Climbing tomatoes that I saw in Southern Nigeria..info?

In 2000 I visited Owerri, Nigeria. Our hotel regularly served sliced tomatoes in salads. I took no notice that every slice of tomato had the same diameter until I saw the tomatoes on the vine. While visiting a nearby hamlet I saw tomato vines that climbed trees, both tall palm trees and shorter fruit trees, reaching perhaps 100 feet or more. The tomatoes hung from the vines and looked like long english cucumbers. The unripened tomatoes were green with white variegation. When sliced the individual slices were all approximately equal..no variation as with round tomatoes where ends are smaller than center slices. The flavor was indistinguishable from our tomatoes except they were organically grown, vine ripened, and quite tasty. Anyone know anything about these and where I can get seeds?

That has to be one of the most interesting tomatoes I've ever heard of! I'm familiar with "tree tomatoes" but other than growing very tall they don't fit your description, especially the elongated fruit.

Will do some checking around, and also will keep an eye on this thread in case someone has your answer, msrnlds.

MS,

Are you absolutely sure what you were eating was a tomato, as in the genus Lycopersicon, which defines a true tomato?

I ask only because I'm pretty familiar with all nine species of tomatoes and what you describe doesn't exist for any of them as to immature color or shape, etc.

What color were the ripe fruits?

Could it have been Cyphomandra betaceae, which is called a tree tomato but isn't a tomato? No, you said long vines, s not a tree tomato which is a bush.

Could it have been one of the many fruits of the genus Solanum?

I know that many different species of Solanum are grown in Africa and used for fresh eating.

Any other information would be helpful, and you might want to do a Google search on the Solanum genus and look at the descriptions of the various species to see if you find a fit. I'm betting highly that you'll find what you were eating was not a tomato but a fruit from one of the Solanum species. The two genera are closely related, and actually some Solanum species will cross pollinate some Lycopersicon ( true tomatoes) species, but Solanums are not called tomatoes, although they might do so locally.

Carolyn

Hmmm...that tree tomato could appear to some to be a vine, it really sends out some "limbs", but I see what you mean, Carolyn, I don't think it would send out limbs 100 feet (but just guessing here). Maybe a 'all yr long' tomato climate would get them to grow that long? I dunno. However, the shape of the fruit doesn't sound like Lycopersicon.

HOpe we find out more on this. (Still looking!)

Personally, I think it's a potato.

Did you know that potatoes are not tubers? And that they're really vining fruits? And they don't want to grow underground?

Potato breeders in Scotland routinely train potatoes up ropes, like grapes, shrouded in little black plastic bags. (True.)

As all my potatoes last year seemed to want to grow above ground, no matter how much mulch I threw on 'em, I think it's a potato.

(I don't think John imbibes fermented tater mash, but am now wondering here.) :>) And now am curious about it all!

Do those Scots wrap each tater in black plastic? What a chore. (Where is Wintermoor when we need him?) You definitely need to elaborate on this subject.

Could they actually be cucumbers? As msrnlds said above, they resemble cucumbers in shape.

One other question to msrnlds, were the insides of the "tomato" juicy with seeds and/or seed cavities like a tomato or cuke? Or were they firm (like potato)?