Anatomy of the Tomato
Tomato in Pop Culture
History of the Tomato
General tomato facts
Growing Tomatoes
More general tomato facts
500
What nutrients are in a tomato? Name 4 to get full points, every additional correct one is 50 points, every additional incorrect one is -50 points (VS question!)
Potassium, Vitamin C, Beta Carotene, Folate, Vitamin K, Fiber, Lycopene, Vitamin A, Protein, 1g fat, Carbohydrate, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus
500
What is the name of the tomato festival in Spain?
La Tomatina
500
What was the color of the first tomato that was brought to Europe?
Orange, also known as pomi di'oro. Different from yellow and red tomatoes, as they have beta-carotene and tetra-cis-lycopene, and tetra-cis-lycopene is a form of antioxidant that absorbs better into the blood than what is in red and yellow tomatoes today.
500
How many varieties of of tomato are there? (VS question!)
Over 10,000
500
At what temperature does tomato ripening essentially stop? (both the low and high point)
below 55, above 85
500
What genus does the tomato belong to?
Night shade, aka Solanum lycopersicum
500
Label the tomato parts (VS question!)
500
Name this tomato character:
Bob the Tomato, from Veggie Tales
500
What was the first written recipe that used tomatoes?
Tomato sauce. In a cookbook from Pietro Andrea Mattioli in 1544. He thought it was a new kind of eggplant.
500
What causes this tomato to be blue/purple?
Anthocyanins, a class of pigment also responsible for the color of blueberries, blackberries, and chokeberries.
It may also provide protection against insects, diseases, and UV.
500
Define determinate and indeterminate plants.
Determinate: stops growing at a certain height
Indeterminate: Keeps growing
500
What does Solanum lycopersicum translate to?
Comforting/Soothing Wolf Peach
500
What is the heaviest tomato on record? Be within 2lbs.
15.7lbs
500
How long did it take to find a tomato that was lost on the International Space Station in 2023?
8 months
500
Where did the tomato come from?
Western South America, domesticated in Mexico
500
Which countries are in the top 3 producers of tomatoes? (Get two right from the following list, bonus points for correct order):
Greece, Turkey, USA, Mexico, India, China, Canada
China, India, Turkey
500
Are there seedless tomatoes?
Yes, like watermelons though where the seeds are just very under-developed.
500
People potentially got poisoned from eating tomatoes off of pewter plates, why?
Acidity of tomatoes caused lead to leach from pewter
500
What toxin do the leaves, stems, and roots of the tomato plant have?
Solanine, aka "nightshade" (100 bonus points for solanine)
500
Follow-up question on the lost tomato on the ISS: Was there any fungal growth?
No
500
What is the original name of the tomato?
Tomatl (from Nahuatl)
500
What is an heirloom tomato?
Not cross-bred with other species, An heirloom tomato is an open-pollinated variety that has been passed down at least 50 years through several generations in a family, ethnic, religious, or tribal group, or was commercially introduced before 1940.
500
What causes the splitting of tomatoes?
Tomatoes split due to a rapid influx of moisture causing the fruit to swell faster than the skin can stretch, a phenomenon most commonly triggered by heavy rain after a dry spell or inconsistent watering.
500
What is tomato in at least two different languages?
Pomodoro, tomate (spanish, french), tomato
500
What is the pH of a tomato? (Be within 0.2)
4.3-4.9
500
What are the ingredients in the original bloody Mary? There are 7. Whichever team gets the most correct gets the points. (VS question!)
Vodka, tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, celery salt, Tabasco and lemon juice.
500
What was the first mass-produced canned tomato product in the United States? (And what year for bonus points)
Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup
500
What gas is used to turn tomatoes from green to red in grocery stores?
Ehtylene
500
Are tomatoes nitrogen-fixing plants?
No
500
Did the Supreme Court rule that tomatoes were a vegetable or fruit, and in what year?
Vegetable, Nix vs. Hedden 1893