Growing tomatoes

THERE are two types of tomatoes grown in the country. The fresh market or table tomatoes are planted in both dry and wet season. Wet season planting is more risky because tomatoes are very susceptible to pests and diseases brought about by continuous rain and high temperature.

The second type is the processing of tomato planted only during the dry season, especially in areas supposed to be idle such as lowland rice fields. Processing tomatoes are needed for industrial purposes in the manufacture of paste, sauce, and catsup.

Post your reaction to the Manila hostage crisis

Although tomatoes thrive on many types of soil, a fairly fertile, well-drained soil reasonably free from root-knot nematodes and bacterial wilt organism is best. A sandy loam soil is ideal especially when an early yield is desired. For longer and later yields, heavier soils are preferable.

"Tomato is generally considered a warm season crop that requires a relatively long season to productive profitable yield," reminds the Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) in Batac, Ilocos Norte. "The ideal planting for maximum production is from October to January to avail of the cool and dry climate growth and good fruit setting."

Like most vegetables, tomatoes are propagated by seeds. "Sow seeds in a seedbox or seedbed just before the end of the rainy season," recommends the Davao-based Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center (MBRLC) Foundation Inc.

"A seedbox (45 x 30 x 7.5 centimeters in dimension) is very convenient for starting seedlings," it said.

Farmers should buy their seeds from reliable sources. If the seeds are not treated, treat them with pesticides at the rate of one teaspoon per three kilograms of seeds. Also, the soil mixture (two parts garden soil, one part rice hull, and one part compost) must be sterilized first before the seeds are sown. Soil sterilization by heat or chemical application will prevent damping off.

The seedbed or seedbox should be watered moderately once or twice a day so as to provide sufficient moisture to cause seeds to sprout after three to seven days from the date of sowing, according to the MBRLC.

The field where the transplants would be planted later on must be thoroughly prepared.

"Thorough land preparation is a must for a successful tomato crop," the MMSU said in its primer on tomato production. "Two times alternate plowing and harrowing will improve soil structure and check the weeds. Incorporate dried manure at a rate of five to 10 tons per hectare during the last harrowing to increase organic matter content of the soil."

When the seedlings are three to four weeks old, they are ready for transplanting.

"Harden the seedlings first to withstand the shock of transplanting," MBRLC urged.

Hardening can be done by reducing gradually the frequency of watering and by exposing the seedlings in the sun. They should be allowed to suffer from temporary wilting before watering.

"A hardened seedling will stand the rigors of transplanting much better than a non-hardened one," the MBRLC pointed out.

Five to seven days before transplanting the seedling to the field, a starter solution (made by dissolving 40 grams of four tablespoons of 16-20-0 analysis of fertilizer to one big kerosene can of water) can be applied.

Soon after transplanting, saturate the soil with water in order to provide the plants with favorable condition for rapid recovery. Thereafter, watering should be done as often as necessary (they need about 25 millimeters of water each week).

Proper application of commercial fertilizer is very important in tomato production. Large quantities of manure are not enough because manure is deficient in phosphorus. Be sure to have your soil analyzed first by experts so that you know what kind of commercial fertilizer you need to apply and how much.

A good weed control starts with good land preparation. If the land is well-prepared before transplanting, weeds will not be much of a problem.

Although the application of herbicides has been found to effectively control weeds, hand weeding and shallow cultivation are still the most popular methods of controlling weeds in tomato fields.

During the rainy season, staking is usually done to keep the plants and their fruits above the ground. Kakawate and ipil-ipil are good materials for staking.

Pests and diseases incidence should be prevented through the use of resistant varieties and through clean culture. Application of pesticides must start a few days after transplanting as tomato is subjected to attack of pests and diseases even at the seedbed stage.

The time of harvesting is dependent on the purpose for which the tomatoes are grown. They can be harvested either mature-green, pink or breaker, or red ripe. Fruit intended for distant markets should be harvested mature green. For nearby markets, the fruit are usually harvested either in their breaker stage or ripe stage.