SC - Tomato Theories

[Christine A Seelye-King]

> is the fact that all parts of the plant except the fruit are
>poisonous. <snip>
>Although I have no proof of it, I would suggest that the lush green 
>growth of young well tended tomatos was originally seen as a potential
>pot herb. Anyone using it as such would have become seriously ill or
>dead. <snip>
>Ras

Ok, here's my theory on tomatoes.  They are (as are potatoes and peppers)
related to the Deadly Nightshade plants.  The large, lovely beefsteak
tomatoes we are familiar with today are hybrids, that have been
genetically fine-tuned for the better part of this century.  I theorize
that the earlier fruits of this plant actually WERE poisonous, perhaps
more so to some than to others.  This might explain why some were able to
eat them, while the vast majority viewed them with suspicion and
considered them inedible.  That there were some with more tolerance than
others might also explain why anyone bothered to keep working with them
to get them to the state we know today. (Where there are still some who
cannot tolerate them.)  
Christianna

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