Suddenly, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes seems just a little bit closer to reality with the news that tomatoes are carnivorous. No, you didn’t misread that: Tomatoes are carnivorous… and so are potatoes. Everything you knew is wrong, people.
The announcement comes from researchers at Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, who carried out an assessment of carnivorous plants in honor of the bicentenary of Charles Darwin’s birth only to discover many potential additions to the officially recognized list. Kew’s Dr Mike Fay explains:
Widely recognised carnivorous plants number some 650 and we estimate that another 325 or so are probable additions – so an increase of about 50 per cent.
Amongst that 325 are species of tomatoes, ornamental tobacco plants, potatoes and a mustard plant commonly known as “shepherd’s purse.” They are believed to trap and eat insects by trapping their bodies until they die, decay, fall to the ground and are absorbed by the roots of the plant… which is almost as circuitous as it is creepy. But at least we now know the danger of the salad bar.
Attack of the killer tomatoes [Independent.co.uk]
