Tomato Mountain Magic is a type of tomato plant that is known for its incredible taste and productivity. This variety of tomato has gained popularity among gardeners and farmers due to its ability to produce a large number of flavorful tomatoes. The Tomato Mountain Magic plant is known for its vigorous growth and high yield. It tends to grow taller than other tomato varieties, reaching heights of up to 6 feet. The plant produces an abundance of small to medium-sized tomatoes that have a rich and sweet flavor. These tomatoes are perfect for eating fresh, slicing into salads, or using in various recipes.
Still, deadstick landings do happen. If an aircraft loses power, a useful number to know is the aircraft's glide ratio: the ratio of horizontal distance traveled to vertical distance descended. Say, for instance, a paper airplane travels 30 feet for every five feet it falls. Its glide ratio—30 divided by 5—is 6.
Crossing the runway threshold at 230 mph, 70 mph faster than recommended, the airplane used three-quarters of the 10,000 feet of concrete to bounce, then screech to a halt. After following eight Andean Condors for five years, a team of European and Latin American scientists found that even young birds soar about 99 percent of their flight time.
These tomatoes are perfect for eating fresh, slicing into salads, or using in various recipes. One of the reasons why Tomato Mountain Magic is so popular is because of its disease resistance. This variety of tomato is resistant to fungal diseases, such as blight and powdery mildew, as well as common pests like aphids and nematodes.
These Masters of the Sky Can Fly for Hours (or Days) While Barely Flapping
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A Boeing 737 requires a lot of jet fuel to stay up in the air: at least 750 gallons every hour. Flying, as humans have learned, takes a lot of energy. For birds, maintaining their own bodies up in the sky for hours, days, and even months can also be incredibly costly, but they've at least evolved for the task. Small birds like warblers are lightweight enough that they can remain airborne by quickly flapping their wings. For heavier birds, though, flapping takes too much energy. When bird species reach the size of a small raptor, they start to rely on other types of flight: soaring and gliding.
Through soaring, birds gain altitude and travel quickly by taking energy from wind currents in the atmosphere. When they glide, they use the position of their wings to deflect air downward, which creates a force called "updraft" that keeps them up in the air. There are different kinds of soaring and gliding, and birds use them in a variety of ways.
“The air is this amazing environment that's on the move all the time,” says Emily Shepard, a researcher who studies animal movement at Swansea University in Wales. “It's just fascinating to see how it can create both opportunities and risks for different species.” Meet some of the masters of these flying techniques.
Wandering Albatrosses
“Wandering Albatrosses are the ultimate soaring birds,” says Anders Hedenström, an animal flight expert at Sweden's Lund University. When you take a look at their bodies, you understand why: With wings reaching 11 to 12 feet long from tip to tip, they have the largest wingspan of any living bird. Those wings can keep their thin, cigarette-like bodies aloft for days at a time.
Wandering Albatrosses spend between 1.2 to 14.5 percent of their flight time slowly flapping to stay in the air, researchers have found. The rest of the time their wings are splayed wide. Like many other birds, Wandering Albatrosses soar by catching a ride on thermals—hot air rising from the ground—to gain altitude. But what makes them unique is their impressive ability to engage in a type of flight called “dynamic soaring,” which can only happen while flying over the ocean, says Todd Katzner, a wildlife biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey.
In dynamic soaring, albatrosses take advantage of the different speeds and directions wind flows depending on how close it is to the Earth’s surface. The birds start close to the ocean, where they catch a ride upward on a thermal. They slowly climb, and when they reach high altitudes, where wind moves faster, they shift to fly in the same direction of the wind. That way, they can glide at a relatively fast speed while descending. By the time they are at lower altitudes, where wind is moving slowly, they have picked up a lot of momentum and are moving fast. That lets them turn their bodies diagonally in the direction they want to travel, even if it's against the wind. Finally, when they are running out of energy and slowing down, they restart the cycle by catching another thermal.
Accompanied by maneuvers that use the movement of the wind rising over waves, dynamic soaring is how Wandering Albatrosses manage to travel up to 3,000 miles a week using barely any energy.
Andean Condors
If Wandering Albatrosses are the soaring masters of the sea, there is no doubt Andean Condors take the crown for inland birds. Research published recently showed that the Andean Condor—the heaviest soaring bird, at 35 pounds—flaps less during flight than any other free-ranging bird. After following eight Andean Condors for five years, a team of European and Latin American scientists found that even young birds soar about 99 percent of their flight time. “They are the extreme version of a soaring bird. It was fascinating to us,” says Emily Shepard, the lead author of the study.
