Deals about the cultivation practice of tomato

1. Bijay Shrestha
Solanaceous Fruit Vegetable Crops
TOMATO

2. Solanaceous Fruit Vegetable Crops
English Name Nepali Name Scientific Name Family
Tomato गोलभेडा Lycopersicon esculentum Solanaceae
Chilli पिरो खुर्ाानी Capsicum frutescens Solanaceae
Eggplant भान्टा Solanum melongena Solanaceae
Sweet Pepper भेडे खुर्ाानी Capsicum annum Solanaceae
Okra पभिंडी Abelmoschus esculentus Malvaceae

3. Tomato

4. INTRODUCTION
 Scientific Name- Lycopersicon esculentum
 Family- Solanaceae
 English Name-Tomato
 Nepali Name- टमाटर, गोलभेडा
 Most popular vegetable across the world (Fun Fact- LaTomatina)
 Originated in SouthernAmerica
 Its fruit is used for consumption which is juicy and tasty
 It is cultivated in most part of Nepal
 Most of tomato pocket area are located in central and western development
region
 Most used vegetable for off-season vegetable production

5. Uses
 A protective food grown extensively as an annual plant,
 Rich source of vitamins and minerals
Each 100 gm of fresh tomato contains 351 microgram of Vitamin A and 27
milligram ofVitamin C.
Among minerals it contains 48 milligram of calcium, and 0.4 milligram of
iron.
 Being rich in vitamins and minerals, so‘poor man’s mandarin’
 Rich in carotenoid especially ‘lycopene’ which helps human body to fight
against cancer
 A very good appetizer and its soup is said to be a good remedy for
constipation
 Several processed products such as paste, puree, syrup, juice, ketchup,
drinks, whole peeled tomato, etc. are prepared on a large scale
 used as raw vegetables in sandwiches, salad, and pickles

6. Climate and Soil Requirement
 Climate:
A day neutral warm season crop
Its production is favored by temperature regime of 20-25°C
Day temperature of 25°C and night temperature of 15-20°C makes
maximum amount of fruits per plant
Above 32°C, plant fails to develop more fruit setting and lycopene
formation
 Soil:
Can be cultivated in various types of soil
Grows best in sandy and loamy soil with adequate amount of organic
matters
Requires slightly acidic soil with pH range 6.0 to 7.0
Low pH leads to low calcium availability to tomato

7. Variety
 Two varieties of tomato are in use.
 Determinate:
 These varieties are dwarf, flowering and fruiting takes place simultaneously
in all plants.
 These are early maturing type.
 Major varieties are Roma, Pusa Early Dwarf, CL 1131, BS 20, N.S 2535,
etc.
 Indeterminate:
 These are tall, late cultivar.
 Flowering and fruiting takes place at different time so harvesting can be
done throughout the plant life.
 These varieties needs staking.
 Some of major varieties are S-20, Srijana, Manisha, Marina, Nabin 2000,
etc.

9. Land preparation and Manure Application
 Land Preparation:
2-3 deep ploughing along with clearing the weeds and crop debris
Soil should be well pulverized and well levelled
 Manure Application:
A heavy feeder and requires adequate manure and nutrient for profitable
yield
50-60 bamboo baskets (1000-1200 kg per ropani) of well decomposed FYM
or compost manure
To supplement the FYM, apply 10kg of nitrogen, 6kg of phosphorus and 5kg
of potash per ropani.
Apply all manure and fertilizer except half dose of nitrogen before bed
preparation.
Apply the remaining half dose of nitrogen as top dressing after 25 and 45
days of transplanting

10. Seed and seedling rate
 For one hectare of land normally 200–300 gm of open pollinated seeds
and 100–175 gm of hybrid seeds are required for transplanting
depending on germination percentage and seed vigor.
 Healthy and well-grown seedlings at a rate of 30,000 to 35,000 per
hectare are required, including for gap filling.
Seed treatment:
 Seed is treated with fungicides like Captan orThiram 2g/kg of seed.

11. Time for sowing, transplanting, and harvesting
 Tomato can be grown in any season as it is a day neutral plant.
 Three crops are taken in areas which are not affected by frost.
 Its seedling is prepared during Chaitra-Baisakh and harvested during
Asar-Bhadra in high hills
 Likewise, seedling is prepared during Magh-Falgun and harvested during
Baisakh-Asar in mid hills
 In terai region, seedling is prepared during Bhadra-Asoj and harvested
during Mangsir- Falgun
Type Domain Seedling Preparation time Harvesting time
Rainy/Summer Mid- High hills Chaitra-Jestha Jestha-Asoj
Autumn Midhills - terai Asar-Bhadra Asoj-Mangsir
Winter Terai Asoj-Mangsir Mangsir-Falgun
Spring Mid hills Magh-Falgun Chaitra-jestha

12. Nursery Management (Nursery Raising)
 A net area of about 225m2 may be required to raise the seedlings for one
hectare of land
 Generally the nursery beds are prepared in size of 7.5m long, 1m width
and 10-15cm height
 For solarization, cover the nursery bed with a transparent plastic sheet
(during the day hours) for 10 days.
 Well-decomposed FYM is properly mixed into top soil of the bed at the
rate of about 3kg/m2
 Seed treatment with fungicides like Captan or Thiram @2g/kg seed is
essential
 If there is insufficient time to wait for nursery, formalin dust can also be
used

