I was watching a video from Jack Spirko where he said that tomatoes stay up on their own in the wild. How exactly do they stay up then?
asked Jul 5, 2016 at 17:08
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Some of the permaculture community has figured out how to do cageless tomatoes. Some of the answer may be in finding the right breed. Here is one video with some interesting insights permacultureideas.blogspot.com/2012/04/…– RickCommented Jul 24, 2016 at 15:18
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The size of the tomato has been increased with human selection. Wild tomatoes are berry sized, so the plant doesn't need extra support. The same is true for most plants that humans have selectively bred, although for tomatoes, the plant is not fibrous or tough enough to bear much weight. Genetic engineering has come a long way, but it will be a while before jellyfish have (good) bones.
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Think diminutive cherry tomatoes. The closest relative you will find is black nightshade which we have growing natively here. I have to keep it weeded out so it doesn't compete for nutrients with the tomatoes. It will lay over on the top of whatever is growing around it. They kind of almost stay up, but depend on overgrowing the surrounding vegetation for support. Cultivated Cherry Tomatoes are so prolific that they need almost as much support as the big beefsteaks. Commented Jul 5, 2016 at 18:24