What vegetables are Man Made?
What vegetables are man made? If you have little or no idea about the subject, I suggest that you go through this blog post now because it covers the topic in great detail.
Well, kids aren’t fond of vegetables, but vegans are. But have you ever considered that the veggies we eat often or may already have in your cupboard right now might be made by humans? It’s a serious question right there.
The answer is yes, certain vegetables are made by humans. Quite fascinating, isn’t it? I know I have stoked your interest and curiosity, so a mere answer of “yes” isn’t going to satisfy your desire.
Today, I have decided to educate you of the many man-made vegetables and their origins. Follow this guide until the end because you never know when your favorite food item could be included in the following list.
Here is the list of five vegetables that are Man-made
Carrots
Which is the very first image that pops up in your mind when you hear the word carrot? Other than bunnies, it must be the color orange as this is exactly the way we’ve imagined it since we became acquainted with this plant.
However, here’s an amazing fact. Have you ever thought that the natural carrots weren’t orange and may have been inedible at one time? You heard it right!
The original carrots are thought to be white in hue. According to other sources, they were black or purple. What is the reason why the carrot that is present in every other home and in the supermarket isn’t just edible, but also orange?
The orange hue resulted from a chemical known as B-carotene. It is also due to the efforts of farmers in the early days, who, through the method that used selective breeding techniques, managed make the modern-day orange carrot.
For hundreds of years the wild carrot ( Darcus Carotos) has gone through numerous genetic changes by farmers, which has resulted in better flavor, higher quality and a higher rate of production.
It is also thanks to these efforts that today we are able to enjoy its benefits for health and healing!
Broccoli
It’s often said broccoli is beneficial to your health due to the fact that it’s packed with a variety of nutrients. But this is something you may not have known. Broccoli is a human-made vegetable, too!
In reality, if there weren’t human beings, then you probably wouldn’t be eating it in the pasta or soups, since it’s not capable of growing by itself. However, where exactly does broccoli originate from? Let’s learn more.
The nutrient-rich treat was created by the selective cultivation of wild cabbage, sometimes referred to Brassica Oleracea. But, it’s not a genetically modified or biotech crop. There is no doubt about it.
In early times, this tiny plant-based vegetable was consumed at first during the time of early Roman Empire. Wow! It’s amazing to realize that this high-fiber veggie has a history dating back over two millennia?
Though in existence for ages, it wasn’t until 1700 that broccoli found its entrance into the US world. It was due to the efforts of Thomas Jefferson, who sowed the first broccoli seeds onto American soil. But, by the early 20th century the broccoli crop became a huge hit with the population of the US.
Cabbage
The broccoli is made of cabbage, but what’s the source of its origin? Can it be made by humans too?
The cabbage was not far from the tree of broccoli. The roots of cabbage, as with broccoli, can be traced all the way back Brassica Oleracea, which is also known as wild mustard or wild cabbage. The original cabbage wouldn’t be recognizable to us.
Furthermore, what if it were not for the work done by the pre-Celtic settlers who first began cultivating the cabbage grown across Northern Europe today? In that scenario, we could be missing out on the many advantages that cabbage can provide.
They mated wild cabbage with plants that had larger leaf buds, which eventually resulted in the creation of cabbage. During the Roman Empire era, the advantages of cabbage were known to the populace. In addition, people in the past knew that it was a good option to treat headaches, gout and digestive disorders. What a brilliant idea of our forefathers!
In addition, the cross-breeding process continued throughout time to create the kind of cabbage we see today. The next time your mother prepares you a soup or on its own in salads prepare to dazzle her with its long and intriguing history.
Tomatoes
Are you surprised to find this vegetable, which is the staple of our diets and the soul of Italian food on the list of man-made vegetable? Yes, we were!
The roots of Pomodoro (Italian for tomatoes ) is believed to go back to the Aztec Empire. Although tomatoes were in existence since 700 AD but it wasn’t until 18 or the middle of the 19th century that people from all over the globe realized that tomatoes were meant to be consumed. They began to incorporate them into their food.
Well, before this, what did they do with all the tomatoes they gathered over many centuries? The answer is that they considered tomatoes as ornaments, and decorated their houses with the tomatoes. Let it take a moment to sink in.
In the meantime, present tomatoes, all over the world are different from their predecessors. The first tomatoes that came into the world were tiny, comparable to peas in size. This is due to the long-term effects of selective breeding that tomatoes we consume are now flavorful and come in a variety of varieties.
Before we get to the next item in our checklist, prepare to laugh because this is a tomato-related joke to share with you. We’re hoping that it’ll make you more aware of all the bizarre details about history we’ve mentioned up to this point.
What happens to two tomatoes when they haven’t seen one another for a long time? Ha, ha, they get transformed into ketchups!
Let me now move on to the last, but definitely not the least, delightful vegetable in our list.
CUCUMBERS
Cucumbers, too? Yes, of course. Cucumbers are the last human-made vegetable in our current list of vegetables. Cucumbers are a low caloric vegetable with its roots that go all the way back to Ancient India which is which is where it was discovered out in nature. What is the process by which it is created?
The ancestor plant of cucumber appeared like a cactus that Indian civilizations cultivated in the beginning. It started trading with other regions of the world and soon became well-known.
Another interesting fact is the time period in the 18th century there were medical reports, which concluded that using certain cooked vegetables that were not cooked (which included cucumbers, too) is harmful to health.
This misconception caused the reduction in sales of cucumbers. It was during the 19th century that cucumbers began to gain popularity.
In light of these In the course of time the original cucumber was tweaked and altered to create three distinct varieties of cucumbers, including pickling, slicing and seedless, all of which are sold in a variety of stores.
After all the information discussed above, the notion of man-made foods being unhealthy or harmful might have come into your mind. It’s not our fault. It’s only natural to think that way.
We are, however, happy to announce that the truth is not as it seems. The human-made veggies which are also called hybrid vegetables are not harmful to your health as they were created as a result of cross-breeding between closely-related species of plants.
Botanists believe this is an organic practice and, in actuality, due to the crossbreeding process and selective breeding techniques, that we can now enjoy these delicious foods today.
But that’s not all! Hybrid vegetables also have many other great advantages, such as:
- They have a longer shelf life than their parents
- The production rate is high.
- They are packed with nutrients.
Wrapping up
So,what vegetables are man made? Well, I have given you a list of all five vegetables you didn’t even realize were made by humans, as listed above. I tried to include as much details as possible.
Fruits and vegetables that are made by humans are actually quite widespread. The majority of the food items available on the market nowadays are improved and modified versions of the plant’s original and, with examples like those of the family known as cabbage, it is evident there’s a lot you can accomplish with only one plant.
Whatever we put on the plate today during breakfast, lunch or dinner, we ought to be grateful to the numerous botanists who took the initiative to transform fruits and vegetables into special varieties that we enjoy at present.