It's not often a tomato is described as so sweet 'whenever people see it they just want to hug it' - but this was no ordinary piece of fruit.

一颗普通的番茄，尤其是在没有被切开的时候，形状很少能“有爱到让人一见就想要拥抱它的地步”。

The heart-shaped tomato was grown by retired¹ dagger² maker³, Rod Matless, who said he was shocked when he noticed it in his greenhouse while inspecting his latest produce.

然而这颗由退休的匕首制造商罗德·麦特里斯种出来的心形番茄却与众不同。罗德说他是在自己的温室种植园里查看收成时看到它的，当时他也吃了一惊。

Mr Matless, 69, who suffered a heart attack a few years ago, was so taken aback by the phenomenal fruit that he decided⁴ to sell it at auction⁵ and donate the proceeds to the British Heart Foundation.

今年69岁的罗德几年前患上了心脏病，这颗心形的番茄令他联想到了心脏，因此他决定将这颗番茄进行拍卖，并将拍卖所得款项捐给英国心脏基金会。

The 2.26oz tomato was bought for £16 on eBay by a woman from Wales - who said she planned to give it to someone special.

这颗重约2.26盎司（约64克）的心形番茄在易趣网上被来自威尔士的一位女士以16英镑（约162元人民币）的价格拍下，她说她要把这颗番茄送给特别的人。

Mr Matless, of Wymondham, near Norwich, said: 'It was a bit of an obvious thing to do I suppose.

罗德住在诺威奇附近的怀蒙丹，他说：“我觉得这是一件显而易见的事情。”

'I spent a couple of days thinking about it and I wasn't really sure, but this seems like a good use.

“虽然我想了好几天仍然不太确定，但还是觉得这样做应该不错。”

'I hope it will do someone somewhere a bit of a good.'

“我希望这颗番茄能给其他人带来好运。”

He added: 'It's very sweet - whenever people see it they just want to hug it.'

他补充说：“它看起来非常有爱，谁见到它都会想要拥抱它的。”

But with the tomato's freshness a key factor, enthusiastic gardener Mr Matless was up against the clock to deliver it to its new owner before rot set in.

但是由于保持番茄新鲜非常关键，所以为防止这颗番茄坏掉，热情的罗德分秒必争地将它送到了它的新主人那里。

He said: 'I didn't want to send someone something horrible. I probably could have raised a bit more money with more time but I was worried about it.

罗德说：“我以前是匕首制造商，但我其实不想给人可怕的东西。可能我赚了不少钱，但我会有点不安。”

'It will certainly make a nice present for a loved one.I hope that they like it and I'm glad I got to help.'

“而这颗心形番茄对有爱的人来说一定是个很好的礼物。我希望其他人能喜欢它，我也很高兴能帮到他人。”

'It's all been very good fun and I've really enjoyed growing this very special tomato.'

“这件事情整个都令人很愉快，而且我真的很享受种植这颗心形番茄的过程。”

The French once called tomatoes 'pomme d'amour', meaning love apple, but some say this is because they believed it was an aphrodisiac and had little to do with its shape.

法国人曾经把番茄称作“pomme d'amour”，意思是爱情苹果。但是有人说这样称呼并不是因为它的形状，而是法国人觉得它是一种促进情欲的药剂。