Tomato
Tomato growing on a beach on
St Mary's, Isle of Scilly
Flowers and glandular flower stems
Fruits on plant growing as a casual on the beach
Pinnately-lobed leaf
Ripe and ripening fruits in a greenhouse
First prize (not me!)
Lycopersicon esculentum
Solanaceae
July to September
The casual escape is scattered throughout the country but
is slightly less common in the North.
See the BSBI distribution map for Tomato
It is a neophyte, which was introduced in the 1590s, and is
grown as a salad plant throughout the country, both
indoors and outdoors.
It has been known as a casual escape since the early
1900s.
It grows on waste ground, rubbish tips and close to
sewage works.
It has occasionally been found growing on the strand
line of beaches in Dorset.
The pictures shown here are from the upper zone of
a sandy beach and may have arisen from seeds from
discarded sandwiches.
Tomato is an introduced, scrambling, annual herb growing
up to 1m.
The flowers have 5 yellow petals, are approximately
2cm across and are pollinated by bumble bees.
The stamens form a conspicuous yellow cone protruding
from the centre of the flower.
The flower stems are covered in glandular hairs, which
have a characteristic smell and stain skin brown.
The fruits are globose, starting off green and turning
red on ripening.
The leaves are green and pinnately lobed.
The commercial growth of tomatoes in the UK is a huge
industry, especially now that the season is extended by
using greenhouses and polytunnels.
Pollination is no longer done by hand but by imported
commercially-bred bumble bees.
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