LITTLE ROCK — Once considered a poisonous plant whose fruit was called a “love apple”, the tomato has evolved to what is arguably the most popular or favorite vegetable.
The lowly tomato has come full circle since it was discovered in South America, some say by Cortez.
Others claim Christopher Columbus introduced the fruit to Europe.
And it is a fruit, even though almost everyone considers it a vegetable - a vegetable that is grown in gardens and patio pots and popularly in recent years hanging upside down from a plastic cylinder/bag.
Undoubtedly thousands of those “hanging gardens” were probably sold this year. The first one was seen in Gravette three summers ago when Louis and Evalyn Kirby grew those shiny red globes. The News Herald published a picture of the crop.
This year, driving around Gravette, those greenish(and yes, even a bright orange) cylinders can be seen on front porches, in yards, on decks and suspended from steel rods with “regular” tomato plants nearby. These photos show a few of those spotted locally. The contrast between cylinders is dramatic.
The Poison Fruit The tomato probably developed its poison label because it is a member of the Deadly Nightshade family. Its foliage is poisonous and the ripe fruit when placed on a pewter dish, once popular, would darken the metal, adding to its heinous reputation.
After introduction to Europe tomatoes were consumed in several countries but not until about 1600 were they were considered safe to eat in England.
They arrived in America several decades later.
There are more than 7,000 different varieties of tomatoes ranging from tiny grape-size, to cherry,up to the “big-boy” class which have been known to reach seven pounds. There are even small yellow pearshaped fruit, appropriately called pear tomatoes.
Because of its popularity as a vegetable/fruit everyone has a favorite way to enjoy tomatoes ranging from relish, to fried or dried. But nothing describes the round red globes better than enjoying them sliced: juicy, tart, flavorful as delectable additions to a meal.
Consider this: Arkansas has declared the “South Arkansas Vine Ripe Tomato” to be both the state fruit and vegetable. Whether it’s grown in a garden or a pot or from a hanging cylinder, a ripe red tomato is to be enjoyed.
Material for this article came from various publications, reference books and Wikipedia, the on-line encyclopedia, and there is ennough material to more than fill a page of this newspaper.
News, Pages 7 on 07/14/2010