Cherry Tomatoes

Cherry tomatoes are small bite sized tomatoes perfecting for snacking! 

• Seed Harvesting: Easy 

• Planting Difficulty: Medium

Planting:

• Seeds should be planted 1/4" in the ground and 2'-3' apart.

• Require full sunlight with no shade, totaling 6-8 hours of sun.

• Need about 1 inch of water per week.

  • Water every 2-3 days to evenly moisten the soil.

• Can be planted in a container with about 1ft height and 1ft width.

  • Having a stake or cage to act as a support for the tomatoes to grow on would be helpful. 

• Grow successfully in US Hardiness Zones 2-11.

  • In the local zone, 6 in most areas, the time period is May-June for planting.

Growth:

• Germination takes about 7-10 days.

• Harvesting happens in 70 days.

• Grow to a height of 3'-4' feet.

• Annual, must be replanted every year.

Harvesting:

• There are multiple options of collecting seeds from tomatoes.

• All options require a ripe tomato.

  • Cut the tomato open and squeeze the pulp out, allowing it to dry, and separate the seeds.

  • When the pulp is dried, you can also rinse the pulp off and collect the seeds after.

  • Another option is to put the pulp in a glass container with some water. Shake it and let it sit for 5 days. The pulp and seeds will separate, with the seeds collecting at the bottom and the pulp at the top.

• When the seeds are collected, be sure to dry them or they will not grow properly.

  • Spread seeds on a paper towel or something else to absorb the water.

  • Store the seeds somewhere dry and dark until time to replant.

Domestication:

All tomato varieties are native to Northwestern South America. Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme predate any human domestication and first originated in Ecuador about 80,000 years ago. Eventually they would spread to Mesoamerica and humans who domesticated the plants would bring about some of the 16 varieties of the Solanum lycopersicum species.

Uses:

• Cherry tomatoes are very popular choices for a quick, healthy snack due to their smaller size.

• They are highly domesticated and are sold in most stores or seed mills.

• Cherry tomatoes have plenty of vitamins and can be prepared in many different ways.

  • Dipping in hummus, slicing them for a stir fry, tossing them in a fruit salad, and many more.

  • Here are plenty of recipes for delicious meals: https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/the-best-ways-to-use-cherry-tomatoes-gallery

Health Benefits:

• Contain plenty of vitamins C, A, and E.

• Have lycopene in them, which helps issues with inflammation, blood clotting, and bone and skin health.

Fun Facts:

• Cherry tomatoes get their name from their similar shape and size to cherries.

• The leaves of cherry tomatoes can be toxic to people, and the fruit itself is toxic to pets.

• Tomatoes have cultivars, which are subgroups of species that are slightly different from each other.

  • This is why cherry tomatoes have the extension to their name, var. cersiforme.

References:

Header image: https://www.homestead-acres.com/are-cherry-tomatoes-determinate-or-indeterminate/

Grant, B. L. (2021). Saving tomato seeds - How to Collect Tomato Seeds. Gardening Know How. https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/tomato/saving-tomato-seeds.htm

Lewis, D. (2016). The contentious history of the cherry tomato. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/contentious-history-cherry-tomato-180959420/

Razifard, H., Ramos, A., Della Valle, A. L., Bodary, C., Goetz, E., Manser, E. J., Li, X., Zhang, L., Visa, S., Tieman, D., van der Knaap, E., Caicedo, A. L. (2020). Genomic evidence for complex domestication history of the cultivated tomato in Latin America. Mol Biol Evol., 37(4), 1118-1132. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msz297.

WebMD Editorial Contributors. (2022). Health benefits of cherry tomatoes. WebMD. https://www.webmd.com/diet/health-benefits-cherry-tomatoes