Volunteer Tomatoes Going Above and Beyond Expectations!

[virginiadear]

Last summer, I planted a type of cherry tomato---I don't recall its name.  I also planted "Sweet Olive" grape tomatoes, another type of cherry tomato.  Several of each got knocked or wind-blown to the ground; by the end of the season; they were bruised and cracked, and so I left them there, thinking they'd contribute something organic to the

Comments

[david_anderson]

They were hybrids, and their offspring don't breed true.

[liminalia]

This. I work for a place that breeds tomatoes, and open-pollinated tomatoes are highly variable unless you plant all the same kind and it's an heirloom.

[virginiadear]

Eh; new term, "open pollinated." Doubtless one that would be a beneficial addition to my vocabulary. More details, please?

[liminalia]

Pollinated in nature, by insects or wind, etc.; not hand-pollinated in a controlled setting and manner so one can know who the parents are with certainty. Bees may have carried pollen from a neighbor's large tomatoes as well as the possibility of your maters having large ancestors.

[virginiadear]

Ah; I see. Thank you!

[virginiadear]

Ah-HA! Thanks! (Their offspring are good-tasting, though! Better than the "true" hybrids from last year.)