and safety. Plants infected with tomato yellow leaf curl virus cannot be cured. For most viruses, e.g. the tomato mosaic virus, removing and destroying symptomatic plants effectively prevents further transfer to healthy plants. However, transmission of the tomato yellow leaf curl virus from an infected tomato to a healthy one is uncommon. Source plants are often wild. Keeping growing areas weed-free effectively reduces virus transmission. Removal of symptomatic leaves, stems and fruits will not eliminate the virus from otherwise healthy looking plants and may only lead to further spread via infested tools, etc. Thoroughly disinfect tools and equipment that may have come in contact with the diseased plants. Sap on infested tools and plant parts can be an ideal way to transmit the virus from one plant to another. Controlling large populations of aphids or other sap-sucking insects may help to reduce virus transmission to healthy tomato plants. Avoid unnecessary injury during pruning and cultivating. Keeping the tomato plants as healthy as possible will build their immunity and make them less susceptible to insect attack. Relevant web sites: www.agr.gc.ca/cal/epub/1479e/1479-0021_e.html gardenline.usask.ca/pests/tomato.html Other references: Howard, R.J., Garland, J.A. and Seaman, W.L., editors. 1994. Diseases and Pests of Vegetable Crops in Canada. The Canadian Phytopathological Society and the Entomological Society of Canada, Ontario. 554 pages. MacNab, A.A., Sherf, A.F. and Springer J.K. 1983. Identifying Diseases of Vegetables. The Pennsylvania State University College of Agriculture, University Park, Pennsylvania. 62 pages. |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:17 AM Post #3 |
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Truly purple tomato on its way? Research groups around the world are working on breeding truly purple tomatoes, packed full of anthocyanins, and reports suggest that such a finished fruit may only be a few years away. Currently leading the way are Professor Jim Myers and graduate student Peter Boches from Oregon State University and Oregon State alum Dr. Peter Mes, now working as a tomato breeder for Sakata Seed America in Florida. Dr. Mes said that while others are working along similar lines, he and Prof. Myers are working on a different subset of genetics compared to others. "This makes our material, for the moment, unique, though that won't last. At least two other private companies here in the USA are working on this idea, and are not far behind in terms of genetics," he said. Tomatoes are already known to contain lycopene, a carotenoid thought to reduce risk of prostate cancer and fight heart disease. Anthocyanins are the source of the blue, purple and red colour of berries, grapes and some other fruits and vegetables. These pigments also function as antioxidants, believed to protect the human body from oxidative damage that may lead to heart disease, cancer and ageing. While these natural ingredients have been used as colouring agents in foods for some time, Frost & Sullivan estimates that there is significant potential for growth in polyphenol use as health ingredients. Revenues for the overall European polyphenols market in 2003 were thought to be worth $99 million (?77.88m), with red fruit anthocyanins, leading market expansion alongside green tea flavonoids, and grape and olive polyphenols. Recent reports have suggested that Oregon State and Sakata Seed are in competition to put the finishing touches to the eggplant coloured tomato, but Dr. Mes said: "While it is true we are both working on the idea, I wouldn't say we are in competition: the market for this tomato has not yet been established; it is at present a novelty." Tomatoes with increased anthocyanin levels are already available, but these tend to be blotchy and not totally purple. The routes to producing nutritionally-enhanced fruit have been both the traditional crossbreeding methods and also genetic modification. Professor Myers and Dr. Mes are following the traditional crossbreeding approach, taking advantage of genes from wild-type purple tomatoes, which are actually poisonous. During the 1960s and 70s the wild purple tomatoes were crossbred with modern edible tomatoes, producing hybrids with increased anthocyanin content that are safe for consumption. The main challenges related to the anthocyanin-rich tomato are said to be shape, yield, and flavour. "Flavour is a tough one," said Dr. Mes. "Everyone likes a different tasting tomato. That work is ongoing, and is part of the intended first release from the breeding program." Dr. Mes told this website that he has measured anthocyanin content of up to 300 micrograms per gram fresh weight in the skin of these tomatoes. "That is not necessarily the highest it can go," he said. However, compared to blueberries, the anthocyanin content, gram for gram, is said to still be higher in the berries than the purple tomatoes. "That said, the anthocyanins and other flavonoids found in these tomatoes are unique and may have health benefits not found in blueberries," said Mes. While it is well known that lycopene is more bioavailable when the tomatoes are