Playing Plant Tag
Look for F1 designations on hybrid plants this spring. F1 hybrids are plants cross bred from the seed of two genetically distinct plants to breed in the dominant characteristics of the parent plants into one superior plant. F1 is the first generation. If you collect seed from F1 plants, you can grow F2 plants, but there is no guarantee that plant will have the same characteristics of the first generation. Growers do this to develop plants with stronger disease resistance or brighter color.
Other initials on the plant tag are shorthand to help you with plant selection. Look for VFNT tomato varieties which are resistant to Verticillium wilt (V), Fusarium wilt (F), or nematodes (N), and Tobacco Mosaic (T)
The key word here is resistant. Plant disease resistence is like you and the flu. Wash your hands, avoid people who are sniffling and sneezing, and get a flu shot. But still, sometimes, you end up with the disease. Plants can be bred to be disease resistant. They haven’t been bred to be disease free, yet.
