Best gardening steps

The people of Elmira, New York, love their tomatoes. That is why you will find the best homemade tomato cage in the back yard of someone living in Elmira. Elmirites can't get enough of their bright, juicy, sunshiny taste. The fruit of S. Lycoopersicum, a member of the nightshade family, is full of important nutrients. Note they are a fruit, and not a vegetable, no matter how much Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher tried to convince their respective electorates in the 1980s.

Typically red in color, they come in practically any color you could choose to mention from dark purple to pale yellow, via green and orange. Green tomatoes are generally considered unripe, but they are popular when baked into pies or, like the film, simply fried. In terms of size, there is a broad spectrum from tiny cherry tomatoes to the giant beefsteak variety.

If you can manage to get any into the kitchen without eating them as soon as you pick them, tomatoes are an exceedingly versatile item to prepare. They are a little messy to eat like apples, but may be sliced or cut into wedges for use in salads, sandwiches or even on their own. They may also be peeled, have the seeds taken out and then cooked. For good health, it is important to include both cooked and uncooked tomatoes in the diet.

Raw tomatoes are full of vitamins A and C, while cooked tomatoes are richer in lycopenes, which are important anti-oxidants. Tomatoes are also fat-free and extremely low in calories. Tomatoes are rich sources of folic acid, choline, lutein and beta-carotene. They also provide valuable fiber, both soluble and structural.

As well as being a hugely popular ingredient in spaghetti sauce, tomatoes are also the main ingredient in the popular American condiment, ketchup or catsup. At one time, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher tried to convince the public that ketchup was a vegetable for the purposes of school dinners. People put ketchup on just about everything from french fries and hamburgers to scrambled eggs. It is a very unusual home indeed that does not contain a bottle of ketchup.

Where the climate is hot and sunny, tomato plants can grow huge. This is why it is useful to employ a cage to contain the plants and prop the fruits off the ground where they can be accessed by pests. They are commonly grown in hanging baskets or grow bags, sacks of compost that people cut slits into and jam the plants inside while they are still small.

Because tomatoes love sunshine and heat, there are some climates where they are best grown in a greenhouse, conservatory or simply under an overturned plastic drink bottle. For optimum flowering, they require little water, while they go through loads of the stuff when they are fruiting. In terms of fertilizer, tomatoes thrive on potassium. Tickling the tiny yellow, bell-shaped blossoms can encourage pollination, and care must be taken to eliminate aphids and the giant green caterpillars that thrive on developing plants.

Love apples have their uses outside the kitchen, as well. Hairdressers in the late 20th century used to recommend their clients rinse their freshly-permed locks in tomato juice to neutralize the smell. Their acidity can also help brighten up a dull saucepan.