By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

The other day I was doing some research on greenhouse tomatoes and found a technique I found interesting and sad.

Greenhouse tomatoes are fertilized in several different ways.

One way is the way I used to use when I was an Agriculture Education instructor and that was just letting nature into my greenhouses.

In the commercial setting, this consists of releasing bumblebees into the greenhouse environment. These insects are short-lived but can be expensive when a new hive has to be purchased every time the greenhouse is cleaned out and new plants brought in.

Another approach Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

Tomatoes are great for salads, pasta sauces, juice, and even as a possible cancer therapy.

But a little known fact about the simple tomato is that it can be used to generate electricity.

Any type of tomato will work but green ones are much better since they are more acidic.

The following information will get you started on this project and dazzle your gardening friends with the magic from the garden.

If one would like to do this with children as a science experiment try testing how much electricity is produced and what types of tomatoes produce the most. To get the hypothesis juices flowing consider testing homegrown verses hydroponics or paste verses beefsteak.

Supplies

• 1 medium to large green or red tomato
• Knife and cutting board
• Spoon Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

Sherlock Holmes has always impressed me with his uncanny ability to put pieces together that did not seem to have any relationship to each other.

While on the surface this may seem only entertaining the ability to form relationships where there does not seem to be any is an invaluable skill in life, and in science.

Horticulture is one of those unique disciplines that mundane, and unconnected relationships go hand in hand when it comes to searching for the Holy Grail of Tomatoes.

Roger Chetelat the Director of C. M. Rick Tomato Genetics Resource Center at the University of California, Davis is one of those individuals trying to find the ancestors of the common tomato. He is a cross between Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

A few years ago I started welcoming the Spring Equinox by having a party.

My friends would show up in their favorite medieval outfits and we would have our feast of seasonal produce on a King Arthur type table.

In past years I would fill goblets with party favors and candy but this year I am giving a true Spring Equinox gift of hope and revitalization.

One may ask what this is and the answer is simple it is Tomato Goblets.

This goblet idea came from the wine settings I have used for this party in the past. But instead of serving wine I am serving sustainability and food security in a simple goblet. The tomato plant came to mind since Europeans viewed the tomato as the “love apple” or a forbidden fruit. Plus, the tomato plant is an easy vegetable plant that everyone can be successful at growing.

Also going with the theme and beliefs of King Arthur these Tomato Goblets represent food equalities much like the equal powers that King Arthur’s Knights had at the table.

These goblets are a true recycling project that uses Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

When I was an Agriculture Science Educator I had the great honor of growing tomato seeds that had been sent up with the Space Station.

What a great honor and experience it was for my students and myself.

No one really knew what being in a weightless environment would do as far as tomato plants and their fruit.

But my students and I were about to journey into uncharted gardening plots with our Space Station tomato seeds.

The experience and experiment that took place with students that cannot even see the stars was indescribable and one I will never forget. The project was not just testing tomatoes and the effects of weightlessness but also Read the rest of this entry »

By Mindy McIntosh-Shetter

Today I already got postcards for the 2011 plant and seed catalogs.

It just does not seem possible since I am still harvesting fresh tomatoes in October but every so often times cross each other in unpredictable ways.

I have been trying to narrow down my thesis topic in Environmental Education and Urban Planning and have found once again how limited individual’s knowledge can be when it comes to agriculture.

In recent times there have been new terms popping-up like Friday night popcorn without the masses really understanding what is going on or how it effects them and/or community. But Read the rest of this entry »