Please help me ID this plant! =-)

likenew · Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:35 pm

This was suppose to be a tam jalapeno plant as per the seeds packet I bought. I thought maybe something was wrong with it since they didn't grow and turned black, so I posted asking for help. Was informed it probably wasn't a jalapeno plant and should post again asking what it is! So here I am, any ideas? I tasted a berry that fell off, very very mild sweetness, almost nothing. No bitterness at all, doesn't really taste like anything, certainly nothing I've had before.

Thanks for any help =-)

!potatoes! · Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:50 pm

looks like 'jaltomato'. do a search for that, and you'll be close. don't have much experience growing them myself, but I've seen 'em.

DoubleDogFarm · Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:58 pm

Yes, I think potatoes nailed it.

I like more information on Jaltomata

Eric

likenew · Sat Jul 23, 2011 3:14 pm

Ahh I think you might be right! Seems to be a fairly rare plant, and only eat the berries when fully ripened, as anything green leaves and berries are poisonous.

Should I wait for them to fall before eating, or as long as they are black/purple I can pull them off?

Thanks!

!potatoes! · Sat Jul 23, 2011 5:12 pm

well, how lucky do you feel?

personally, I'd dabble with fully colored ones that aren't ripe enough to fall off on a pretty limited basis - eat one or two at a time, and wait while to see if/how your body responds - but focus mainly on the really ripe ones...of course, from what I've seen, they say the primary way to use them is to cook and sweeten, so that technique will only serve to get you used to deciding what 'ripe enough' is.

hendi_alex · Sat Jul 23, 2011 6:18 pm

Likenew, see how great this forum is. Post a photo and have an I.d. in just a little while, for an obscure plant such as Jaltomato.

likenew · Sat Jul 23, 2011 7:11 pm

It certainly has been a great help indeed! Though I would have preferred jalapeno's to grow lol. I'm sure I can make due with this

I'll be back here some more. I'm growing cosmos that haven't flowered yet also

likenew · Thu Jul 28, 2011 12:25 pm

Well, brought a bunch into work, and ate several myself. Census is, they don't really taste like anything, almost bland. Myself, the more I eat them, the less I like it. Neither bitter nor sweet, with two tastes, the seeds, and everything else. I think the seeds may be the culprit for the "bad taste".

I don't think I'll be using these berries in any recipes lol, but it was a fun ride watching it grow!

ruggr10 · Thu Jul 28, 2011 12:49 pm

I don't know what a Jaltomato is, but to me it looks like a wonderberry also known as sunberry/garden huckleberry. I had a bunch going this year but I learned I don't like the taste and just left one plant.

likenew · Fri Aug 26, 2011 5:26 pm

Hi again!

So ok, the jaltomato plant is still growing and giving berries, though I can't say I like them lol, but its nice to have it grow.

Maybe you can help with this one too. Back when I first planted the seeds from the jalapeno seed packet(same seeds), two saplings sprouted from the same spot. I used 3 seeds as I wasn't sure how many to use and it was my first attempt at growing anything. The, now known, jaltomato plant was about 2x bigger at the time when I separated them and moved them into bigger pots. You all know about what the jaltomato plant turned into, which is what I thought the smaller plant would become as well of course. Well, looking at the smaller plant today, it has white flowers on it, about 18 much much larger leaves, and green tiny but long actual jalapeno's on it! I see 3, looks like it can grow 4.

This is amazing to me lol =-)