After loving and eating tomatoes my whole life, now I seem to be alergic to them.

[Chasdev]

A few months ago I was at a taco joint with the wife and while we waited for our order I was loading up on red salsa and pico from the self serve island and had a chat with another gentleman waiting for his order.
He saw me loading up on containers with red salsa packed in them and he stated he loved red salsa but he could not eat it any more as it caused him gastric "distress".
I told him how I could not get enough and he said he was the same way in the past.
So time goes by and I start to experience gastric distress myself, but I ignore it and just keep on eating whatever I please, as I alway have done.
The gastric episodes began to impinge on my daily activities, making me wary of venturing away from home on shopping trips or vists to family, so I started a food diary and sure enough every time I ate anything with tomato in it at all, the next day I suffered from intestinal distress.
Fresh tomato, tomato sauce in any form, hot salsa, marinara, anything at all and even in small amounts tore me up.
I cut out all tomato period and presto, I'm cured.
I guess that guy at the taco stand was a foreshadowing of my fate!
Good news is that no amount of hot peppers, pickled or fresh has any effect on me at all, other than pure enjoyment.
But not ever eating a garden fresh mater again is sort of bumming me out.

 

[02ebz06]

Well that sucks. Sorry it happened to you.
I love tomatoes too, but still OK. Fingers crossed.

 

[Steve H]

Night shade allergy. My sister has it. I really hope I don't get it.

 

[Fueling Around]

Does it extend to potatoes, too?

My wife has seasonal allergies to items in the cucurbita family.

 

[Steve H]

Does it extend to potatoes, too?

My wife has seasonal allergies to items in the cucurbita family.

Potatoes are included. But to fully understand this. You should bring this up to your wife's doctor.

 

[1MoreFord]

I'd try taking some Prilosec or Nexium to see if that helps. They do wonders for my Gerd.

 

[Chasdev]

I've been slowy and in small doses re-introducing tomato related food items to my diet.
So far so good.
I got to enjoy some excellent hot salsa the other day and nothing bad happened.
It was so good I think it would have been worth a bout of diaricus.
I can't imagine tacos without salsa..just saying.

 

[gmc2003]

I used to live next to a guy that was allergic to sunlight. Really strange dude. Total nightowl who once gut busted for walking down the middle of the highway drunk at midnight.

Chris

 

[rayjay]

I can't imagine not being able to eat tomatoes. They got me into gardening to grow them back about 50 yrs ago and the obsession is so bad I started a greenhouse to extend the season early and late and eventually started growing in the house in 17g pots with metal halides. Last few years I've been using LEDs for indoors and it sure saves the hydro.

 

[Chasdev]

Here in Africa hot Austin Tx, growing them outdoors is pretty much impossible.
The local store carries Compari brand and they are almost the real item.
Last time I visited my Sister up north we picked some monsters right off the vine and chowed down right there, pure heaven!

 

[Fueling Around]

Here in Africa hot Austin Tx, growing them outdoors is pretty much impossible.
The local store carries Compari brand and they are almost the real item.
Last time I visited my Sister up north we picked some monsters right off the vine and chowed down right there, pure heaven!

I'm currently in central Florida and have a pot plant growing on the apartment balcony. It comes inside when the temps dip into the 50's. Got ping pong sized maters and many more coming.

 

[JIMSMOKES]

I'm currently in central Florida and have a pot plant growing on the apartment balcony. It comes inside when the temps dip into the 50's. Got ping pong sized maters and many more coming.

Could you tell me more about this pot plant on your balcony? That you're controlling temp and light cycles on in Florida.

 

[rayjay]

Could you tell me more about this pot plant on your balcony? That you're controlling temp and light cycles on in Florida.

While you haven't asked me, I'd like to chime in based on my years of experience with regards to growing tomatoes in pots.
My earliest years growing outside my auto repair shop I used 5g pails but the tomatoes only grew 1 1/4 to 2 inches in diameter.
Now when growing them indoors under LED lighting I use 17g pots and the tomatoes run 2 1/4 to 3 inches in diameter with occasional ones smaller and larger.
The same species of tomato when I grow them in my gardens will get up to 4 1/2-6 inches with some smaller ones. (Heirloom beefstake type)
My conclusion is that the larger the pot, the larger the tomato possibility, assuming it would normally be a large tomato when grown normally.
Another suggestion I would have, that if using soilless mix of some kind, even if made for veggie growing, add a calcium supply to it as there isn't enough to prevent blossom end rot without the addition.

