The Undeniable Benefit of Choosing to buy an Organic/Heirloom Tomato over a Commercial Fruit.
The past few days have been spent pruning back the dead and dying leaves near the base of our tomato plants. Early last week, we discovered that many of our tomato plants were infected with what seems to be some variety of blight disease: an airborne, soil-borne, seed-borne disease that causes the leaves to yellow, then turn brown and crispy. In order to save the tomatoes, we had to remove the infected leaves and branches, and then apply an organic fungicide to treat and stop the spread of the disease. (We have nearly 150 tomato plants, minus a few that some pesky gophers stole!)
So why go to all the trouble? Why not plant only hybrid varieties that are disease resistant? Because tomatoes that are the product of generations of organic heirlooms are absolutely, undeniably OUT OF THIS WORLD- in size, in flavor, in texture! All they need is a little.. okay, maybe a LOT... of TLC to control any diseases that they might get to keep them healthy, happy, and producing. Imagine a melt-in-your-mouth, bright orange and yellow, slightly soft and juicy tomato sliced up on a plate, topped with fresh mozzerella slices, a sprinkle of fresh basil, drizzled with balsamic vinegar.
Now imagine a grocery store tomato. Uniformly red and perfectly round. If you didn't grow up around gardeners or farmers, this is the tomato you know. Sure, it looks real pretty, but what you might not know is that these commercial tomatoes were actually bred to look "perfect". And this breed actually produces 10-15% less sugar in the ripening process, leaving you with a dull, often tasteless tomato.. and who really wants that in an otherwise glorious caprese salad? No one!
So, even though my arms are stained a lovely shade of bright green, and I've been hand-healing sad tomatoes for the past week, I am extremely glad that we are an organic, heirloom-loving farm, because the TRUE perfect tomatoes are 1000% worth it- and I know when you taste them, you'll think so, too!
