# Identify these fruits **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 20, 2019, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962 "2019-08-20T20:45:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![RollOutTheBarrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rolloutthebarrel/32/1649_2.png) [@RollOutTheBarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RollOutTheBarrel)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2019, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/1 "2019-08-20T20:45:26Z")
I went for a walk in a park recently with my mom and her friend. We walked up a trail to an area in the park with farm animals and plants that are tended to by park employees. We saw a plant with some kind of fruit growing on it. My mom’s friend, who knows a lot about plants, said the leaves looked like a tomato plant’s leaves, but the fruit growing on it is more oblong shaped than you would expect from tomatoes. I uploaded a picture here: [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/ENKsSMX.png "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/ENKsSMX) Are these some kind of tomatoes? Will they get rounder as they ripen? Or are they some other kind of fruit entirely? ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2019, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/2 "2019-08-20T20:55:32Z")
They look like San Marzano tomatoes, a great sauce and canning variety. They won’t get rounder as they ripen. [San Marzanos](https://www.renaissancefarms.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/San-Marazano-Tomato.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![RollOutTheBarrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rolloutthebarrel/32/1649_2.png) [@RollOutTheBarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RollOutTheBarrel)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2019, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/3 "2019-08-20T21:04:19Z")
Yes, that looks like them. Thanks! I hadn’t heard of that kind before. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2019, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/4 "2019-08-20T21:52:54Z")
> [@RollOutTheBarrel](#): > > the fruit growing on it is more oblong shaped than you would expect from tomatoes. Tomatoes come in a widely varying number of shapes – and of colors, for that matter. Here’s just a start: > **[Tomato Varieties (Rutgers NJAES)](https://njaes.rutgers.edu/tomato-varieties/)** > > Photos and descriptions of tomato varieties. > **[Heirloom Tomato Seeds | Seed Savers Exchange](https://shop.seedsavers.org/vegetables/tomato)** > > A wide selection of heirloom, organic tomatoes across all types: paste, beefsteak, cherry, and more. Our seeds are non-GMO and open pollinated and sales support our non-profit mission. > **[Heirloom Tomatoes Poster](https://www.tomatofest.com/product_p/tf-558.htm)** > > TomatoFest is the ultimate resource for certified organic heirloom tomato seeds with over 650 best tasting organic heirloom tomato seed varieties along with growing information. The names can also be fascinating. Sometimes I just start reading the names of varieties out loud, when going through seed catalogs in the winter. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/5 "2019-08-21T03:15:37Z")
I can’t believe I hated tomatoes as a kid. As an adult I love almost everything about them. ---
**Author:** ![RollOutTheBarrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rolloutthebarrel/32/1649_2.png) [@RollOutTheBarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RollOutTheBarrel)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/6 "2019-08-21T15:22:55Z")
Interesting links, **thorny locust**! I had no idea there was such a wide variety of tomatoes out there. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/7 "2019-08-21T16:25:29Z")
My general rule: The uglier the tomato is, the more likely it is to be tasty. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/identify-these-fruits/838962/8 "2019-08-21T17:33:20Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > My general rule: The uglier the tomato is, the more likely it is to be tasty. 😃 There’s something in that. As people were unlikely to be breeding for ugliness (or for tendency to crack easily, or for being so soft that ordinary handling can cause bruises), if a tomato variety kept being grown long enough to get a name despite those characteristics then it was probably kept because of its flavor. (Though some may have been kept because of having unusual shapes or colors – not everyone agrees on what’s ugly.) However, flavor within the same variety can be drastically affected by growing conditions: amount of sun and/or rain, exact nutrients available in the particular soil, type and quantity of fertilizer if used, etc. – and also by time of harvest, and by post-harvest handling. And some pretty varieties can taste good if other criteria are right. So you’re right, it’s a general guide; but not a guarantee.