What types of tomatoes are there

There are many types of tomatoes. Here are some very common types of tomatoes:

1. Common tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill)

All common tomatoes are self-fertile and the only species that can crossbreed with their closest relatives. The stigma of wild cherry tomatoes protrudes slightly above the anther cone when flowering, so a small amount of natural hybridization occurs.

Common tomato is an annual plant, which can be climbing, semi-climbing or upright. Its leaves have notches of varying depths, ranging from smooth to finely hairy. The inflorescence varies from simple raceme to compound raceme, with a few or many flowers, of various types: small, medium or large. The calyx is shorter or longer than the corolla, the ovary is smooth or has fine hairs, the stigma is cylindrical, and the fruit has different shapes such as oblate, spherical, spherical and oblong. There are a few or many ovaries, and the fruit color is fiery red, pink, orange-yellow; dark yellow or light yellow, green, purple and many other colors.

The average height of dwarf plants is 50-80 cm, while tall creeping plants can be 3 m or taller. The stems of different varieties are mostly upright in the seedling stage, but usually become inverted due to the weight of the fruit when they grow up.

The fruits have various shapes, and the calyx pits vary in width and depth. The fruit weight is generally 1 to 500 grams. A single fruit contains 40 to 400 seeds, which are heart-shaped, hairy, and flat.

⑴ Cherry tomato (Var. cerasiforme Alef)

The ancestor of the tomato is the cherry tomato (L. esculentum Var. cerasiforme), the only wild tomato found outside of South America. The cherry tomato is better adapted to the humid tropical conditions than other common tomato species. Modern tomato varieties are closely related to wild cherry tomatoes. The two types easily hybridize with each other.

The plant grows robustly, with creeping stems and covered with short, fine yellow hairs (2.5 mm long). The leaves are large, deeply notched, with long lobes and gradually pointed tips. The interlobes are elliptical, oval or round. The inflorescence is mainly simple racemose, either long or short, with fewer flowers, mainly composed of 5 perianths, and a few have 6 perianths. The calyx is almost the same length as the petals. The ovary is spherical, with a short stigma or the same length as the stamens. The fruit is spherical, with colors such as fiery red and dark yellow, and has 2 locules. The fruit is smooth or hairy, and the seeds are heart-shaped and hairy.

This variety has a wide distribution area: it is distributed in Mexico, Central America, Peru, etc. Cherry tomatoes are sour in taste and are widely used in canned foods. They can also be used as raw material for breeding disease-resistant varieties.

⑵ Pear-shaped tomato (Var. pyriforme Alef)

The plant grows medium to strong, with an erect or creeping stem, smooth or hairy, and medium to large leaves. The inflorescence is mainly simple racemose. A few have strong branches, with a few flowers, occasionally many. The calyx is shorter than the petals. The petals are gradually pointed to elliptical. The ovary is long, the stigma is short or as long as the stamens, and the fruit is 2-chambered, occasionally 3-chambered. The fruit shape index is 1.5~2.0, and the fruit color is red, yellow, pink, etc. It is heart-shaped and has hairs.

The offspring obtained by hybridizing pear-shaped tomatoes with spherical tomatoes are oval, oblong and ovoid in shape; the offspring obtained by hybridizing with cultivated varieties vary greatly, which provides a great deal of selectivity and allows many valuable varieties to be obtained.

⑶ Plum-shaped tomato (Var. pruniforme)

The plant grows medium to strong, with a stem height of 130-150 cm, medium-sized leaves with deep lobes, and a simple racemose inflorescence. It is short and 8-10 cm long. There are few flowers, about 7, of medium size, with 5-6 petals, 2 cm in diameter, and the length of the style is equal to that of the stamens. The fruit is small (2.5-3.0 cm long, 1.5-2.0 cm wide), with a fruit shape index of 1.5-2, 2 locules, and a fruit weight of 15-20 g. The fruit color is red, yellow, pink, etc., and there are few seeds.

⑷ Oblong tomato (Var. elongatum)

The plant grows medium to strong, with an erect or creeping stem, 70 cm high, covered with hairs, and medium to large leaves, with ovate lobes and entire margins. The inflorescence is simple racemose, occasionally compound racemose, with more or less flowers, usually 7, 5-petaled, a few with 6-petaled, sepals shorter or longer than petals, and style equal to or longer than stamens; the fruit weighs 30-50 g, with colors such as fiery red, pink and dark yellow.

This species is edible, widely distributed, and has a high dry matter content. Therefore, it is a good raw material for cultivating processed varieties. At the same time, it has low soil requirements and strong adaptability.

⑸ Common tomato (Var. vulgare)

The plant grows robustly, with creeping, semi-climbing or dwarf stems. The branching is weak or strong, with hairs on the body surface, medium to large leaves with irregular notches. The leaf color ranges from light green to dark green, with blunt to sharp serrations on the leaf margins. The inflorescence is racemose or compound racemose, with a few to many flowers. The fruits have various shapes, colors, sizes, and varieties of maturity, and most of the cultivated varieties are concentrated in this variety.

⑹ Large-leaf tomato (Var. grandifolium)

The plant grows medium to strong, with medium or sparse leaf coverage. The stem is creeping, covered with hairs, and the leaves are large, similar to potato leaves. Therefore, it is also called potato leaf tomato. The leaf lobes are 1 to 2 pairs, entire. Interlobes and lobule are absent. The inflorescence is simple or compound raceme. The flowers are medium, small, with 5-7 perianths. The fruits are round, oblate, flat, and some are elliptical. The number of ovaries ranges from a few to many. The fruit color is fiery red, pink or yellow.