Tomatoes are grown and consumed all over the world since they offer a myriad of health benefits, and a distinctive, tasty flavor.
“Tomatoes have a long history dating back thousands of years to around the time of 500 B.C. in Mexico, where they were a staple crop for the Aztecs and eaten along with beans and corn.
Aztecs and other peoples in the Mesoamerica area used the slightly sweet “fruit” in many diverse ways and even held tomatoes in high spiritual regard. Tomato seeds were believed to be “blessed with powers of divination.”
Tomatoes are one of those easy-to-use anti-inflammatory foods that luckily taste great, too. What are the health benefits of tomatoes?
According to the Department of Food Sciences at North Carolina State University, in regard to a study on tomato nutrition, “Tomatoes are the second most produced and consumed vegetable nationwide and ¬are a rich source of lycopene, beta-carotene, folate, potassium, vitamin C, flavonoids, and vitamin E.”
“ Tomato nutrition has a lot to offer, but rest assured home gardeners are raising this beloved crop for one main reason: Unbelievable, ripe-on-the-vine freshness that you just can’t get from store-bought versions.
If you’ve ever eaten a tomato straight from the garden and still warm from the sun, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Aside from that, tomatoes are fairly easily preserved through canning and freezing, meaning you can grow a bumper crop to enjoy throughout even the winter months.”
They are delicate, fragile, and special fruits and require special care to flourish. Tomatoes can be of several varieties, but are grouped into two main classes:
- Determinate varieties, also called bush tomatoes, which can grow up to 3 or 4 feet in height
- Indeterminate varieties, which can grow up to 12 feet in height, since they keep growing until they are killed by frost.
