Cherry Tomatoesare the small tomatoes used specially for putting whole in salads, or for snacking. Cherry tomatoes are tinier, juicier and sweeter than the usual variety of tomatoes. They are the popular variety of tomatoes worldwide and hence have a presence in a wide range of dishes. The best thing about these little treats is that they are remarkably easy to grow. They mature pretty quickly in temperate zones though.
Because of the fact that cherry tomatoes can be expensive at the grocery store, people opt to cultivate them at home, where they can grow wild in abundance and flourish akin to weeds under optimal conditions.As for their size, these tomatoes vary from pea sized up to where they tip over into small 'salad' type. It wont be wrong to say that they are usually very prolific. Some have been bred for high sugars as a snacking 'fruit'. They are very colorful as a whole tomato in a salad, and their size makes them ideally suited to this purpose.
History of Cherry Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes share with us a very brief history. Two Israeli scientists, Prof. Nachum Kedar and Prof. Haim Rabinowitch, are the ones who actually developed this variety in the 1973. These two scientists identified the genetic combination for slowing down the maturation and discovered a way for exploiting the genes so as to produce these tiny tomato varieties for us which are now popular as the Cherry tomatoes.
Some tips for growing Cherry tomatoes
The very first essential step for growing these tomatoes is to buy the plant seedling from the local nursery. What is to be kept in mind is that the plants should be planted after the frost has passed away. The heirloom variety or the pearl variety of cherry tomato can be an ideal option to start with.
The holes should be dig large enough to properly hold the base of the plant as it is a. The little seedlings should be placed properly into the digs in a manner that only the roots should be in the mud and not the whole plant; it should be at the ground level.
The seedlings will begin producing tiny yellow flowers within a few weeks. They will then mature and grow into cherry tomatoes. The tomatoes can be then picked when they become glossy and get an even evenly color on them.
This does not apply to streaked heirloom tomatoes. Some plants can yield a large volume of the smaller tomatoes during summers. In the winters, cherry tomatoes could need a greenhouse to flourish.When the fruits grow on the plants, they should be picked after their texture becomes midway between the soft and firm and their color becomes glossy.
Facts about Cherry Tomatoes
They are very good in salads and a range of other appetizers. This tomato variety is seen native to the Central America. These tomatoes are sweeter than the other regular garden tomatoes. They are grown popularly throughout the world. This tomato variety can be grown easily and quickly as compared to the other varieties. These tomatoes are good to be grown in the home gardens, as they are costly to purchase from the market. Under proper conditions at home, the fruits may flourish like the weeds. These tomatoes have green and the glossy red color.
These tomatoes can be used whole or cut in half. They can be enjoyed by roasting or grilling them, while others eat them raw as snack tomatoes. They work well when used in guacamole and salsas. The sweetness of cherry tomatoes can enhance the flavor of a wide range of foods.