13. Transplanting of Seedlings
 During winter as seedlings that are 4–6 weeks old with 4–6 true leaves
are ready for transplanting.
 During summer seedlings become ready for transplanting in 3–4 weeks
for rainy season plantation.
 To harden open pollinated seedlings, watering should be withheld for 3–
4 days before transplanting.
 Hardening enables the plant to withstand transplanting shock.
 Moistening nursery beds before lifting the seedlings make their removal
easy without causing much injury to the root system.
 Select only healthy and strong seedlings for transplanting.
 Tomato seedlings are transplanted in flat beds in two rows per bed.
 Transplanting is preferably done in the evening.
 Spacing of transplanted seedlings depends upon the variety.

14. Transplanting of Seedlings
Variety Planting Distance (cm)
Width of Bed Width ofTrench
Plant P-P R-R
Non-staking
(Determinate) 75 75 125 30
Staking
(Indeterminate) 75 50 100 30
Number of plants = Area / Spacing

15. Mulching
 Regulates the temperature,
 Organic mulches decreases soil
temperature (summer use)
 Plastic mulches increase soil
temperature (winter use)
 Suppresses weed growth and
 Conserves soil moisture.
 Increases yield by 45-50%
(25micron in tomato)

16. Irrigation
 Water requirement of crop : 600 -700mm/ha
 Frequent irrigation is essential for plant growth, fruiting and yield.
 The crop should be irrigated daily.
 However during summer more irrigation is required due to higher
surface evaporation.
 Drip system is highly economical and produces quality tomato.
 42% water saving
 60% yield increment

17. Weeding
 After 10-15 days of transplanting, soil should be made loose around the
plants removing the weeds around the plant
 The normal method of weed control is to give two hand hoeing in the
first and third fortnight after transplanting and an earthing up operation
during the seasonal fortnight.
 Mulching reduces the weed growth
 Pre-emergence application of herbicides like Metribuzin at 0.35
Kg/hac, Fluchloralin 1.25 Kg/hac. has been found to increase the yield
significantly over hand weeding.

18. Plant Growth Regulators:-
 Use of plant growth regulators in tomato has been found beneficial for
yield, quality, earliness, cold and high temperature fruit setting and to
develop resistance toTLCV (Tomato Leaf CurlVirus).
 Seed treatment with β-napthoxy-acetic acid (BNOA) at 25 – 50 ppm,
Gibberellic acid (GA3) at 5 – 20 ppm and chlorophenoxy acetic acid at
10 – 20 ppm were reported to improve in growth and yield of tomato.
 Seedlings soaked for 24 hours in NAA at 0.1 ppm showed higher fruit
set, early maturity and increased total yield.
 The foliar application of PCPA (Parachlorophenoxy acetic acid) 50 –
100 ppm at the flowering stage increase the fruit set at low and high
temperatures.

19. Staking
 Determinate varieties doesn’t need the staking.
 In case of indeterminate varieties, the yield and quality of fruit is
improved by staking the plants with wooden sticks/polythene threads.
 Staking not only increases the yield and improve its quality but also
reduces the infection by fungal diseases.

20. Training
 Training refers to judicious removal of part to develop a proper shape of
plant capable of bearing heavy crop load
 Controls the shape of plants.
 Aims at proper distribution of fruit bearing parts.
 Control of insect &diseases.
 To facilitate interception of sunrays to each and every part of plant.
 To develop a balance between vegetative and reproductive growth

21. De-suckering
 De-suckering is the removal of the newly formed buds (suckers)
between the main branch and side branch.
 Such suckers do not bear any fruits when they are matured.
 They should removed when they appear to avoid the competition for the
nutrient, moisture and space.

22. Pruning
 Pruning refers to the selective removal of the overgrown or defective
branches so as to encourage the healthy growth of the plant.
 Start pruning 30DAT
 Prune the plants to two stems by removing the lateral suckers
 Helps maintain balance between vegetative growth and fruit production
 Perform every 8-10 days

23. Harvesting
 Harvesting of tomato fruits is carried out either at breaker stage or at half red
depending upon the market preference.
 First harvest starts at 60 days after planting.
 Tomato can be harvested in its 6 different stage or conditions which are as
explained below:
1. Immature green stage:
 Fruits are green but have attained the normal size.
 The seeds are not fully developed and not covered with jelly like substances.
 The fruits are harvested at this stage when they are to be transported over a long-
long distance.
2. Mature green stage (breaker stage):
 The fully grown fruits with a brownish ring at stem scar, removal of calyx, light
green color at blossom end changes to yellowish green and seeds are surrounded
by jelly like substances filling the seed cavity.
 Harvested for long distance transportation and ripen after reaching the market
3.Turning stage:
 1/4th of the fruit especially at blossom end shows pink color.
 These fruits are harvested for local market.