The researchers found that these giant birds flap only during take-off and landing. They are so massive that they lose altitude even when flapping as fast as they can. This means that their reliance on wind currents is nearly absolute, says Shepard. So, to stay in the air, Andean Condors mostly use thermals to elevate. Once they’re high enough, they can glide between thermals looking for food. Less frequently they use another type of air current called “orographic updraft” that forms when the wind collides with an object—like a mountain or a building—and changes its direction to go upwards.
The researchers are now focusing on understanding the social aspects of soaring, or how a group of birds using the same air resources influence each other’s decisions—such as when to jump from one thermal to another, or picking the best spot to land or take off, says co-author Hannah Williams.
Great Frigatebirds
Great Frigatebirds make the "sky masters" podium because they can successfully soar through doldrums—areas in the open ocean where the wind doesn’t blow. How do they do it? In 2016, a team of researchers uncovered the mystery.
It’s the only bird that is known to enter into a cloud intentionally.
Like many other soaring birds, Great Frigatebirds use thermals to gain altitude. But unlike the others, they ride powerful thermals inside white and puffy cumulus clouds, which can elevate them 13 feet per second. “It’s the only bird that is known to enter into a cloud intentionally,” Henri Weimerskirch, lead author of the paper describing this behavior, told NPR in 2016. By doing so the birds can reach altitudes as high as 13,000 feet.
The amount of time they can soar without stopping is also impressive. While migrating through the Indian Ocean, the birds can stay in the air for up to two months, gliding between thermals while scanning for food on the surface of the sea. One tagged frigatebird traveled 34,000 miles in 185 days, stopping briefly on small islands for just four days! Such an achievement could only be accomplished by the bird with the greatest wing-area-to-body-mass ratio in the world. It also helps that they can sleep on the wing.
American White Pelicans
American White Pelicans have a trick under their wing that sets them apart from other birds on this list: miniature tornados. White Pelicans migrate in flocks, arranging themselves in a characteristic V formation to save energy together. The separated feathers at the tip of each bird's wing creates a force called a "wingtip vortex," Hedenström says. By flying in a V formation, each bird (except for the leader) can get lift from the wingtip vortex created by the bird ahead of it in line. A study on their close relative, the Great White Pelican on the other side of the Atlantic, showed birds could reduce their energy expenditure by 14 percent flying in this formation.
But that's not the only way American White Pelicans save energy while migrating. They also change their flight pattern depending on the season, a 2017 study revealed. While they rely on updrafts and thermals during their spring migration from their wintering sites in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi to their breeding sites in the Northern Great Plains, they tend to be carried by a tailwind during the autumn, when air currents are weaker. The different strategies made their migration speed significantly different: about 24 miles per hour during the spring, and 20 miles per hour in the fall.
Golden Eagles
For many birds on this list, soaring is a largely passive activity. They travel in a general direction, guided largely by wind currents, and keep their eyes open for food to scavenge or prey that's relatively easy to catch. Golden Eagles, though, engage in more complex activities while soaring. They hunt small and medium-size mammals. They stake out and defend territories of around 6,000 acres. They even play fetch with themselves. That complexity in behavior sets them apart from other large soaring species like vultures and condors, says Todd Katzner. “Golden Eagles, and other big eagles, are kind of unique because not only do they soar, but they soar to do all this crazy stuff,” he says. They don’t do very much flapping at all: It only takes up between 3 and 15 percent of their flight time.
Katzner studies a small Golden Eagle population that migrates and winters along the Appalachian Mountains. These birds don’t have access to strong thermals like their European peers residing near the Mediterranean, Katzner says. These birds have had to diversify the types of air currents they use to stay in the air. When migrating, they soar in thermals for about 41 percent of their flight time, glide between thermals about 45 percent of the time, and soar using orographic updraft, just like Andean Condors, about 13 percent of the time.
Turkey Vultures
Turkey Vultures are different from other vultures throughout the world. Most vulture species rely heavily on soaring and gliding through the air at very high altitudes (up to 37,000 feet), says Katzner, and they rely heavily on sharp vision to see the carcasses of dead animals from such a height. But Turkey Vultures have adapted to fly at lower altitudes to sniff the best pieces of carrion. In fact, they have one of the best smelling systems of all birds. In 2017, after comparing them with other 32 species, a team of researchers proved that Turkey Vultures has more mitral cells, which transmit information about odors to the brain, than any of the other measured species.
