Sunday, January 23, 2011

Cosmonaut Volkov Tomato

I love language, and seeds with names like Cosmonaut Volkov tomato get me every time.

The naming story varies by seed site, with Wikipedia saying Vladislav Volkov (center) and crew died when a Soyuz space capsule valve opened too soon upon re-entry in 1971, suffocating the crew.

Tomatofest describes the tomato thusly: Ukrainian heirloom named after the famous Russian cosmonaut who died while landing.

That's sad, but the tomato looks worthy and we'll be growing it this summer.

Other sites contain speculation that Cosmonaut Volkov seeds went into space but I'm not able to confirm.

More at Territorial Seed Company, whose tomato description plays off the "out of this word" angle and doesn't mention death of a cosmonaut at all.

If you have a favorite oddly named fruit or vegetable, send it along.

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