Fun facts
- A tomato is a fruit not a vegetable. This is because tomatoes have seeds and they grow from a flowering plant.
- There are more than 7,500 different types of tomatoes grow across the world.
- Tomatoes can be many different colours including yellow, pink, purple, black and even white.
- Tomato seedlings have been grown in space before!
- Tomatoes can be used in loads of different dishes and key cooking ingredients, including sandwiches, salads, pasta sauce, ketchup, chutneys and soup.
- Tomatoes are actually 95% water.
Where do we come from?
Tomatoes were first grown in Peru, where they were eaten by the Aztec Indians. Today they are grown and eaten all around the world. China is currently the world leader in tomato growing, closely followed by India, America, Turkey, Egypt, Iran and Italy.
Test yourself! Can you locate all of these countries on the map?
We are good for you!
Like all fruits and vegetables, tomatoes are low in sodium, calories and fat and they contain a lot of dietary fibre. But tomatoes are especially good for you because …
- They contain lots of vitamin C, which is good for your skin, bones and blood.
- They contain lots of vitamin K, which is good for healing wounds.
Grow your own at home!
Tomatoes are really easy to grow at home, and there are so many different types to choose from.
- Fill a small pot, nearly to the top, with compost and tap it so that it is level.
- Place the tomato seed on the surface.
- Cover the seed with compost.
- Place the pot on a warm and sunny windowsill.
- Once two seed leaves have forms, plant them out into bigger (5-8 cm) pots.
- Wait until late May or mid-June (when the risk of frost has passed) to transfer the plants from the pots, to the ground. At this point the plants should have formed their first flowers and the roots should fill the pots.
Vine tomatoes need to be supported by stakes or canes which have been firmly pushed into the ground. The plants will also need to be watered on a regular basis.
Did you know …
… La Tomatina is the biggest tomato fight in the world, which happens every year in the Spanish town of Bunol. Around 40,000 people throw over 150,000 tomatoes at each other!