 

[JIMSMOKES]

While you haven't asked me, I'd like to chime in based on my years of experience with regards to growing tomatoes in pots.
My earliest years growing outside my auto repair shop I used 5g pails but the tomatoes only grew 1 1/4 to 2 inches in diameter.
Now when growing them indoors under LED lighting I use 17g pots and the tomatoes run 2 1/4 to 3 inches in diameter with occasional ones smaller and larger.
The same species of tomato when I grow them in my gardens will get up to 4 1/2-6 inches with some smaller ones. (Heirloom beefstake type)
My conclusion is that the larger the pot, the larger the tomato possibility, assuming it would normally be a large tomato when grown normally.
Another suggestion I would have, that if using soilless mix of some kind, even if made for veggie growing, add a calcium supply to it as there isn't enough to prevent blossom end rot without the addition.

I've only grown tomatoes in containers when I rented. I cut a hole in the bottom of a 5 gal buckets stuck a plant in it and filled with dirt. Then hung them from porch like ferns. LoL
My cure for bloom end rot has always been Epsom salt. I know it don't have calcium in it but that's how my granddaddy and grandmother taught me to fix it.

 

[Fueling Around]

Could you tell me more about this pot plant on your balcony? That you're controlling temp and light cycles on in Florida.

A potted Big Beef tomato plant in a 5 gallon bucket. It gets morning light and I have 2 reflector hoods with LED grow lights. A pint of water every day. Eggshells and coffee grounds in a water bottle for acidity and calcium. My first time trying it in a bucket. As long as overnight temps stay in the upper 50's, it lives on the balcony. It will be coming inside every night for the next week or so and this weekend it will be inside for 3 days.

 

[rayjay]

A potted Big Beef tomato plant in a 5 gallon bucket. It gets morning light and I have 2 reflector hoods with LED grow lights. A pint of water every day. Eggshells and coffee grounds in a water bottle for acidity and calcium. My first time trying it in a bucket. As long as overnight temps stay in the upper 50's, it lives on the balcony. It will be coming inside every night for the next week or so and this weekend it will be inside for 3 days.

FWIW, I leave the tomatoes out even below 50° as all it does is slow their growth but doesn't hurt the plant. They stay healthy even down to freezing as long as I cover them up for frost when frost is going to happen.

 

[DEERMAKER]

A few months ago I was at a taco joint with the wife and while we waited for our order I was loading up on red salsa and pico from the self serve island and had a chat with another gentleman waiting for his order.
He saw me loading up on containers with red salsa packed in them and he stated he loved red salsa but he could not eat it any more as it caused him gastric "distress".
I told him how I could not get enough and he said he was the same way in the past.
So time goes by and I start to experience gastric distress myself, but I ignore it and just keep on eating whatever I please, as I alway have done.
The gastric episodes began to impinge on my daily activities, making me wary of venturing away from home on shopping trips or vists to family, so I started a food diary and sure enough every time I ate anything with tomato in it at all, the next day I suffered from intestinal distress.
Fresh tomato, tomato sauce in any form, hot salsa, marinara, anything at all and even in small amounts tore me up.
I cut out all tomato period and presto, I'm cured.
I guess that guy at the taco stand was a foreshadowing of my fate!
Good news is that no amount of hot peppers, pickled or fresh has any effect on me at all, other than pure enjoyment.
But not ever eating a garden fresh mater again is sort of bumming me out.

I grew up eating watermelon every chance I got. Realized when hit my late 30's, it started making throat itch like crazy. Been bad since . Crazy, they say every seven years our bodies cycle through changes. Guess it could be true lol. Sorry to hear of the issues you get.

 

[Fueling Around]

Tastes and body acceptance do change. I can eat asparagus and cauliflower today that I couldn't stand as short as a few years ago.

Got my first balcony tomato yesterday.
Watering up to a quart per day and feeding every 5 days. First tomato was baseball sized and about expected for a big beef.

I thin each cluster to 1 tomato

 

[rayjay]

Tastes and body acceptance do change. I can eat asparagus and cauliflower today that I couldn't stand as short as a few years ago.

Got my first balcony tomato yesterday.
Watering up to a quart per day and feeding every 5 days. First tomato was baseball sized and about expected for a big beef.
View attachment 692649
I thin each cluster to 1 tomato

I wish I could grow outdoors year round but here in London Ontario zone 5 the minus temps would soon make waste of them.
Fortunately, I've set up 2 -17g pots inside my patio door and have them lit with LED lighting.

 

[Fueling Around]

This is a Florida experiment on bucket raising. I am going to have a lot of tomatoes for the next 3 weeks before I kill the plant and we move back to MN for the summer.