Skip to content
Surprising Science —

Heirloom Hybrids

Plant breeders are offering hybrid heirloom tomatoes this year that they claim “have the distinct flavors and funky looks of heirlooms but are more disease-resistant and abundantly productive.”
Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

A number of plant breeders are offering hybrid heirloom tomatoes this year that they claim “have the distinct flavors and funky looks of heirlooms but are more disease-resistant and abundantly productive.” Tomato purists may cringe, but some of the new varieties “are bred to better withstand diseases and microscopic critters that can harm plants.”

Sign up for Big Think on Substack
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.
Related
A bearded man wearing glasses and a plaid shirt speaks with a microphone clipped to his collar in front of a purple background with white dots.
The Well
How Rainn Wilson discovered sacredness
The hospital where Rainn Wilson’s wife and son nearly died became his own personal holy site. There, he discovered that the sacred can exist in places we least expect it. During his talk at A Night of Awe and Wonder, he explained how the awe we feel in moments of courage and love is moral beauty — and following it might be the start of our spiritual revolution.
▸
13 min
—
with
Rainn Wilson
Up Next
Culture & Religion
Obama’s Certificate
“The ‘birther’ myth is the political equivalent of a horror-movie villain: Not only does it refuse to die, but every time someone tries to kill it, it only comes back stronger,” writes Christopher Beam.