Tomato Production Guide
Posted by bong on Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Under: Agrikultyur
| Introduction |
| Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.), locally known as kamatis, is a herbaceous plant belonging to the Solanaceae or Nightshade family. Growth habit ranges from strongly determinate (bush type) to indeterminate types bearing fruits of different shapes and sizes. |
| Uses and Nutritional Value |
| Tomatoes are consumed fresh in salads & as flavoring ingredients in soups and meat or fish dishes. Various processed forms include pastes, sauces, purees, juices and ketchup. |
| Each 100 g of edible fruit contains: |
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| Production Management |
| Varieties |
Variety Shape Weight Remarks Marikit semi-flattened 60-90 Tolerant to bacterial wilt (UPL-Tm 1) & moderately resistant to mosaic virus Maigaya semi-plum 15-40 Highly prolific, resistant (UPL-Tm6) to bacterial wilt and moderately resistant to foliage disease Shalom semi-plum 20-50 Salt tolerant (S2T46) Others: plum 50-80 Good local adaptation Apollo, Improve Pope |
| Climatic and Soil Requirements |
| Ideally, tomato requires a relatively cool, dry climate for optimum yield & quality, but it can also adapt to a wide range of environmental conditions. The optimum temperature range for proper growth & development is 210 - 24 0 C while fruit set is enhanced below 210C. Tomato grows best in sandy loam to clay loam soils with a pH of 6.0-6.5. |
| Seedbed Preparation |
| Prepare seedbeds 50 cm in width at any convenient length in an area fully exposed to sunlight. Pulverize soil thoroughly and add well-decomposed compost or animal manure at the rate of about 1-2 kg/m2.. To minimize or prevent damping-off disease and insect pest damage, sterilize the soil by burning rice hull or rice straw on top of the seedbed for 4-5 hours. Alternatively, drench with a combination of fungicide and insecticide following the manufacturer's recommended rates. |
| Seedling Establishment |
| Water the seedbed thoroughly before sowing. Prepare horizontal rows spaced 5 cm apart. Sow 50-100 seeds/row and cover the seeds thinly with fine soil. A hectare requires 150-200 g seeds. Cover the seedbed with a thin layer of rice straw mulch to minimize water loss. Water the seedbed daily or when necessary. Seedlings will germinate 3-6 days after sowing depending on the soil temperature. |
| Thin 3-5 days after germination to allow more space between seedlings. Apply starter solution 10 days after germination by dissolving 1 tbsp 910 g of ammonium phosphate (16-0-0) or complete fertilizer (14-14-14) in 1 gal of water. Alternatively, foliar fertilizers can be used following recommended rates. |
| Harden the seedlings one week before transplanting by gradually reducing the amount and frequency of watering until the seedlings exhibit temporary wilting. |
| Land Preparation |
| Plow the field at least one month before the scheduled date of transplanting. Plowing and harrowing can be done at one-week intervals to allow weed seeds to germinate between passings. For determinate to semi-indeterminate types of tomato, make furrows 0.75 cm - 1.0 m in width. For indeterminate types, prepare furrows at a spacing of 1.5 m between furrows. If the soil is less ideal for tomato, apply a handful (about 500 g) of animal manure or other composted material per hill.. |
| Transplanting |
| Transplant the most vigorous, stocky & disease-free transplants with 3-5 true leaves. Plant 1-2 seedlings/hill at a spacing of 40 cm between hills. To minimize transplanting shock, transplant the seedlings late in the afternoon. Press the soil firmly around the root. Irrigate water the plants lightly immediately after transplanting. Replant missing hills immediately. |
| Fertilization |
| One to two days before transplanting, apply 1 tbsp (10g) per hill complete fertilizer 914-14-14). Mix thoroughly with the soil. The first side dressing can be done 30 days after transplanting by mixing two parts urea (46-0-0) and one part muriate of potash (0-0-60). Apply 1 tbsp (10 g) per hill of this mixture 6-8 cm away from the base of the seedlings in bands. Side-dress using the same mixture and rate two weeks later. |
| Water Management |
| Water the plants when necessary. It is desirable that the plants receive sufficient moisture from the early stage of growth until the early fruiting stage. |
| Mulching |
| For rainfed areas, use rice straw mulch when growing tomatoes during the regular, dry season period. Mulching conserves moisture and suppresses weed growth. For large plantations, the use of black plastic mulch is highly recommended. |
| Trellising |
| Bamboo or ipil-ipil can be used as trellis posts, while synthetic straw and nylon can be used in tying and vine training. The use of trellis reduces losses due to rotting of fruits especially during wet season and facilitates harvesting. |
| Pest and Disease Management |
| Pesticides can easily control the most common insect pests & diseases attacking tomato. However, if organically-grown tomatoes are desired, use biological agents such as Trichogramma chilonis, an egg parasitoid of fruitworm and other botanical pesticides for pest and disease control. |
| Practice hilling-up to minimize weed growth. |
| Harvesting |
| Harvest tomato fruits at mature green or breaker stage preferably early in the morning. Place the fruits in bamboo crates (kaing) lined with banana leaves or used newspaper to prevent mechanical damage |
| Avoid over-and under-packing. Remove bruised and damaged fruits and pack fruits with similar maturity stage in one container. Separate ripe fruits since these produced ethylene that could hasten the ripening process of unripe fruits. |
| Cost and Return Analysis Per Hectare |
| ITEMS AMOUNT (P) I. VARIABLE COSTS P 85,880 A. Labor (P150/MD) Plowing 1,500 Harrowing (2x) 1,000 Rotavation 3,000 Furrowing/Bedding 1,500 Manure application (4 MD) 600 Planting/Basal Fertilization (4 MD) 600 Irrigation/Watering (4 MD) 600 Trellising (20 MD) 3,000 Field Maintenance Irrigation (weekly for 6 weeks ) (12 MD) 1,800 Spraying (4x)( 8 MD) 1,200 Weeding/cultivation (3x) 3,000 Vine training (8 MD) 1,200 Rouging (4 MD) 600 Harvesting (6x) (24 MD) 3,600 Sub-total 23,200 B. Materials Seeds (200 g//ha) 800 Animal manure (10 t) 10,000 Fertilizers 14-14-14 (10 bags) 3,500 46-0-0 ( 4 bags) 1,860 0-0-60 (4 bags) 2,400 Foliar fertilizer (4 boxes) 600 Trellis Ipil-ipil posts (3,000 pcs) 30,000 GI wire # 16 (100 g) 4,000 Abaca twine (10 balls) 400 Synthetic straw (30 rolls) 1,200 Insecticides Sevin (1 box) 220 Lannate (1L) 400 Dicarzol (1 box) 600 Fungicides Dithane M-45 (4 boxes) 1,400 Kocide (2 boxes) 1,600 Spreader-sticker (1 L) 200 Herbicide (Round-up)(3L) 1,500 Net bags (100 pcs) 2,000 Sub-total 62,680 II. FIXED COSTS 14,063 Land rental 7,000 Depreciation 5 pcs. Scythe (2 yrs) 63 5 pcs. Hoe (2 yrs) 125 3 pcs. Shovel (3 yrs) 75 2 knapsack sprayers (5 yrs) 800 Interest on Loans at 20% int. p.a. 12,000 TOTAL COSTS 99,943 GROSS INCOME a 105,000 -165,000 NET INCOME 5,057-65,057 ________________________________ a With marketable yield of 7-11t/ha at P15/kg |
In : Agrikultyur