World’s Largest Tomato
By Michelle Fabio
Ever look at some of your larger tomatoes and wonder if they’d be in the running for the Guinness Book of World Records?
Well unless they’re over 7 pounds, 12 ounces—yes folks, that’s a good-sized newborn baby—you’re out of luck.
Gordon Graham of Edmond, Oklahoma, holds the honor of growing the world’s largest tomato, which he harvested from his backyard greenhouse back in 1986.
Graham grew it on the theory that if he kept letting the plant get bigger, it’d be strong enough to hold, you guessed it, a big tomato.
And the theory paid off, although not before a storm blew over the entire 12-14 foot vine into his cantaloupes. He gave up on the tomato plant, but the future world’s largest tomato had other ideas and just kept growing on its own until one day, it came time to free it from the vine.
In fact, the entire plant became record-setting when it grew to 53 feet and 6 inches, the longest tomato vine ever grown.
Graham was honored for his efforts by Miracle-Gro, who presented him with an identical in size, weight, and shape epoxy replica of his perishable feat; he jokes that it’s great fun traveling through airports with it, as it never ceases to confound personnel.
Not surprisingly, he also became the man to beat in Miracle-Gro’s $100,000 tomato-growing contest, but the closest competitors didn’t even come within a pound of Graham’s formidable fruit; the contest has since been discontinued, so now your only hope is to leap right into the hallowed halls of Guinness.
Best of luck!
September 5th, 2007 at 4:11 am
Wow! Now THAT is what I call a tomato! Seriously, if anyone follows my tips to growing a veggie garden at my blog grows a tomato that big, that would be absolutely amazing!
Was this a review in Guinness world records or did you find it somewhere else?
September 5th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
Interestingly, I couldn’t find info on this on the official Guinness site, but there are various news articles on it all over the Internet–and one of them says the grower believes his CB radio is partially responsible for such a looooong vine.
The plants closer to it grow larger than the ones that are farther away.
So perhaps that’s another tip
September 9th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
Hello tomato growers. This is Matthew Barcia. This past summer I helped organize NY Newsdays first tomato challenge. No I didn’t win any prize, however i grew a 1 pound 9 ounce Belgian Giant tomato. I did receive satisfaction of the several hundred Long Island tomato growers who challenged me.
September 10th, 2007 at 5:10 am
Wow Matthew! May not have been a prizewinner, but that sure is one big tomato! Congratulations!
September 12th, 2007 at 8:31 am
Hi Michelle. Greetings from Sydney, Australia.
You may like to read a story about the world’s second-largest tomato, just posted at http://engdev.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?no=380352&rel_no=1
Best wishes, Eric.
September 12th, 2007 at 9:59 am
GREAT article Eric! I can’t believe that last year someone came so close!
Thanks so much for sharing
August 18th, 2008 at 9:10 am
On August 16, 2008, this great tomato grower married Heather.
August 18th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Congrats Matt!
August 27th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
hi i just took my biggest tommato ever to the postoffice and had it weighed,, it weighed in at 1 lb.10.6 oz, it is a german original tommato not a hybred, im saving seeds from it and am going to try for the record next year have a great day marvin
August 28th, 2008 at 3:34 am
Congrats on the tomato! The post office workers must’ve been quite surprised to see what you bringing in to be weighed
September 25th, 2008 at 2:30 am
Here’s a 4-pounder my dad just pulled from his garden.
http://img254.imageshack.us/my.php?image=n50357050744092146298ll7.jpg
September 25th, 2008 at 3:43 am
WOW! Awesome Fad! Thanks so much for sharing
April 27th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
[...] If I’m Ragu spaghetti sauce, I’m holding a Guinness Book of World Record tomato growing contest. If I’m Park Seeds, I’m sending a free CFL with every purchase of $10 or more of my [...]
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:21 pm
The summer of 2009 was Long Islands worst tomato season.
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:22 pm
This past summer 2009 I had my worst tomato growing season.
November 20th, 2009 at 10:52 am
Wow that is a big tomato.
May 21st, 2010 at 9:29 am
Just planted my tomatoes. I’m aspiring to “big” things!
July 26th, 2010 at 5:09 pm
I JUST HARVESTED THE BIGGEST TOMATO OUT OF MY FARM MY SON FOUND IT AND I THOUGHT IT WAS A JOKE MY WIFE PLAYED ON ME …….I SURE WASN’T I WEIGHED IN AT 6LB’S AND 3OZ’S DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT THE RECORD IS? LATER I’LL PUBLISH PICTURES I’VE TOOK MANY OF THEM……
August 7th, 2010 at 10:13 am
I just one 3rd place for a tomatoe that weighed 2.12 nice tomatoe thou… at the fair in Nj
August 27th, 2010 at 9:24 am
dido tomato man !
August 8th, 2011 at 8:07 pm
I have just plugged off the vine a single tomato that weighs exactly 2 lbs. It looks like the smaller of three in the bunch. The other two are still green so I’ll let them ripen some more.
August 26th, 2011 at 11:59 am
Wow! I thought my 1.25 pound tomato was big! We had a huge crop of tomatoes this year in our community garden 140 pounds!
September 10th, 2011 at 7:51 am
About 10 years ago my grandmother grew a tomato weighing 8 pounds and 1 ounce, quite a bit bigger than this tomato, it’s taken me up untill now to hink about contacting the guinness book haha