Patches of cotton, tall papayas and stands of bananas all amaze guests as they are introduced to the many crops of the world while meandering by boat through The Land pavilion at Disney's Epcot.
But the most unbelievable planting is just ahead.
As they enter a vegetable production area, their mouths drop open and their eyes bulge. The visitors point to the more than 6-foot-tall -- with a canopy measuring 24 feet by 30 feet -- lone tomato tree. Hundreds of bright-red 1-inch-diameter fruits hang ready to be picked from the overhead branches.
"It's grown beyond our expectations," says Yong Huang, agricultural science manager of Epcot Science at the Walt Disney World Co. "All are shocked by the size and the fruiting potential of the single plant."
Guinness World Records in London lists the largest yield of tomatoes on a single plant as 185 fruits. Guests passing by the Epcot tomato tree get a daily update, and as of Feb. 22, this super producer had matured 22,756 fruits weighing 895 pounds.
Huang says the bountiful harvest deserves special recognition, and the staff is applying for a new world's record.
The tall tomato story started in May 2004 when Huang visited a friend and hybridizer of unique vegetables in China. He saw the extra-large tomato plants and knew one should be growing at Epcot. He returned with 15 seeds.
A first planting was made backstage away from the daily traffic to refine the production techniques; then on Dec. 10, 2004, seeds were sown that resulted in the present plant. The tomato grows in a 90-gallon container that has a mixture of equal parts coarse sand and peat moss, says Yuqing Fan, an Epcot Science entomologist who is nurturing the plant.
The plant is fed and irrigated three times a day through a hydroponic system using a soaker tube curled across the surface of the soil. The amount of fertilizer in the liquid solution is adjusted to the growth phases of the plant and the seasons of the year.
Fan says the plant has a trunk diameter near the soil of 10 centimeters, or 4 inches. It is expected to survive and produce for two to three years.
Most tomato plants develop a vinelike growth habit, but getting one to assume a tree shape took some training. As a young plant, all branches formed below 1 foot were removed, and the remaining limbs were supported by strings for three months until they reached an overhead arbor.
Epcot staff members all agree the fruits are sweet, firm and meaty.
The Orlando Sentinel is a Tribune Co. newspaper.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/feature...,0,2019377.story?coll=sfla-features-headlines
But the most unbelievable planting is just ahead.
As they enter a vegetable production area, their mouths drop open and their eyes bulge. The visitors point to the more than 6-foot-tall -- with a canopy measuring 24 feet by 30 feet -- lone tomato tree. Hundreds of bright-red 1-inch-diameter fruits hang ready to be picked from the overhead branches.
"It's grown beyond our expectations," says Yong Huang, agricultural science manager of Epcot Science at the Walt Disney World Co. "All are shocked by the size and the fruiting potential of the single plant."
Guinness World Records in London lists the largest yield of tomatoes on a single plant as 185 fruits. Guests passing by the Epcot tomato tree get a daily update, and as of Feb. 22, this super producer had matured 22,756 fruits weighing 895 pounds.
Huang says the bountiful harvest deserves special recognition, and the staff is applying for a new world's record.
The tall tomato story started in May 2004 when Huang visited a friend and hybridizer of unique vegetables in China. He saw the extra-large tomato plants and knew one should be growing at Epcot. He returned with 15 seeds.
A first planting was made backstage away from the daily traffic to refine the production techniques; then on Dec. 10, 2004, seeds were sown that resulted in the present plant. The tomato grows in a 90-gallon container that has a mixture of equal parts coarse sand and peat moss, says Yuqing Fan, an Epcot Science entomologist who is nurturing the plant.
The plant is fed and irrigated three times a day through a hydroponic system using a soaker tube curled across the surface of the soil. The amount of fertilizer in the liquid solution is adjusted to the growth phases of the plant and the seasons of the year.
Fan says the plant has a trunk diameter near the soil of 10 centimeters, or 4 inches. It is expected to survive and produce for two to three years.
Most tomato plants develop a vinelike growth habit, but getting one to assume a tree shape took some training. As a young plant, all branches formed below 1 foot were removed, and the remaining limbs were supported by strings for three months until they reached an overhead arbor.
Epcot staff members all agree the fruits are sweet, firm and meaty.
The Orlando Sentinel is a Tribune Co. newspaper.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/feature...,0,2019377.story?coll=sfla-features-headlines