These birds fly using a type of soaring called “contorted soaring.” Through this technique, Turkey Vultures ride the upward wind generated when air currents collide with treetops. This allows them to stay closer to the ground compared to other carrion eaters, like Black Vultures in North America, giving them an advantage. They can also rock side-to-side while flying to counteract the wind forces in turbulent scenarios, which allows them to have a lot of control and stability in their flight. “They can fly with almost no wind and in very turbulent settings," Katzner says. "They are just one of the coolest species in North American to me."
White Storks
White Storks spend more time flapping than the other birds on this list: It takes up about 17 percent of their flight time, which is still significantly less than most bird species. What makes them fascinating, says Hannah Williams, is how their social interactions shape the amount of soaring, gliding, and flapping of each bird.
After following a group of 27 White Storks for four years, researchers found that, when migrating, the lead bird has a more irregular flight pattern than the rest of the flock following behind. It didn't necessarily fly in a straight line, and spent most of its time exploring thermals. The researchers think that’s because the birdin front is in charge of finding new thermals that the other birds use to gain altitude. Meanwhile, the followers in the flock flapped more often to avoid falling behind the group.
In the end, these differences influenced where follower and leader storks spent the winter. Frequent-flapping follower birds spent more energy and were able to fly only 621 miles (1,000 kilometers) from Lake Constance—where Germany, Switzerland, and Austria meet—to Spain. The leaders, on the other hand, were able to fly more than 2,485 miles (4,000 kilometers), wintering in northern Africa instead.
After following a group of 27 White Storks for four years, researchers found that, when migrating, the lead bird has a more irregular flight pattern than the rest of the flock following behind. It didn't necessarily fly in a straight line, and spent most of its time exploring thermals. The researchers think that’s because the birdin front is in charge of finding new thermals that the other birds use to gain altitude. Meanwhile, the followers in the flock flapped more often to avoid falling behind the group.
This disease resistance allows the plant to grow healthier and produce more tomatoes, making it a favorite among gardeners who want a reliable and productive tomato plant. In addition to its disease resistance, Tomato Mountain Magic also has a strong root system that helps it absorb nutrients and water from the soil more efficiently. This allows the plant to withstand periods of drought and produce high-quality tomatoes even in challenging growing conditions. To grow Tomato Mountain Magic, it is best to start the seeds indoors about 6-8 weeks before the last frost in your area. Once the soil has warmed up and all danger of frost has passed, the young tomato plants can be transplanted into the garden. They should be planted in well-drained soil and given plenty of sunlight. Regular watering and fertilizing can help promote healthy growth and high yields. As the plants grow, it is important to provide support, such as stakes or cages, to help keep the vines upright and prevent them from sprawling on the ground. This will also make it easier to harvest the tomatoes as they ripen. Overall, Tomato Mountain Magic is a fantastic tomato variety for anyone looking to grow flavorful and abundant tomatoes. Its disease resistance, productivity, and amazing taste make it a top choice for many gardeners and farmers alike. Whether you are a seasoned gardener or a beginner, Tomato Mountain Magic is definitely worth considering for your tomato garden..
Reviews for "The Ethereal Beauty of Tomato Mountain Magic"
1. John - 2 stars - I was really disappointed with "Tomato Mountain Magic". The storyline was confusing and hard to follow, and the characters felt underdeveloped. I couldn't connect with any of them and found myself not caring about their ultimate fates. Additionally, the writing style was choppy and lacked fluidity, making it difficult to stay engaged in the story. Overall, I would not recommend this book to others.
2. Sarah - 1 star - I cannot find anything positive to say about "Tomato Mountain Magic". The plot was nonsensical and all over the place, and the author seemed to have no clear direction for the story. The characters were poorly developed, and their actions and motivations were completely unconvincing. The writing was riddled with grammatical errors and lacked any sort of coherence. I struggled to finish this book and would not recommend it to anyone looking for a well-crafted and engaging story.
3. Michael - 1 star - "Tomato Mountain Magic" was a complete waste of time. The plot was juvenile and predictable, and the characters felt like clichés. The writing style was dry and lacked any spark or creativity. I found myself constantly rolling my eyes at the poorly executed attempts at humor. Overall, this book was a major disappointment and I would not recommend it to anyone looking for a captivating and well-written story.
4. Lisa - 2 stars - I had high hopes for "Tomato Mountain Magic" based on the promising premise, but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The pacing was all over the place, with some parts dragging on and others feeling rushed. The dialogue felt forced and unnatural, and the characters lacked depth and complexity. The book failed to evoke any genuine emotion or make me care about the outcome of the story. Overall, I was left underwhelmed and would not recommend this book.