Preliminary (aren't they always?) Results

Surprisingly, there appears to be little correlation between Tommy's productivity and the weather. Tommy was situated in a first floor office on a SE facing window. He was therefore subject to the full glare of the sun for most of the day. From June to October, Tommy's productivity remained reasonably constant at 16.2g/day (R2=0.98). There is a small decrease in productivity during the hottest summer weeks. This may be a consequence of inadequate watering by Tommy's support staff to balance the likely increases in evaporation and water loss.

Truss Productivity

The following graph shows the productivity of each truss. Trusses were labelled in the chronological order of their fruitfulness, hence truss 1 produced ripe fruit before truss 2. It is clear that productivity is greatest for the first trusses to develop. For example, the first four trusses produced about 140g of fruit each (15 tomatoes). Trusses 27-30 averaged 64g of fruit each (6.75 tomatoes). With later trusses, there is strong evidence for two types of truss growth producing either 1-3 or 8-10 tomatoes.

Weight Distribution

The following graph shows the distribution of tomato weights. This shows three maxima: 'runts' (0.5 - 1.0g), normal tomatoes (9g), and early 'monsters' (16.5g+).

Weight distribution on Trusses

A preceding graph demonstrates that the early trusses are most productive. In this section we show how the size of a tomato is determined by its position on the truss. The following graphs show that tomato weight generally decreases as a function of truss position (positions are numbered from the stem out to the extremity of the truss). The largest tomato is produced in an early position although not necessarily the first.

Consumption by Primary Tasters

Many of Tommy's researchers sampled the fruits of their work. However, analysis of the tasting notes shows that PM and HL were the major consumers. PM used Tommy's children primarily to supplement his breakfast-time bacon rolls. HL was consistently critical of the taste and texture of Tommy's fruit but always seemed to return for more. Note that AC's consumption does not take into account the many tomatoes removed for parties and picnics.