Leading market states are Texas, 40,000 acres; Florida, 31,000 and California, 22,000. Tomatoes are grown in a very large number of states--23 or 24 states showing 1,000 acres or more for market. Leading cannery states are Indiana, 74,000 acres; California, 52,000; Maryland, 51,000; and New Jersey, 33,000. California, also Pennsylvania and Ohio have shown recent large gains. Large quantities grown in town and country home gardens are not included in these figures and probably also many grown on small scale for market. After all, however, the United States Department of Agriculture estimated per capita consumption of fresh tomatoes at 17.7 pounds, about one medium sized fruit per week per person. Consumption of canned tomatoes is less than a third of the fresh consumption. These figures include estimates for rural and urban home gardens. So, we can hardly be said to be gluttons for tomatoes nor even to meet a fair health standard, even considering all vegetables together. After all, it does not have to be tomatoes even though their high nutritional value is recognized. [Illustration: FIGURE 1.--The tomato is the leader among greenhouse vegetables.] In commercial greenhouses, the tomato has replaced lettuce as the principal crop and it is likely to remain an important under-glass crop until such time as the South finds practical means of getting it to market with first-class quality--perhaps, harvesting the fruit when it first shows color. Solution Culture The tomato has been widely used in experiments in solution-culture of plants, sometimes called "hydroponics." The method has been in use for decades for research purposes, but has been widely publicized of recent years as a possible method of commercial culture. A high degree of control of factors governing growth is undertaken and difficulties are proportionately increased. Hence no extensive commercial development has occurred. A good presentation of the method has been offered by Hoagland and Arnon.[1] The Tomato Plant To manage a crop, one must needs know the plant. To know the various characters of the tomato helps one to master its culture. The tomato belongs to the night shade family, the Solanaceae of the botanist, along with the potato, tobacco, petunia, pepper, eggplant, night shade, jimson weed and many other plants useful and noxious.