When tomatoes get a “horn” or nose it is a physiological/genetic disorder. Such distorted growth starts when the tomato is just a microscopic speck. A few cells divide in an odd way and the fruit produces an extra locule. Locules are the interior segments you see in a tomato – if you cut the fruit in half horizontally you’ll see between 4 and six separate segments, right? Well such growths happen when a cell divides in an odd way and starts to make an extra segment that gets pushed up out of the fruit structure. This is often caused by weather – either very cool or very hot – while the tomato is fruiting. Scientists report seeing fewer such mutations when weather is constantly in the 70 to 85 degree range. It also happens more frequently in heirlooms, but you will see a genetic mutation about 1 in 1,000 plants…not too common but not very rare either!
You can have fun with such fruit – ask your friends to say who it looks like, or develop a caption for what it’s thinking!
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