Ethnobotany of the Tomato Plant :: Botany Plant Genetics

Ethnobotany of the Tomato PlantThe origin of the cultivated love apple is somewhat unclear. Ethnobotanists and geneticists hitherto have attempted to track down the centre of domestication. The genus genus Lycopersicon- the botanical root to which the tomato belongs- is native to western South America, and only Lycopersicon genus Lycopersicum var. cerasiforme, the softheaded cherry form of the cultivated species, has spread throughout Latin America and the New World Tropics. Second, the tomato was not known in Europe until after the discovery and conquest of America, descriptions and drawings first appearing in the European herbals of the middle and late 16th century. Third, these writings clearly separate that globe had been trying to improve the size of the tomato and the diversity of its framing and color. These achievements over the wild ancestors were almost certainly achieved by early man in America. Mexico appears to have been the site of domestication and the source of the earliest introductions, and the wild cherry tomato was probably the immediate ancestor. As a consider of fact, the bulk of the historical, linguistic, archaeological and ethnobotanical evidence favours Mexico, particularly the Vera Cruz-Puebla area, as the source of the cultivated tomatoes that were first transported to the Old World. Although the origin of the tomato is somewhat clouded, there is no doubt that the cultigen of today has had a long journey.When the tomato finally do its way to Europe, the public responded with fear for several probable reasons. First, tomatoes belong to the family Solanaceae, which includes genus Datura and Belladonna - the deadly nightshade, among other poisonous species. The assumption was that tomatoes must be poisonous as well. Second, in Germany, because of its terrible smell, the tomato plant was rejected. The tomato acquired names like the Devils wolf apple. This great fear of toxicity of the tomato plant probably prevented its util ization for many centuries. Today, the toxicity of the Solanaceae family has been analyse extensively, and it has been found that most of the species are posionous. Obviously Belladonna and Datura are among the more poisonous members of the family, but the potato plant is also kinda toxic. Lycopersicon spp., which are less toxic than the other members of the family, contain tomatine, a toxic glycoalkaloid .Many wild relatives of the tomato such as Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme, L. chilense, L. peruvianum, L. hirsutum, and L. pimpinellifolium are among the richest genetic pools available for cross breeding.