Auntie Aggie and the tomato sandwich plant
by Dorrith M Sim
‘If you eat your crusts, you’ll get curly hair.’
That was Auntie Aggie talking. Molly had come to visit Auntie Aggie and Uncle Joe and now they were having a picnic in the garden. Auntie Aggie watched as Molly threw the crusts of her tomato sandwich to some sparrows.
‘I wonder if the sparrows will grow curly feathers if they eat the crust?’ thought Molly. ‘They would look funny.’
She threw the last bit of her sandwich to a little sparrow who was hopping about in the vegetable patch, but it flew away without picking it up.
It was some months later. Molly was visiting again. She was helping Auntie Aggie to hang out her washing when Uncle Joe called her.
‘Come and see what’s growing here!’ he said.
Molly looked down as Uncle Joe pointed to a little green plant that was growing between a row of lettuces and a row of cabbages in the vegetable patch.
‘Guess what that is, Molly,’ said Uncle Joe.
Molly was a bit puzzled.
‘I think I’ve seen one of these before,’ she said and she bent down and sniffed it.
‘I know that smell,’ she said. ‘I’ve smelt it before in my Uncle Geordie’s greenhouse. Does it grow tomatoes, Uncle Joe?’
Uncle Joe laughed. ‘You’re a bright wee lass, Molly. But I didn’t plant it. How do you think it got into my garden?’
Molly thought and thought but she didn’t get any good ideas. Auntie Aggie came out to throw crumbs to the birds and Molly showed her the tomato plant.
‘We’ll get Uncle Joe to put it into a flower pot for you, Molly,’ said Auntie Aggie. ‘I’ll put it at my kitchen window and keep it watered. You’ll be surprised how quickly it will grow!’
Molly visited her plant nearly every week. It was not long before Auntie Aggie had to find a much larger pot for it and a long cane to support it. Some flowers appeared.
‘You’ll soon have tiny green baby tomatoes, Molly,’ said Auntie Aggie. ‘Just you watch when the flowers start to die off.’
Molly began to feel quite sorry for Auntie Aggie. The plant had grown so tall!
‘Poor Auntie Aggie,’ she said, ‘you can hardly see out of the kitchen window.’
The flower petals began to drop off and the green baby tomatoes grew and grew. Then they started to ripen and turn red.
‘Do you know what we’re going to do today?’ said Auntie Aggie the next time Molly visited.
‘We’re going to have a picnic in the garden, and can you imagine what we are going to eat?’ she continued. Molly shook her head.
‘Tomato sandwiches of course!’ laughed Auntie Aggie. ‘and from your very own plant.’
Molly helped Auntie Aggie make the sandwiches and carry the picnic table out.
Auntie Aggie watched as Molly threw the crust of her sandwich to some birds, just as she’d done the last time they’d eaten tomato sandwiches in the garden. Auntie Aggie got quite excited.
‘Molly,’ she exclaimed, ‘I know why your plant was growing in the garden. When you threw your tomato sandwich crusts to the sparrows, some of the tomato inside must have fallen onto the earth and the seeds must have grown.’
‘It’s not just an ordinary old tomato plant that you’ve got growing in my kitchen window. It’s a very special extraordinary TOMATO SANDWICH PLANT!’
‘And that’s a good story to tell your Mum and Dad when you go home!’ chimed in Uncle Joe, with a twinkle in his eye.
I wonder if Uncle Joe will find another tomato sandwich plant in his garden next year?
Molly did throw some more tomato sandwich crusts to the birds.
I don’t expect she’ll ever get curly hair though. Auntie Aggie says you only get curly hair if you eat your crusts! In fact – Auntie Aggie says if you don’t eat your crusts you’ll get straight hair and curly teeth! I do hope she’s wrong, don’t you?