Flavor gene in tomatoes, NYT article

[Ruth_10]

I'll throw this article out for discussion. It's about how a gene mutation that causes tomatoes to turn uniformly green has been bred into tomatoes.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/sc...-say.html?_r=1


I thought it was somewhat misleading, what with starting out with this statement right off the bat:

Plant geneticists say they have discovered an answer to a near-universal question: Why are tomatoes usually so tasteless?

But tomatoes aren't "usually" tasteless, IMO.

Then at the very end:

But, Dr. Powell said, there is a way around the issue. Heirloom tomatoes and many wild species do not have the uniform ripening mutation.

...and therefore haven't had flavor bred out of them, is the implication. What the author should have said was "Why are tomatoes grown for the mass commercial market so tasteless?"

And the caveat:

But were the genetically engineered tomatoes more flavorful? Because Department of Agriculture regulations forbid the consumption of experimental produce, no one tasted them.

I.e., they don't actually know if the gene affects flavor.


Thanks, I know my homegrown tomatoes have excellent flavor.

[Fusion_power]

I've already replied re this article elsewhere. Here are a few thoughts.

The gene in question is the uniform ripening gene. It does NOT cause the "red" color in tomatoes, what it does is make the entire fruit ripen uniformly so that you don't have a red tomato with green shoulders.

The misleading statements infer that there is a problem with the high crimson gene. There isn't, but it is often paired with the uniform ripening gene so in effect most deep red tomatoes are also flavor impaired.

The simplest possible answer is to grow really good flavored open pollinated varieties that do not have the uniform ripening gene. There are thousands of varieties that fit this profile. Just be prepared for most of them to have green shoulders.

As for knowing whether the gene affects flavor, I would point out that there are NO good flavored tomatoes that contain the uniform ripening gene.

DarJones

[MikeT_PDX]

If this has been posted already, my apologies.

Interesting article from NY Times regarding the "uniform ripening gene" and the unintended consequences of breeding for appearance.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/sc...-say.html?_r=1

[Dak]

Interesting story of how a genetic mutation led to tasteless tomatoes. I have a new appreciation for green shoulders now!
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/201...-kept-on-going

[bower]

I read that too, Mike. Never so happy to see healthy green shoulders on all of my fruit.

[carolyn137]

Mike, the uiform ripening gene has been known for a very long time and has been bred into almost all modern hybrids.

I'm going to try to link to a thread from another site where there's a link to the original article in Science Digest. I prefer the original article, which was written for the public, b'c it hasn't gone through the filtering of the NY Times.

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1268442/

My post is the 2nd one down where I linked to one at GW where I gave my response.

Hope this helps.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Dak

Interesting story of how a genetic mutation led to tasteless tomatoes. I have a new appreciation for green shoulders now!
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/201...-kept-on-going

Dak, there already is a thread in this Forum about that and I just posted to that thread giving a link to another site, DG, where the original article in Science Digest was linked to at GW and gave my opinion about all of it in the GW link.

Hope that helps, and it sure saves me from writing another long post.

[Dak]

I ran a search before I posted and nothing came up. I don't know what else to do to avoid duplicate postings. I will look for the thread that you mentioned by searching using your recent posts, I'm sure that will work. I'm sure it's an interesting discussion.

[bcday]

We actually had three threads running on this topic . I have merged all three into one thread. Posts automatically appear in the chronological order that they were posted, regardless of which thread they originally appeared in, so Ruth's is at the top since hers is the oldest.

Carolyn (and others), no one can see your post at DG unless they subscribe to DG, which many don't and won't. The only post visible there to non-subscribers is the first one in the thread. I believe the GW link you referred to might be http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...144321156.html

It's going to be interesting to see if better-tasting tomatoes actually do show up in supermarkets.

[carolyn137]

I forgot that since DG is a place where you have to pay to post, that it might not be visible to all.

