Garden-grown Taste "Decoded" for Grocery Tomatoes
June 6, 2012
Tomato Genome Decoded, Will Seed Development of Tastier, Fleshier Fruits
Rebecca Boyle Popsci (May 30, 2012)
Past winter, spring and early summer seasons have been vast tomato wastelands for me. I've been spoiled by the homegrown flavor and texture of our backyard tomatoes for longer than I care to remember. Even blossom end rot and attacks by birds, insects and assorted other pests hasn't dampen my enthusiasm for the "real thing."
I rejoice for my non-gardening friends who know a good tomato when they taste one, now that Campari and Kumato tomatoes started appearing in local supermarkets. And now, researchers promise even greater choice. “We now know exactly what we need to do to fix the broken tomato,” says one tomato scientist.
What's even better news? It turns out that potato, pepper, petunia, tobacco and even coffee crops are direct tomato relatives; fleshy fruits such as melons, apples, strawberries and many more share genetic characteristics with tomatoes.
Who knows? I may even contribute my share of the $2 billion U.S. market for tomatoes once the snows fall.
Find the rest of the May 2012 articles we've compiled for you -- or more like this article -- by clicking on the links below.
Categories: May 2012; Need to Know
Topics: Food/Nutrition; Gardening
Tomato Genome Decoded, Will Seed Development of Tastier, Fleshier Fruits
Rebecca Boyle Popsci (May 30, 2012)
Past winter, spring and early summer seasons have been vast tomato wastelands for me. I've been spoiled by the homegrown flavor and texture of our backyard tomatoes for longer than I care to remember. Even blossom end rot and attacks by birds, insects and assorted other pests hasn't dampen my enthusiasm for the "real thing."
I rejoice for my non-gardening friends who know a good tomato when they taste one, now that Campari and Kumato tomatoes started appearing in local supermarkets. And now, researchers promise even greater choice. “We now know exactly what we need to do to fix the broken tomato,” says one tomato scientist.
What's even better news? It turns out that potato, pepper, petunia, tobacco and even coffee crops are direct tomato relatives; fleshy fruits such as melons, apples, strawberries and many more share genetic characteristics with tomatoes.
Who knows? I may even contribute my share of the $2 billion U.S. market for tomatoes once the snows fall.
Find the rest of the May 2012 articles we've compiled for you -- or more like this article -- by clicking on the links below.
Categories: May 2012; Need to Know
Topics: Food/Nutrition; Gardening