Tomato Farming

Tomato Farming:
It is used in diverse ways in the form of Salads, juices, sauces, ingredient for various culinary Preparations, etc. Interestingly. China ranks number one as the largest producer of tomatoes.

Tomato Plant Information:
Botanically called Solanum licopersicum, Tomato plants are actually vines. If given adequate support they can grow up to 6 feet tall in traditional Farming in greenhouses they can live up to 3 years. The vines are covered with short hairs all over and the flowers are yellow in color.

Ideal Conditions for Tomato Cultivation:
A warm but cool Climate is needed for Tomato. it cannot tolerate high light intensity as well since it affects the fruit pigmentation.

Climate for Tomato Farming: Being a warm season Crop, Tomato Crop requires an ideal temperature of 21⁰ to 23⁰C. Tomatoes are highly sensitive to climatic changes. For ideal growth and yield, tomatoes need a diverse set of climatic conditions at every stage of growth such as seed germination, flowering, fruiting, etc. Tomato Farming needs a warm and cool Climate with medium sunlight. Both heavy rainfall and a prolonged dry spell affect the growth of Tomato plants.

Soil for Tomato Cultivation: Tomato needs a diverse set of Climate for its growth, it can grow on all types of soils from light sandy soil to a heavy clayey soil. A well-drained soil with a depth of 15-20 cm is ideal for yielding a healthy Crop.

pH for Tomato Farming: Soil pH falling in the range of 6.0 to 7.0 is preferred. A slight liming along with adequate nutrient supply can help Tomato crops grow better in acidic soil.

Water Requirement in Tomato Plantation: Tomatoes are sensitive to both excess water as well as very little water. A major challenge in Tomato Cultivation is maintain an even moisture supply. During summer it is necessary to irrigate the Crop once a week while irrigating it once in every two weeks is sufficient.

Care should be taken to prevent any drought period after a heavy watering dose. Drought followed by an abrupt watering during the fruiting phase would cause cracking in tomatoes.

Crop Rotation with Tomato Crop: Tomato belongs to Solanaceae family. It cannot be rotated with other crops belonging to the same family like potato, tobacco, bell-pepper, etc. It must be rotated with crops that fulfill the nitrogen content of the soil. Leguminous crops are the most recommended for this purpose. Tomato crops are hence rotated with leguminous crops like beans, pulses, etc.

Land Preparation for Tomato Cultivation: The field for growing tomatoes must be thoroughly decimated and fragmented through repeated ploughing. It needs about 5 ploughings before Cultivation. The step after ploughing is leveling. The land is leveled evenly and beds are prepared for planting the Tomato seeds. The land must be sterilized after ploughing so as to destroy the disease causing pests and microbes. They are commonly sterilized by solarization.

Season for Tomato Plantation: Since tomatoes are day neutral, they can be grown during any season. In the southern parts tomatoes are Transplanted in three cycles. December to January, June to July, September to October. In the northern plains the transplantation schedule is as below:

Crop: July (Kharif Crop), October to November (Rabi Crop), February months (Zaid season). It Transplanted during September and October months in the southern plains only if adequate irrigation facilities are available. Similarly, in the northern plains, Rabi Crop may not be taken since they may get affected by frosts during winter.

Tomato Seeds: The seeds are first raised in nurseries and then Transplanted after a period of 30- 45 days. Hybrid and exotic varieties are sown in small plastic cups while other varieties that are not too costly to procure are sown in nursery beds specially raised for the purpose.

Transplantation: Transplantation is done in shallow furrows or flat beds as per the irrigation availability. During the monsoon and in case of heavy soils, seedlings are planted on ridges so that the water does not get logged. In case of hybrids and indeterminate varieties, seedlings must be staked using bamboo sticks. If planted in furrows then they are planted at a spacing of 30 cm from each other. For spring-summer Crop the spacing maintained is 75 X 45 cm and 75 X 60 cm for autumn-winter Crop.

Harvesting from Tomato Plantation: Tomatoes can be harvested within 2-3 months of plantation. Depending on the market demand, 8-10 harvesting of Tomato is done on yearly basis. The average Tomato Crop yield per acre in India is about 10 tonnes although the yield varies from 15-20 tonnes per acre in case of irrigated crops.

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