26 - Tomato Ripening

Yesterday, suddenly there it was, as if by magic, our first red tomato. Hiding coyly under a few leaves. Not the full deep red yet, but well on the way, heralding much more to come. It is a moment of seasonal joy, like seeing your first swallow or hearing the coocoo for the first time on an April evening.

Is this early for a red tomato in Kildare? I don’t keep such tedious records, but my distinct impression is that it is early by at least a month, reflecting the exceptionally fine spring that we have just enjoyed in this part of the world.

Here's to the first red tomato of ’25 and to the cancer-quashing lycopene it contains.

Type of tomato plant: Moneymaker