Imagine yourself sitting down to a dinner of roasted potatoes, chicken, and a tomato salad. How fresh and nutritious does that sound? It just makes you crave those nice, summer days.
When you think about growing the potatoes and tomatoes yourself, you probably envision a garden bountiful with many types of vegetables. But what if you could just have one plant and still have potatoes and tomatoes?
It's possible now because of UK garden researchers!
Tomatoes and potatoes are part of the same plant family (Nightshade). Since they are from the same family, they are both made up of the same nutrients to grow their respective fruits and vegetables (since tomatoes are a fruit).
UK garden researchers have recently found a way to combine the tomato and potato plants, so one plant can produce the fruit and vegetable. This hybrid tomato/potato, named TomTatos, will grow small cherry tomatoes on the top, and then white potatoes underground.
That means you can use the tomatoes for salads, ketchup or in other recipes, and then use the potatoes underground, roasted in the oven, boiled, or cut up and fried for french fries. Actually, they have even called this new hybrid plant "Ketchup and Fries" because of the combination.
Unfortunately, gardeners won't be able to pick tomatoes and potatoes at the same time. Since the potatoes are underground, the plant would have to be uprooted to reach the potatoes.
About Hybrid Plants
Hybrid plants are those that were not naturally made. Researchers were able to combine seedlings, which then produced plants that were a cross between the two types of plants. This is how you can sometimes find hybrid tomato plants that will produce fruit that is 5 or even 10 times its size.
Are these hybrid plants just as good as those naturally occurring? Oftentimes, yes. There isn't anything chemical about them, unless the researchers add fertilizer to make them grow faster. If fertilizer is not chemically treated, the fruits are just as natural as the ones that grow in any of the tomato farms found across the world.
Tomato Growers and Hybrid Plants
Some tomato growers seek out hybrid plants because they want something unique for their garden. The seeds are usually found in specialty catalogs ordered by experienced gardeners. The TomTatos are were created in the UK, which means interested gardeners would need to locate the catalog in the UK to order them. Of course, once they become more popular, they will be much more accessible online.
Growing Your Favorite Tomato
It's tough to find a grocery store tomato you love and then ALSO find that tomato as a seed so you can grow your own. It's not tough if you love Tasti-Lee tomatoes though! They don't also grow potatoes but they are a delicious vine-ripened variety that is sure to please! If you'd like to grow your own, you can purchase seeds here: http://www.burpee.com/vegetables/tomatoes/slicer/tomato-tasti-lee-hybrid-prod003158.html?omn2pd=sh&catId=&
Article provided by Noelle Renee Allen
When you think about growing the potatoes and tomatoes yourself, you probably envision a garden bountiful with many types of vegetables. But what if you could just have one plant and still have potatoes and tomatoes?
It's possible now because of UK garden researchers!
Tomatoes and potatoes are part of the same plant family (Nightshade). Since they are from the same family, they are both made up of the same nutrients to grow their respective fruits and vegetables (since tomatoes are a fruit).
UK garden researchers have recently found a way to combine the tomato and potato plants, so one plant can produce the fruit and vegetable. This hybrid tomato/potato, named TomTatos, will grow small cherry tomatoes on the top, and then white potatoes underground.
That means you can use the tomatoes for salads, ketchup or in other recipes, and then use the potatoes underground, roasted in the oven, boiled, or cut up and fried for french fries. Actually, they have even called this new hybrid plant "Ketchup and Fries" because of the combination.
Unfortunately, gardeners won't be able to pick tomatoes and potatoes at the same time. Since the potatoes are underground, the plant would have to be uprooted to reach the potatoes.
About Hybrid Plants
Hybrid plants are those that were not naturally made. Researchers were able to combine seedlings, which then produced plants that were a cross between the two types of plants. This is how you can sometimes find hybrid tomato plants that will produce fruit that is 5 or even 10 times its size.
Are these hybrid plants just as good as those naturally occurring? Oftentimes, yes. There isn't anything chemical about them, unless the researchers add fertilizer to make them grow faster. If fertilizer is not chemically treated, the fruits are just as natural as the ones that grow in any of the tomato farms found across the world.
Tomato Growers and Hybrid Plants
Some tomato growers seek out hybrid plants because they want something unique for their garden. The seeds are usually found in specialty catalogs ordered by experienced gardeners. The TomTatos are were created in the UK, which means interested gardeners would need to locate the catalog in the UK to order them. Of course, once they become more popular, they will be much more accessible online.
Growing Your Favorite Tomato
It's tough to find a grocery store tomato you love and then ALSO find that tomato as a seed so you can grow your own. It's not tough if you love Tasti-Lee tomatoes though! They don't also grow potatoes but they are a delicious vine-ripened variety that is sure to please! If you'd like to grow your own, you can purchase seeds here: http://www.burpee.com/vegetables/tomatoes/slicer/tomato-tasti-lee-hybrid-prod003158.html?omn2pd=sh&catId=&
Article provided by Noelle Renee Allen