Allison Bowden

Vegetable Crops: Micro Tomato Report

4/25/11
There is a lot more to Micro-Tom plants, or Lycopersicon esculentum than I initially thought.
While they were created using breeding techniques by Jay Scott at the University of Florida
(Welbaum) with an initial intention being for home garden use, they have received minimal
attention in that arena.
Even now, knowing more about Micro-Tom plants, I am amazed by what they are and can do in
such a little package. They create much greater opportunities for many more people to enjoy
the delights of fresh, home grown tomatoes. Micro-Tom plants only grow to be _____ high.
Also, they are very well proportioned, in comparison to regular tomatoes, only smaller.
Interestingly enough their seeds are still the original size (Meissner).
Another remarkably convenient aspect of Micro-Tom plants is their ability to mature in 70-90
days. One grower/commenter from an online source stated that they were worried about their
Micro-Tom starts not growing fast enough. They then realized that they were growing
miniature plants! I really dont understand why everyone doesnt have hanging Micro-Tom
baskets on their front porch every summer- how fun, especially for young children.
What has ended up making Micro-Tom plants so revered has been their unexpected role in the
scientific community as guinea pig-plants. They are appreciated amongst this circle of people
for all the same reasons as home gardeners along with some other perks.
Micro-Tom plants are credited with enabling whole new possibilities in the study of tomatoes.
Labs are able to grow many more tomatoes in much less space, all in a shorter amount of time.
It is possible to get four generations of Micro-Tom plants in one year (Meissner).
Another interesting aspect about these little guys is what makes them so small. Their size
results from a combination of two recessive traits. It is suspected that Dwarf and Miniature are
the two responsible traits (Meissner). Because of this, they are quickly and easily manipulated
genetically for research purposes. Also, by being genetically similar in all other ways in regard
to major genes; it is easy to relay results back to forth to other tomato cultivars. With tomato
plants being of such great importance in the vegetable industry, the need to increase their
productivity and stability in the market today is of great interest. It is such a useful coincidence
how a little plant developed for peoples front porches can help in these efforts.
Other than size, Micro-Tom plants are the same as regular sized tomato plants. They are warm
season plants, and self-pollinated. Flowers have yellow petals with fused anthers that form a
pollen tube around the style and stigma. Flower movement releases pollen from the pollen

tube so that it falls onto the stigma. The fruit of the tomato is a large berry. In cross section,
there are two to twenty-five locules (chambers containing gel and seeds) with five to nine being
the most common (Welbaum).
I planted my tomato seeds rather late. My first reason for delay was that our house was very
cold this winter (water pipes froze several times). The fluctuating temperature was not ideal
for germination. Later, general procrastination set in. Here is what I observed during their
short life before this report was due.
I planted my seeds on April 13th in the soil that was provided. After I potted and saturated the
media, I planted the seeds on their sides about a half of an inch into the media. I then placed
the pot in a very sunny window. I did not notice any difference in what the seeds looked like in
comparison to other tomato seeds I have planted. The media provides an ideal situation for the
little seeds to germinate. The media is a sterile, well-drained environment. It also includes
some added fertilizer to reduce disease, increase growth and encourage healthy root
development. The first two seeds emerged after two days. A third sprouted a few days later.
After twelve days of emergence, the true leaves begin to appear from the first two plants. One
is twice the size of the other one. All the seedlings appear healthy and disease free. The
emergence variability is dependent (apart from human error) on vitality percentage and vigor.
I imagine that once they fruit, the little tomatoes will be delicious. Looking at pictures of the
fruits, they seem to be an ideal choice for wrapping in fresh basil leaves. It was interesting to
learn in the course that tomatoes skin is really clear and that it is the interior that is what
makes the coloring. I look forward to growing and enjoying these little tomato plants
throughout the summer.

WORK CITED
Meissner, R., Jacobson, Y., Melamed, S., Levyatuv, S., Shalev, G., Ashri, A., Elkind, Y. and
Levy, A. (1997), A new model system for tomato genetics. The Plant Journal, 12: 14651472.
doi: 10.1046/j.1365-313x.1997.12061465.x
Welbau, Greg.(2011) Lesson 14: Tomatoes. and Syllabus 2011. Hort 4264: Vegtable
Crops. 2011