Arkansas State Fruit and Vegetable

Vine Ripe Tomato

Genus Lycopersicon

Adopted on May 16, 1987.

The South Arkansas Vine Ripe Tomato, Genus Lycopersicon, was adopted by the Seventy-sixth General Assembly on May 16, 1987. The tomato is officially defined as a fruit but is commonly considered a vegetable. The Pink Tomato Festival is held each year in Bradley County.

The tomato is considered a fruit botanically, but is often used as a vegetable. Because of the dual nature of the tomato, the sponsoring legislation adopted the South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato as both the official state fruit and the official state vegetable of Arkansas.

Tennessee has also adopted the tomato as their official state fruit however, Tennessee does not specify a specific variety.

The Arkansas Code

The following information is excerpted from the Arkansas Code, Title 1, Chapter 4, Section 1-4-115.

Title 1. General Provisions.
Chapter 4. State Symbols, Motto, Etc.
SECTION

1-4-115. State fruit and vegetable.

It is found and determined by the General Assembly that the South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato has a taste, texture, appearance, and aroma second to none and that the tomato is botanically a fruit and used as a vegetable. It is further determined by the General Assembly that Arkansas does not have a state fruit or a state vegetable. Therefore, the South Arkansas Vine Ripe Pink Tomato shall be the official state fruit and the official state vegetable.

History. Acts 1987, No. 255, § 1.

Lycopersicon is the botanical name for the Tomato plant. The fruits of these plants are international favorites and there are more varieties sold of it than of any other vegetable. They may be eaten cooked or raw and are a good source of vitamins. The Tomato loves sunshine and is grown as a warm-weather annual, although it is actually a tender perennial. It is grown in greenhouses where summers are too cool for pollination and fruit to set in gardens. The garden varieties of Tomato come from two wild types; L. esculentum and L. pimpinellifolium are originally from western South America. The Tomato was introduced into European gardens in the early part of the sixteenth century, though it wasn't accepted as being edible; this may be possibly because it belongs to the Nightshade family (such as the White Potato, Eggplant, Pepper and other members of the Potato family, Solanaceae) and resembles many plants that were known to be poisonous; it was grown as an interesting ornamental plant. Tomatoes were grown in 1781 by Thomas Jefferson in Virginia, but weren't really known in America as an edible food until after 1834 and it was some years later that they even became popular.