What It Means If You See These Holes in Tomatoes
Ever pulled a tomato from your garden or grocery bag only to find a hole in it? While it’s tempting to toss it immediately, understanding why holes appear can help you fix the problem and prevent it in the future.Holes in tomatoes are often caused by pests like hornworms, stink bugs, and beetles that chew or bore into the fruit. Birds and squirrels are also culprits, especially when tomatoes are ripening.
Birds tend to peck the fruit, while squirrels may take bigger bites. In some cases, internal issues like blossom end rot or “catfacing” (a deformity caused by temperature fluctuations during flowering) can lead to holes or scars.So, is it safe to eat a tomato with a hole? It depends. If the hole is small and there are no signs of bugs, mold, or bad smells, the tomato is likely still good. Just cut around the damaged area and use the rest. But if it’s large, moldy, or gives off a bad odor, it’s best to toss it.
To prevent holes in your tomatoes, there are a few simple steps you can take. Inspect your plants regularly for pests, especially around the leaves and fruit. Water consistently to avoid fruit splitting, as uneven watering can create vulnerabilities. You can also use netting or garden fabric to keep birds and squirrels away. Companion plants like basil, marigolds, and garlic can help deter certain pests naturally. Finally, keep your garden tidy by removing fallen fruit and weeds, as they can attract pests,
If you find a hole in a tomato, first check for bugs or mold, then cut open the fruit to see if the interior is still good. If it looks fine, cut away the damaged part and use the rest. If it’s bad, don’t risk it—just throw it away and check your other tomatoes for similar issues.With a little attention to your plants and garden, you can minimize the chances of dealing with damaged tomatoes and enjoy a bountiful, healthy harvest. Tomatoes may be high-maintenance, but they’re totally worth it, especially when you’ve grown them yourself.
Woman’s joke before bungee jump turns chillingly prophetic
What started as a playful joke quickly turned into a nightmare for one woman, whose near-death experience during a bungee jump became a terrifying brush with fate.
It goes to show that anything can happen, especially when you perhaps are not expecting it.
Keep reading to learn more.
Back in 2012, 22-year-old Erin Langworthy from Australia was on a trip to the iconic Victoria Falls — a natural wonder straddling the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe — when she decided to take on a 360-foot bungee jump from a bridge spanning the Zambezi River.
Before the jump, Erin jokingly sent her mum a postcard, teasing: “I’m doing a bungee jump tomorrow, so I’ll say goodbye… only joking!” It was meant to be light-hearted, but her words would soon take on a haunting significance.
Erin was the 105th person to jump that day, and she admitted she felt a few nerves, but never imagined anything could go wrong. As is customary for the jump, her leap was captured on camera. The footage shows her arms outstretched, falling gracefully — until, in a split second, the cord snaps.
Plummeting into the Zambezi, notorious for its strong currents and crocodile population, Erin hit the water hard, and the broken cord still bound her feet together.
“It felt amazing at first,” Erin later said, per The Guardian. “Then I felt a jolt across my chest, like I slowed down for a second… and suddenly I hit the water. That’s when I realised something had gone seriously wrong.”
Knocked unconscious for a moment by the impact, Erin came to underwater, her lungs burning, disoriented and struggling to work out which way was up. “As I went deeper, the water got colder; I think that snapped me out of it,” she recalled.
To make matters worse, the bungee cord tangled in rocks and debris as she was swept through the rapids. With immense effort, she managed to dive under and free it more than once. Despite severe bruising and internal trauma, she swam through the fast-flowing river and made it to the Zimbabwean side, where a staff member helped her to safety.
“I’d seen crocodiles that morning,” she later said, “but I couldn’t even think about that. I was coughing up blood and struggling to breathe. My lungs were on fire.”
She credits her instinctive outstretched arms during the fall for saving her from a head-first impact and likely unconsciousness.
Erin was taken to a nearby hospital in Victoria Falls where she was put on a ventilator, underwent scans and was treated for partially collapsed lungs and potential infections from the dirty river water. “I had ingested a lot of water, so they gave me strong antibiotics,” she said of her stay in the hospital. “But miraculously, there were no broken bones.”
Despite the trauma, Erin was philosophical about the incident. “The bungee team were incredibly apologetic. I think it’s a miracle I survived.”
In the wake of the accident, Zambia’s then-tourism minister Given Lubinda addressed public fears, saying the bungee jump had a strong safety record with over 50,000 jumpers a year and just one known incident, according to The Lusaka Tmes.
In fact, Lubinda even offered to jump again, alongside Erin, to prove the safety of the operation. “It’s my responsibility to take the risk,” he said. “And to show the world that Zambia is still a destination worth visiting and bungee jumping in.”
