The Iceland Greenhouse

Fancy some tomato ice cream? Or how about a slice of green tomato and apple pie. Either could be washed down with a shot if tomato schnapps. If so, you'll have to travel to southern Iceland. There, an hour's drive east of the capital Reykjavik in Fridhemar Fridheimar, Reykholt, is a greenhouse business with a difference.

Owners Kn˙tur and Helena purchased it in 1995 with a dream of combining two passions--horses and horticulture. They harvest 370 tons of fruit each year--about 18% of Iceland's tomato crop. As some Canadians recently discovered, dropping by for a meal can be fruitful. Kn˙tur and Helena guests invite to sit down to a feast of the famous Fridheimar tomato soup with freshly-baked bread--surrounded by tomato plants all around them. Tomato plants all around the happy diners? Yes, because they are in one of the greenhouses, in this case also the restaurant. The plants grow in modern style from grow bags, reaching up overhead. Visits to rest of the range must be booked in advance. Guests are informed how Icelanders are able to grow vegetables the whole year round with help from nature. Remember that Kn˙tur and Helena almost two decades ago not just raise commercial crops of tomatoes year-round but also to indulge in their passion for horses? These are Icelandic horses with an unusual gait. So unusual, in fact, that a rider can carry a pint of ale and never spill a drop. The owners are quite happy to demonstrate this remarkable achievement. No wonder Icelanders are among the happiest people.