And I forgot since I don't pay, that is, they extended free subscriptions to three folks many years ago, and of the three I'm the only one who has remained.

And yes, that's the correct one from GW with my comments about the article which was linked to in the DG thread, so thanks for that.

[mgk65]

Plant geneticists say they have discovered an answer to a near-universal question: Why are tomatoes usually so tasteless?


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/sc...=MYWAY&ei=5065

After reading this, I know why we like heirloom tomatoes so much!

[ginger2778]

I just read it, very interesting. Of course it only affects us during the time of year we can't grow our own. Thanks for the link.

[Mikedog]

Like most of us I saw that story in the news & relected on it while researching cultivars that might survive TSW &/or Yellow Leaf Curl Virus. I know Tomatoville members love to talk about the heirlooms considering that you have one of the best experts as a moderator but can we please talk hybrids a bit?
In desperation I have cast my eyes upon the tempting new hybrids that offer disease tolerance. Please don't cast stones. I do not wana be a pariah! I plan to continue with a few select heirlooms that are really tough (Vinson Watts maybe. Mule Team did not stand a chance). For now I am curious about a hybrids like Sophya, Bella Rosa & Charger.
Sophya is supposed to be an "Italian green type" with tolerance to viral disease. Is it likely this one will retain the flavor elements left out in other types since it has the green coloration? Bella Rosa supposedly has good flavor & production while retaining the disease tolerance. Charger is supposed to be bullet proof.
Of course I have tried common sense things like row covers, pesticides (organic & synthetic) & crop rotation. Does anyone have a comment on these hybrids or new revelations on coping with viral disease. I realize the forums beat the TSW drum sometime ago but I am not sure I ever saw any clues as to how to cope with the viral diseases.

[riceke]

Originally Posted by Mikedog

Like most of us I saw that story in the news & relected on it while researching cultivars that might survive TSW &/or Yellow Leaf Curl Virus. I know Tomatoville members love to talk about the heirlooms considering that you have one of the best experts as a moderator but can we please talk hybrids a bit?
In desperation I have cast my eyes upon the tempting new hybrids that offer disease tolerance. Please don't cast stones. I do not wana be a pariah! I plan to continue with a few select heirlooms that are really tough (Vinson Watts maybe. Mule Team did not stand a chance). For now I am curious about a hybrids like Sophya, Bella Rosa & Charger.
Sophya is supposed to be an "Italian green type" with tolerance to viral disease. Is it likely this one will retain the flavor elements left out in other types since it has the green coloration? Bella Rosa supposedly has good flavor & production while retaining the disease tolerance. Charger is supposed to be bullet proof.
Of course I have tried common sense things like row covers, pesticides (organic & synthetic) & crop rotation. Does anyone have a comment on these hybrids or new revelations on coping with viral disease. I realize the forums beat the TSW drum sometime ago but I am not sure I ever saw any clues as to how to cope with the viral diseases.

Mike...I planted Bella Rosa two years in a row. In my garden they were baseball size with some as large as softballs. The plant reached about 4' on a trellis. The fruits were almost perfect with a typical tomato taste. I have a low sensitivity to descriminating flavors unless they are really bad which I have run across a few. But my wife, comnesiour that she is on tomatoes, said they are delicious. They had very high production on strong plants which lasted into the fall and weathered our high heat and low rainfall without major negative effects. BR would make a good pot plant as well. I only noticed blight towards the end of the season. And maybe it wasn' blight but just plain ol negligence on my part (lack of water and fertilizer and that cursed stink bug). Overall this is a keeper for hot humid climates where a large fruited hybrid with strong disease resistance is required.

[Mikedog]

That's what I have been wanting to hear. It is a definite for next year. I had hoped Pearson & Mule Team would fill that need. So far this year I have only picked dried up Porters. Creole is still alive but only 3 fruit & I have been waiting since January! I did buy some Cherokee Purple but none from my garden. Thanks for the insightful reply from a guy close to home