processed and/or cooked, questions about bioavailability of the anthocyanins still remain, said the researchers, and the effects of processing are not known. "Anthocyanin bioavailability is limited, period," said Dr. Mes. "There is a lot of recent research into this; suffice it to say, it varies by individual anthocyanin. "The anthocyanins in tomatoes do appear to be heat-stable," he added. "However I do not know if processing improves the bioavailability or not." In Europe, 8.5 million tons of tomatoes are cultivated annually with 1.5 million tons sold directly to the consumer and 7 million processed for products such as ketchup and sauces. But the global tomato processing industry has seen prices tumble in recent years, and although this situation is starting to improve, growing competition from China - now the third largest producer - means many players will be looking for ways to add value to the fruit. And how much value would the increased anthocyanin add? "I would anticipate this sort of tomato, being a specialty item, to sell in a similar fashion to clam-shell tomatoes currently on the market," said Dr. Mes. "But you are asking me to speculate, and this is outside my realm of influence and control." A study by BASF recently reported that consumption of GMO tomatoes with high flavonoid contents could reduce the levels of a protein in a mouse that is associated with inflammation, diabetes and heart disease in humans (Journal of Nutrition, Vol. 136, pp. 2331-2337), and Dr. Mes confirmed that a British research group is working along the same lines |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:19 AM Post #4 |
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A courageous stunt proves tomatoes are not poisonous Tomato Lore and Legend Up until the end of the eighteenth century, physicians warned against eating tomatoes, fearing they caused not only appendicitis but also stomach cancer from tomato skins adhering to the lining of the stomach. Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson of Salem, New Jersey had brought the tomato home from abroad in 1808. He had been offering a prize yearly for the largest fruit grown, but the general public considered the tomato an ornamental plant rather than one for food. As the story is told, it was Colonel Johnson who on September 26, 1820 once and for all proved tomatoes non-poisonous and safe for consumption. He stood on the steps of the Salem courthouse and bravely consumed an entire basket of tomatoes without keeling over or suffering any ill effects whatsoever. His grandstanding attracted a crowd over over 2,000 people who were certain he was committing public suicide. The local firemen's band even played a mournful dirge to add to the perceived morbid display of courage. Johnson's public stunt garnered a lot of attention, and North America's love affair with the tomato was off and running. By 1842, farm journals of the time were touting the tomato as the latest craze and those who eschewed it as "objects of pity. |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:19 AM Post #5 |
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Is the tomato a fruit or a vegetable? Botanically-speaking, the tomato is a fruit and can be further classified as a berry since it is pulpy and has edible seeds. Most of us use the tomato as we do vegetables, primarily in savory dishes. In 1893, an importer claimed the tomato as a fruit in order to avoid vegetable import tariffs imposed by the United States. This dispute led to the Supreme Court ruling for taxation purposes that the tomato be classified as a vegetable, since it was primarily consumed in the manner of a vegetable rather than a fruit which was usually used in desserts. Other botanical fruits classified as vegetables include squash, cucumbers, green beans, corn kernels, eggplants, and peppers |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:20 AM Post #6 |
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Once considered poisonous, the tomato is now a favorite food Tuh-MAY-toh or Tuh-MAH-to? Pronunciation doesn't matter when it comes to this fabulous nutritious fruit known as a vegetable. It's hard to believe that such a widely-used food source was once considered deadly poisonous. Available year-round in fresh and preserved forms, there is no shortage of uses for this versatile "vegetable." Tomato history French botanist Tournefort provided the Latin botanical name, Lycopersicon esculentum, to the tomato. It translates to "wolfpeach" -- peach because it was round and luscious and wolf because it was erroneously considered poisonous. The botanist mistakenly took the tomato for the wolfpeach referred to by Galen in his third century writings, ie., poison in a palatable package which was used to destroy wolves. The English word tomato comes from the Spanish tomatl, first appearing in print in 1595. A member of the deadly nightshade family, tomatoes were erroneously thought to be poisonous (although the leaves are poisonous) by Europeans who were suspicious of their bright, shiny fruit. Native versions were small, like cherry tomatoes, and most likely yellow rather than red. The tomato is