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Heirloom tomatoes: What a history

August 4, 2017

Originally published in The Journal on July 13, 2017.

Don’t ya know, Minnesota can grow tomatoes! Heirloom tomatoes are a farmer’s market staple around the country, but Jeff Nistler, owner of Nistler Farms and a vendor at the Mill City Farmers Market, is perfecting the crop for Minnesota’s cold climate. Jeff has constructed several high-tunnel greenhouses over the years at his farm in Maple Plain in order to extend the growing season for his melons and tomatoes. This year, with help from the Mill City Farmers Market’s Farmer Grants, Jeff is experimenting with tomato grafts to combat common fungal diseases that affect his crop. The results of the labor are clear, as Nistler Farms has some of the best looking and tasting tomatoes in town!

The farmer grants from the market’s Charitable Fund are able to help local, sustainable farms like Nistler in times of hardship or with projects like organic certification, infrastructure advances, on-farm research and more.

The main difference between heirloom and hybrid tomatoes is how they are produced. Typically, hybrid tomatoes are intentionally cross-pollinated so that the new plant will contain the desirable traits from both parent plants, whereas heirloom tomatoes are open-pollinated by insects and the wind, not humans. Heirloom tomatoes have their own unique benefits and places like Nistler Farms are working to preserve these varieties and their qualities.

So why choose heirloom tomatoes? First, heirloom tomatoes come from a seed that is required to be at least 50 years old. Talk about history! If the seed is not that old, it must be associated with a specific region or place. Second, the nutrition and flavor of heirloom tomatoes is incomparable to hybrid tomatoes. One medium sized heirloom tomato contains about 20% of your recommended intake of vitamin A and 40% of your recommended intake of vitamin C. Heirloom tomatoes also contain a greater percentage of lycopene, which is a carotenoid that aids in the prevention of cancer.

Heirloom tomatoes from Nistler Farms are available at the Mill City Farmers Market every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and at the new Tuesday Mill City Night Market, opening July 18 at The Commons. Every Tuesday from 3:30 to 7:30 until the end of September find dozens of prepared food vendors, farmers and artisans at this new market located in the green space next to the U.S. Bank Stadium!

 

Click here for our Mill City Cooks recipes featuring tomatoes!

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