Posts Tagged: breeders

Another Unwelcome Intruder

California's beekeepers not only worry about the varroa mite (aka Public Enemy No. 1), but the small hive beetle. As the state prepares for its...

The small hive beetle (black insect at left) spells trouble in a bee hive. The major problem here, though, is the larvae of a wax moth. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The small hive beetle (black insect at left) spells trouble in a bee hive. The major problem here, though, is the larvae of a wax moth. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Grafting Tomatoes

Call me old-fashioned, but the way I view tomatoes, any plant that survives a Vacaville summer and any fruit that clings to its vine long enough for me to pick is a hot commodity. However, after reading a March 7, 2013 article in USA TODAY, I discovered that change was taking root in the industry. With consumers looking for bigger and better, good-tasting, longer-producing tomatoes, breeders and growers are working overtime to combine the taste of heirlooms with the hardiness and production of hybrids. Disease and insect resistant, vigorous tomato rootstock is now the hot commodity. 

Of course, there’s a hefty price tag for a super tomato plant promising a double or triple yield. About $8 each. Plus some vines reach over a dozen feet or more. John Bagnasco, radio host of GardenLife, says, "Tomato grafting is the biggest thing to happen in gardening, probably in 20 years." With gigantic vines like that, I guess so.

For information on how and why tomato grafters do it, you can peruse online the above mentioned article by Chuck Raasch entitled “Graft and production: Super tomatoes pay off on the table.” Here’s the link:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/02/09/grafted-tomatoes-become-super-producers/1903799/

Tomato graft. (Photo of tomato grafting © www.new-ag.info)

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