Two of the tomatoes were lovingly tended in backyards - one in a conventional garden and the other in an organic garden. The third tomato came from the supermarket, and it's easy to eliminate from the guessing game.
The supermarket tomato is the pale red one the size and shape of a tennis ball. Bred for packing, shipping, and storing, (not flavor), this tomato was picked green, has traveled more than a thousand miles from farm to store, and has sat on the shelf for weeks -- looking none the worse for wear.
Set this one aside. It was definitely not grown organically.
Two remain. For the sake of the game, they are the same tomato variety, let's say Big Beef slicers. Bright red, they were just picked and are still warm to the touch from afternoon sun.
It's not so easy to tell the difference in these; we have to look beyond the surface... literally. The quality of the soil from which they grew is the key element to naming the winner of this game: conventional tomato vs. organic tomato.
The chemicals in the fertilizers used in conventional gardens actually break down the health of the soil. Microbes that are necessary for making soil nutrients available to the plants are killed off.
The dead soil requires increasing doses of conventional fertilizer, and still the plants are malnourished, falling prey to insects and disease. Enter the deadly pesticides, sprayed liberally on the plant.
Now, the game is getting serious. One of the two remaining contestants in our tomato contest had better be carefully washed before being eaten; it's been dusted with poison.
On the other hand, the organically grown tomato also had fertilizer applied to it, but this fertilizer was made from naturally occurring substances like bone meal, fish emulsion, and rock phosphate. These additions fed the soil and did no harm to the beneficial microbes that make nutrients available for use by plants.
Pesticides probably weren't necessary because a healthy plant produces its own pest-resistant chemicals. But if there were pests, the organic gardener might have used a home-mixed spray of hot pepper and garlic, or something similarly non-toxic to humans.
There are a few additional techniques the organic gardener probably used, such as tilling in a cover crop to add organic material for the microbes and earthworms to decompose. This process results in a crumbly textured soil that holds moisture and allows the roots to breathe.
But even without the soil improvement from a cover crop, it's fairly clear which tomato is better for health: the only nutrients that can be found in the fruit had to come from what was available in the soil. The organically grown tomato provides better nutrition.
What is not so clear is which tomato is better for flavor. A test of the ratio of sugar to acid might be made, but that isn't a big issue. Both the conventionally grown and organically grown tomato are vastly superior in flavor to the poor tomato found in most supermarkets.
The original question in this tomato guessing game was whether you could tell which one of those ripe, juicy tomatoes on the cutting board was organic. Turns out that it's hard to tell just by looking, or even just by tasting.
So, what's the big issue? Mainly this: sustainability. Conventional growing depletes and eventually destroys the soil. Whereas organic growing techniques actually build and improve the soil.
In the end, the nutritious organic tomato contributes more to your health, and it is certainly better for the health of the soil from which all future crops will come.
Organic farming is a broad concept with extreme application. It is well appreciated on a large scale by the people as now with the help of it they can easily grow their own food. If you have a little bit of free time with you then you need not to face any kind of problem. You can prepare and serve good quality delicious food by doing organic farming at your home.
It is not true that organic farming is practiced at a small scale only. By having a trip of farming sector you can easily understand how much vast this sector actually is. This is not the case some time before. Few years back it was not a highly thriving and demanding sector but now the case has totally changed. It is now not limited to a small scale industry as day by day more corporate sectors are taking interest in this field. Large corporate farming is taking keen interest in the concept of organic farming. Continuous research is going on to find out the way by which huge fields of a single crop can be grown. No one can deny the fact that in the process of organic farming, pests are believed to be the major threat. Due to harmful impact on the biodiversity unnatural pesticides are not much preferred to use.
If you are going for the natural pesticides for controlling the pests then it is certainly an eco friendly approach but believed to be much expensive in contrast to unnatural ones. Some time before, due to expensive nature they were not much preferred in the process of organic farming. After the entrance of large scale industries with huge budget this can be achieved now very easily. Natural pesticides can be a good option when it is about the large scale organic farming but if you are going for it at your home or at a small scale in a separate piece of land then it is advisable to look for any other good option. This is because like other kinds of farming organic farming also requires the process of sowing, cultivating and harvesting. If you do not have proper arrangement of water for the purpose of irrigation then you require depending largely on the rain water. If you are concluding the process of organic farming at your home then irrigation is not a big issue but even at a small scale proper arrangement of water is very essential. If you do not have a huge budget with you then it can be a difficult work for you. You require investing a good amount on purchase of seeds, irrigation, fertilizers, harvesting, etc.
There is much debate till now on the use of unnatural pesticides in the process of organic farming. Several environmentalists and consumer protection organization have claimed that the use of unnatural pesticides not only damage the environment but also have an adverse impact on the quality of food. For killing the insects and pests these pesticides are used but they are not considered helpful after sometime. It is so because these insects as well as the pests easily get adapted to the effects of the chemicals involved in them and so these pesticides looses their worth. Sooner or later it damages the health of the final consumer who without knowing consumes a large amount of lethal chemicals and synthesized materials along with the natural food. Thus it is injurious for the health of the human being as well.
Thus there are several ways by which you can have your favorite vegetables as well as fruits and that too with the help of inorganic as well as organic farming. As there are several pros as well as cons of both it is up to you to decide the one that is best for you. You can make use of organic farming to turn your dreams into reality and the best part is it is already benefiting millions of people so you are not at all required to worry for it as well.
Both Judith Schwader & Charles Carter are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Judith Schwader has sinced written about articles on various topics from National Parks, Gardening and Marriage. Life-time gardener Judith Schwader specializes in organic gardening methods. She shares expertise, humor, and advice for your gardening success at . Also vi. Judith Schwader's top article generates over 1600 views. to your Favourites.
Charles Carter has sinced written about articles on various topics from Skin Care, Aging Problems and Fitness. NaturesOrganicMarket.com offers discount prices on ,. Charles Carter's top article generates over 18100 views. to your Favourites.