native to western South America and Central America. In 1519, Cortez discovered tomatoes growing in Montezuma's gardens and brought seeds back to Europe where they were planted as ornamental curiosities, but not eaten. Most likely the first variety to reach Europe was yellow in color, since in Spain and Italy they were known as pomi d'oro, meaning yellow apples. Italy was the first to embrace and cultivate the tomato outside South America. The French referred to the tomato as pommes d'amour, or love apples, as they thought them to have stimulating aphrodisiacal properties. In 1897, soup mogul Joseph Campbell came out with condensed tomato soup, a move that set the company on the road to wealth as well as further endearing the tomato to the general public. Campbell may have made tomato soup popular, but the first recipe is credited to Maria Parloa whose 1872 book The Appledore Cook Book describes her tomato chowder. The high acidic content of the tomato makes it a prime candidate for canning, which is one of the main reasons the tomato was canned more than any other fruit or vegetable by the end of the nineteenth century |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:21 AM Post #7 |
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Are vine-ripened tomatoes really ripened on the vine? Vine-ripened does not mean they were picked when in full color, as one might assume. It simply means they were left on the vine a tad longer, only long enough to show a minute changing of green to color (known as Stage 2 -- often not even enough to be considered a blush!) at the blossom end. If you're paying more for vine-ripened, you're not getting much better than those picked when fully green. |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:22 AM Post #8 |
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Supermarket tomato's even colour comes at expense of taste![]() A genetic mutation introduced into tomatoes to make them ripen more uniformly might have inadvertently reduced some of the sugar content that makes them taste good, a team of researchers from the U.S., Spain and Argentina have found. In traditional and heirloom tomatoes, the green colour of an unripe fruit is not uniform, with darker shades of green concentrated around the stem and lighter shades at the bottom. That means by the time they arrive on store shelves, they are equally unevenly coloured — though in shades of red, not green. Beginning about 70 years ago, however, tomato growers, together with breeders and seed companies, tried to remedy this uneven colouring by creating varieties of tomatoes that are a uniform light green at the time of harvesting and that ripen to an evenly distributed red en route to the grocery store. Their intentions were not entirely aesthetic and had much to do with improving harvesting techniques, said University of California Davis plant scientist Ann Powell, the lead author of the study, published online Thursday in the journal Science. "By having a uniform colour when they're green, it's easier to look at a field of tomatoes and see how mature they are — the entire surface of the fruit is one colour, and that colour is actually a little bit lighter than the leaves. So it's a little bit easier to say, 'Oh, OK, these guys are at this stage, and we need to harvest in three days'," Powell said. But what Powell and her colleagues found is that by manipulating the gene responsible for the intensity and pattern of the green colour in unripe tomatoes, the breeders inadvertently disabled a protein that regulates that gene and helps optimize photosynthesis. The elimination of the protein got rid of the dark green colour around the stem that growers didn't want, but it also reduced the amount of sugars and lycopene (an antioxidant responsible for a tomato's bright-red colour and that has possible health benefits), which are produced during photosynthesis. To reach their conclusions, Powell and her colleagues first narrowed down which gene was behind the uniform light green colouring of modern cultivated tomatoes by using the recently sequenced tomato genome and by crossing wild and cultivated tomato varieties. They then found that, key to the proper functioning of that gene, called SlGLK2, was a protein or transcription factor that ensures the gene produces the most optimal and robust chloroplasts in the leaves and fruit of the tomato plant. Chloroplasts are the specialized parts of plant cells where photosynthesis takes place. They contain the chlorophyll pigment that with the help of light and water creates the green colour of unripe fruit and produces the sugars that accumulate in the tomato as it ripens and that contribute to its flavour. "Making a chloroplast, there's lots of parts to it, so the transcription factor will make sure that everybody shows up in the right amount on the right day in the right place to get the whole chloroplast put together," Powell said. That didn't happen when the protein was disabled in the mutated gene and, as a result, the chloroplasts in the tomato fruit were fewer in number, smaller and less effective, producing fewer sugar and lycopene molecules. Breeders who created the mutation