Practical
Plants

Solanum pimpinellifolium

Currant Tomato

an annual member of the Solanum genus in the family Solanaceae.

No photo available

Taxonomy and growth

Life cycle
annual
Height
1 m
Spread
0.5 m
Fertility
self fertile
Flower type
hermaphrodite
Pollinators
Insects, Self

Uses

Toxicity

Toxicity warning. The historical record reports a hazard for this plant. Do not use it to decide which parts are safe to eat or use medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

All green parts of the plant are poisonous[8][17].

Edible uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Fruit - raw, cooked or dried for later use[1][2][7]. Sweet and delicious, it makes an excellent dessert fruit and is also used in savoury dishes as a vegetable[K]. The fruit is rather small and fiddly, about 10 - 15mm in diameter, but it is produced in quite large bunches and is well worth the effort of picking[K]. An edible oil is obtained from the seed[14][15]. The seed is small and it would be very fiddly to utilize. It is only viable to use the seed as a source of oil if large quantities of the plants are being grown for their fruits and the seed is not wanted.

Plant part
Fruit
Product or use
Oil

Medicinal uses

Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The pulped fruit is an extremely beneficial skin-wash for people with oily skin. Sliced fruits are a quick and easy first aid treatment for burns, scalds and sunburn[11]. A decoction of the root is ingested in the treatment of toothache[12]. The skin of tomato fruits is a good source of lycopine, a substance that has been shown to protect people from heart attacks. It seems to be more effective when it is cooked and so can be obtained from food products such as tomato ketchup and tinned tomatoes[13]. A homeopathic remedy is made from the plant[16]. It is used in the treatment of rheumatism and severe headaches[16].

Product or use
Cardiac
Product or use
Homeopathy
Product or use
Odontalgic
Product or use
Skin

Material uses

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

The strong aroma of this plant is said to repel insects from nearby plants[16][6][9]. A semi-drying oil is obtained from the seed. Used in making soap[14][15][5]. See the notes above regarding utilization.

Product or use
Oil
Product or use
Repellent

Environment

Range
Original habitat is obscure, probably Western S. America as a cultivated form of L. cerasiforme.
Habitat
Not known in a truly wild situation.
Light
full sun
Shade tolerance
no shade
Water
moderate
Hardiness
Zone 9+
Soil textures
sandy, loamy, clay
Soil pH
acid, neutral, alkaline
Drainage
well drained
Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
No
Drought
intolerant

Propagation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Seed - sow early spring in a warm greenhouse. Germination is usually quick and good. Pot up the seedlings into individual pots of fairly rich compost as soon as the first true leaf appears and plant them out after the last expected frosts. Seed can also be sown in situ under a cloche at the end of April, though in a cool summer the results may be disappointing. The seedcoat may carry tomato mosaic virus. However, by sowing the seed 15mm deep the seedcoat will remain below the soil surface when the seed germinates and the disease will be inactivated[4].

Cultivation

This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.

Requires a rich well-drained soil in a sunny position. Plants are not frost-hardy. They can be grown outdoors in Britain as a spring-sown annual started off under glass in the spring. In cool wet summers the total yields are likely to be low[K]. A form of tomato with a small but delicious tasting fruit, it is often treated as a separate species[3]. There are some named varieties[7].

References

  1. F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00

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  2. Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976-00-00

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  3. Chakravarty. H. L. The Plant Wealth of Iraq.

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  4. RHS. The Garden. Volume 113. Royal Horticultural Society 1988-00-00

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  5. Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952-00-00

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  6. Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979-00-00

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  7. Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9

    ↩1↩2

  8. Stary. F. Poisonous Plants. Hamlyn 1983-00-00 ISBN 0-600-35666-3

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  9. Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978-00-00 ISBN 0-88266-064-0

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  10. Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5

  11. Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993-00-00 ISBN 0-304-34324-2

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  12. Duke. J. A. and Ayensu. E. S. Medicinal Plants of China Reference Publications, Inc. 1985-00-00 ISBN 0-917256-20-4

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  13. Radio 4 AM - 1997-00-00

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  14. Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00

    ↩1↩2

  15. Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202

    ↩1↩2

  16. Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-356-10541-5

    ↩1↩2↩3

  17. Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984-00-00 ISBN 0112425291

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