Cherry tomato

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A cherry tomato is a smaller garden variety of tomato. It is marketed at a premium to ordinary tomatoes, and is popular as a snack and in salads. Cherry tomatoes are generally considered to be similar but not identical to the wild precursor of the domestic tomato. They are often sweeter than standard tomatoes.

Cherry tomatoes range in size from a thumbtip up to the size of a golf ball, and can range from being spherical to slightly oblong in shape. The more oblong ones often share characteristics with plum tomatoes, and are known as grape tomatoes.

The cherry tomato has 24 chromosomes, and its scientific name is Solanum lycopersicum cerasiforme.

There are a number of cherry tomato varieties. The Santorini cherry tomato is cultivated in Santorini (Greece), and is known for its flavour and body. International conferences dedicated to the cultivation, horticulture and agriculture of the cherry tomato are also held at Santorini. Another popular variety often grown in American gardens is Sweet 100, named for its flavor and prolific production.

See also: List of tomato cultivars