had little reason to suspect their manipulations would affect taste, Powell said, since the bulk of sugars in the tomato are produced during photosynthesis in the leaves, not the fruit, and are only later transferred to the fruit. "The breeders didn't deliberately set out to change the sugars," Powell said. "This was a trait that had to do with the fruit when they were green, and there was really not any good reason that it would make much difference for ripe fruit, because everybody knew that most of the sugars in the fruit come from photosynthesis in the leaves." The mutated tomatoes still get their fair share of sugars since photosynthesis is still taking place in the leaves, and since the leaves have a second copy of the colour gene that is still able to synthesize the protein. "In the tomato leaf — just like every other leaf — there are two genes, GLK1 and GLK2, and they are redundant. So in most leaves, you can knock out one of them, and the other one picks up the slack, and everything goes along just fine," Powell said. "What was surprising was to see in green fruit, that, in fact, only one of them was expressed so, therefore when that one was knocked out, nobody was there to pick up the slack." The research suggests that by increasing the levels of the protein in the tomato fruit, breeders may be able to get chloroplast production back on track and increase the amount of sugars produced and improve taste. But Powell warns that there are many factors other than sugar that determine the flavour of a tomato. In that sense, the researchers' findings won't automatically translate into better-tasting tomatoes at the supermarket. "Flavour is a very complex process," she said "There are many, many compounds in tomatoes that contribute to flavour …[and] flavour is also strongly influenced by how the tomatoes are grown — if they're grown in large production settings, if they're grown with certain fertilizer regimes or watering schemes … and, in fact, that sort of environmental condition of how the tomato is grown may trump whatever genetic changes are influencing flavour, too. "So, this is not at all going to make an instant cure for making good-flavoured tomatoes, but it probably is one of the contributors to making tomatoes more flavourful." An ideal solution, Powel said, might be to find a way to manipulate the protein levels so that they produce a uniform dark green tomato, which would still give growers the benefit of easily spotting when fruit is ready to harvest but would also taste good. Upping the amount of GLK protein in tomatoes might also be useful in the tomato processing industry, which requires processed tomato products to have high sugar content. "If you start off with tomatoes that have more sugars to begin with, then these companies have to do less cooking, less handling. It's cheaper and less energy input," Powell said. |
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| Cerwin | Mar 19 2018, 08:23 AM Post #9 |
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Avoiding Tomato Blight In Your Organic Garden In 2009, Pennsylvania experienced a terrible problem with Late Blight on tomatoes. Many gardeners and farmers lost their entire crop to this disease. Some blamed blighted plants bought at big box stores, but most likely it was simply due to a very rainy and cool growing season. Now that it's about time to plant this year's tomatoes, how can you guard against blighted plants again? The fungus that causes blight can overwinter on foliage, so you must destroy any leftover infected plants from last season. By destroyed, I mean burned or put out with the garbage, not composted. If you let any diseased plants lay in your garden bed, do not plant your tomatoes in that area this year. Plant them at the opposite side of your yard, however big it may be. One blighted garden tomato plant can spread the fungus spores for miles and ultimately infect entire communities. Additional preventive steps you can take: Plant a number of heirloom varieties. Heirloom plants have survived for generations, sometimes hundreds of years, so they may have natural resistance to many diseases. Additionally, planting a number of different varieties reduces the likelihood that your entire crop will become contaminated. Change the way you water your plants. This is the most important step. Most blight fungus starts on the leaves and stem of the tomato plant. Keep these parts of the plant dry - water the root areas only and only when necessary. You're always better off giving your plants a good soaking once per week instead of watering them lightly a number of times during the week. You might want to consider switching to drip irrigation or soaker hoses for your watering. These methods also conserve water. Lastly, be aware of early signs of blight and other diseases and take the appropriate steps to alleviate the symptoms if they appear. Check with your local extension service for any early reports of blight and if you're not familiar with the symptoms, there are many excellent resources online, such as Penn State University's College Of Agricultural Science. |
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