Tomato Tidbits

Tomatoes – Fruit or Vegetable? What’s the Verdict?

Many of you have heard the question as to whether tomatoes are a fruit or vegetable and have probably heard conflicting as to which is the case. Which is it? Well, the answer goes all the way back to 1893. It seems that imported vegetables at the time had a 10% tariff placed on them. Imported fruits, on the other hand, had no such tariff. A man by the name of John Nix (a Manhattan wholesaler) was fed up with the import tax, so after having a tomato shipment from the Caribbean taxed, he filed suit against an individual at the Port of New York claiming tomatoes were a fruit, not a vegetable. Therefore, they should be exempt from the tax. Due to current definitions regarding fruits and vegetables at the time, Nix lost. Basically, the court ruled that those items grown in gardens for use during the meal, either cooked or raw, and eaten with the main entree of the meal, were considered to be vegetables. This, of course, included tomatoes. Those eaten with or as part of a dessert were considered to be fruit. Today, this seems like an insignificant court case, but at the time, it was considered important enough to reach the U.S. Supreme Court. A major unstated and resultant aspect of the lawsuit became one of individuals should have gardens and grow their own tomatoes; thus, they could significantly lower their cost. Apparently, at some later point, the tariff was dropped, but it was reinstated in 1937 by the League of Nations. Once again, the tomato was declared to be a vegetable. Today, the United Nations Standard International Trade Classification and nutritionists list the tomato strictly as a vegetable. Botanists, however, consider them a fruit, because a fruit is a ripened flower ovary and contains seeds.

Pruning Tomato Plants

Tomato gardeners have the same dilemma every year; in addition to keeping the bottom 18” clear of branches, they wonder if the plants need be pruned. First of all; it’s not necessary. On the other hand, pruning does enable larger tomatoes to grow, although there will be fewer of them. Generally speaking, a plant produces X weight of tomatoes. You can have fewer larger ones or more that are smaller! Pruning is said to improve flavor and also helps stop excessive growth. As for when to begin pruning, suffice it to say plants must be at least one-foot tall, though preferably two feet. Prune early in the morning on a non-rainy day. There’s less chance of spreading disease. Most pruning involves removing sucker branches. Regular branches tend to be horizontal. A sucker branch comes out at the base of the branch at roughly a 45° angle. Ironically, it’s less of a shock to the plant to just pinch of the sucker tip rather than clip at the base. There’s another type of pruning that few, including me, have the courage to use. This is root pruning. You stick a spade in the ground a few inches out from the plant bas, severing outstretched roots, forcing the plant to mature. Use this method when fruit has developed but not ripened. A final method is top pruning, which is done roughly a month before first frost. Clipping the plant top above the last flower roughly a month before first frost forces the plant to mature unripened fruit on the vine. When should you NOT prune? With determinate tomato plants, remove early suckers, but later, don’t prune above the first flower cluster, as this will reduce produce volume. Also don’t prune in really hot weather to avoid sunscald. Finally, never cut the main stem except when top pruning.