Leaves Vs Fruit: The Balancing Act

When trying to predict how a crop will respond to various situations, remember that all cultivated crops originated from wild ancestors growing in competition with many other species.

- Bill Kerr

The mechanisms that enabled them to survive under these circumstances remain in their genetic make-up.

GROWING TOMATOES

Take the tomato plant, for example. In its wild state, it has to first grow through the foliage of other plants to gain access to sunlight in order to produce fruit and seeds that ensure its survival. So initially, the plant uses all its resources for the vegetative growth needed to establish this dominance. Then it switches to flowering and produces as much seed as possible.

When we grow tomato seedlings, we protect them from the elements. This may include providing shade cloth. In addition, we want to produce as many seedlings in the growing area as possible to reduce the cost of each plant. In effect, the tomatoes grow in competition with one another, not unlike the situation in the wild with the same survival mechanisms in play.