24. Harvesting
4. Pink stage: 3/4th of the surface shows pink color
5. Hard ripe stage: Nearly all red or pink with firm flesh
6. Over ripe:
 Fully colored and soft.
 Suitable for processing and ensure desired quality and red color in product

25. Maturity indices of tomato classified by USDA

26. Physiological disorders of tomato:
1. Blossom end rot:
Symptoms
 Brown water soaked discoloration appears at the blossom end of the fruit where the
senescent petals are attached while the fruit is still green.
 The spots enlarge and darken rapidly and the affected portion of the fruit becomes
sunken, leathery and dark colored.
This disorder may occur due to
 Sudden change in the rate of transpiration especially in moisture stress condition
 Continuously high evapotranspiration regime and a large leaf area
 Increasing level of nitrogen content in the fruits
Control
 This disorder is decreased by increasing the frequency of irrigation
 Judicial fertilizer application. Increase in the level of phosphate fertilization
application decline the incidence of this disorder.
 Liming decreases the incidence
 Single foliar spray of 0.5% calcium chloride (CaCl2) at the time of fruit
development.

28. Physiological disorders of tomato:
2. Fruit cracking:
 Two types of fruit cracking are seen.
 Radial cracking, where surface of the mostly full ripe fruits cracks
radially from the stem end of the fruit and
 Concentric cracking, where surface of mostly mature green fruits
cracks concentrically around the shoulder of the fruit.
 Radial cracking is more common and causes greater loss than concentric
cracking.
Cracking may occur due to
 Irrigation or rainfall after long dry spell
 Exposure of fruits to sun due to pruning and staking
 Boron deficiency
 Genetic factor

29. Physiological disorders of tomato:
Control
 Irrigation at regular intervals
 Pruning and staking during summer season should be avoided
 Spraying seedlings before transplanting with 0.3-0.4% borax solution.

30. Physiological disorders of tomato:
2. Fruit cracking:
 Two types of fruit cracking are seen.
 Radial cracking, where surface of the mostly full ripe fruits cracks
radially from the stem end of the fruit and
 Concentric cracking, where surface of mostly mature green fruits
cracks concentrically around the shoulder of the fruit.
 Radial cracking is more common and causes greater loss than concentric
cracking.
Cracking may occur due to
 Irrigation or rainfall after long dry spell
 Exposure of fruits to sun due to pruning and staking
 Boron deficiency
 Genetic factor

31. Physiological disorders of tomato:
3. Sun scald:
 Exposed portion of either green or nearly ripe fruits get blistered and
water soaked due to extreme heat of scorching sunshine.
(air temperature-40°C and above; Scorching sunlight- 50°C )
 This problem is common in plants that have lost considerable foliage.
 For this reason, heavy training and pruning in tomato increase this
disorder.
Control:
 Protection of plants from defoliation by diseases and insect pests
 Training and pruning in summer months should be avoided

33. Physiological disorders of tomato:
4. Puffiness:
 Outer wall of the grown up fruits (two-third normal size) continues to
develop normally but growth of the remaining internal tissues (Placenta,
mesocarp) is retarded
 This results in partially filled fruit which is light in weight and lacks in
firmness.
Causes:
 Non fertilization of ovules
 Embryo abortion after normal fertilization
 High temperature and high soil moisture are the primary factors
responsible for this disorder.

34. Physiological disorders of tomato:
Control
 Over irrigation should be avoided
 Less nitrogen should be applied
 Boron should be applied by spraying 0.3-0.4% borax solution.

35. D/s and pests of tomato:
PESTS :
 Aphids
 Thrips
 Whitefly
 Leaf miner
 Pin worm
 Fruit borer
Write about symptom and control of given d/s and pests.
Submit Next Sunday
DISEASES:
• Damping off
• Early blight
• Late blight
• Fusarium wilt
• Bacterial wilt
• Mosaic

36. Seed production
 For seed production, it is essential to produce a healthy crop and plant
should be true to the type.
 It is essential to maintain isolation distance of 50 – 100 m with other
varieties.
 Agronomic practices are same as for vegetable purpose.
 Crop should be inspected, the off type and diseased plants are removed.
 The extraction of seed from the ripe fruits is done as follows;
 Fermentation method:-
 Ripe fruits are crushed in non-metallic box by hand.
 No fruit juice should be allowed to drain out.
 Entire mass is kept for 24 – 72 hours depending upon high and low
temperature.
 Seed will settle down at bottom.
 Remove fermented mass and clean the seed 8 – 10 times in clean water then
dried in shade.

37. Seed production
 Alkali treatment:-
 The seed slurry is mixed with 10% washing soda with equal volume and
kept overnight.
 The liquid is decanted off and seeds are washed with tap water.
 This is safest and best method of seed extraction.
 Acid methods:
 About 100ml of commercial hydrochloric acid is thoroughly mixed to 14 kg
of crushed tomato fruits.
 The seeds separate out from the pulp within half an hour, which may be
cleaned up and dried.
 The quantity of fruits required to produce 1 kg of tomato seed varies
from 150 to 200 kg depending on the variety.

38. Thank You