Purple galaxy tomato

garden patch · 1 Week Ago

Hi all I was wondering if anyone knows if the purple galaxy tomato seeds can be saved and planted again for the next year? My neighbour gave me some of these purple cherry tomatoes and I was wondering if they are of heirloom variety or hybrid?

MissS · 1 Week Ago

Purple Galaxy is neither an heirloom or a hybrid. It is a genetically modified tomato. Can it be open pollinated in future generation? Probably so. It has had snap dragon flower DNA inserted into it. It most likely can grow just as well as Monsanto's GMO corn. The question is do you want to consume an experimental GMO tomato?

KarenO · 1 Week Ago

They are not a hybrid. You can save seed.
KarenO

DK2021 · 5 Hours Ago

The GM purple tomato from Norfolk Healthy Produce is just called Purple. It is an inbred ("open pollinated") variety. You can buy them in shops in a few states (not mine) under the brand name "Empress Limited Edition Tomato". I bought seed directly from Norfolk on first release; $10 for 10 seeds. Under terms of the sale, you are allowed to save seed, and even use the seed in a breeding programme, but you may not sell the seed or fruit or offspring.

They are quite pretty, deep purple cherries, about an inch diameter, with generous yields early to mid season. Flavour is just OK. I saved seed (in fact just put away the dry processed seed today) as I don't want to spend the money again, but I'm not sure I'll grow these often. They are pretty in a mixed tomato plate though.

The story behind "Purple Galaxy" was covered by NPR here: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-...ek-controversy

Regarding GM plants, there is no scientific reason for them to be de facto "bad". All eukaryotes (which include animals and plants) have genes from various ancestral sources, including bacteria and viruses. Your own human genome is about 8% viral in origin. Your mitochondria were once endosymbiotic bacteria. Horizontal gene transfer (between two unrelated organisms) turns out to be quite common, if not universal. It's just how biology works.

1 Week Ago	#1
garden patch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2020 Location: Toronto Posts: 89	Purple galaxy tomato Hi all I was wondering if anyone knows if the purple galaxy tomato seeds can be saved and planted again for the next year? My neighbour gave me some of these purple cherry tomatoes and I was wondering if they are of heirloom variety or hybrid?

1 Week Ago	#2
MissS Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin Posts: 3,148	Purple Galaxy is neither an heirloom or a hybrid. It is a genetically modified tomato. Can it be open pollinated in future generation? Probably so. It has had snap dragon flower DNA inserted into it. It most likely can grow just as well as Monsanto's GMO corn. The question is do you want to consume an experimental GMO tomato? __________________ ~ Patti ~

1 Week Ago	#3
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,931	They are not a hybrid. You can save seed. KarenO

5 Hours Ago	#4
DK2021 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2021 Location: Coastal CT, zone 7a Posts: 172	The GM purple tomato from Norfolk Healthy Produce is just called Purple. It is an inbred ("open pollinated") variety. You can buy them in shops in a few states (not mine) under the brand name "Empress Limited Edition Tomato". I bought seed directly from Norfolk on first release; $10 for 10 seeds. Under terms of the sale, you are allowed to save seed, and even use the seed in a breeding programme, but you may not sell the seed or fruit or offspring. They are quite pretty, deep purple cherries, about an inch diameter, with generous yields early to mid season. Flavour is just OK. I saved seed (in fact just put away the dry processed seed today) as I don't want to spend the money again, but I'm not sure I'll grow these often. They are pretty in a mixed tomato plate though. The story behind "Purple Galaxy" was covered by NPR here: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-...ek-controversy Regarding GM plants, there is no scientific reason for them to be de facto "bad". All eukaryotes (which include animals and plants) have genes from various ancestral sources, including bacteria and viruses. Your own human genome is about 8% viral in origin. Your mitochondria were once endosymbiotic bacteria. Horizontal gene transfer (between two unrelated organisms) turns out to be quite common, if not universal. It's just how biology works.