Tomato

Climate and Soil Requirements

Tomatoes are day neutral plants but require relatively high light intensity. The optimum temperature for
germination is at 20-30C. Young plants grow well to day and night temperature of around 25C but as
the crop grows older, it seems to benefit from lower night than day temperature. Fruit setting is
reduced when temperature is over 32C during the day and 21C for night temperature. Heat tolerant
varieties may have a higher temperature threshold wherein fruit setting is still normal. Lower than 10C
temperature also results to poor fruit set.

Tomatoes can thrive on many soil types with good drainage but preferably in sandy to sandy loam soil.
Avoid areas known to have nematodes and bacterial wilt disease. Planting tomatoes continuously in the
same area previously planted with tomato and or other Solanaceous crops like pepper and eggplant will
cause pests and diseases build up. Optimum soil pH is 6.0-7.0.

Land Preparation

Prepare the field 2-3 weeks before transplanting
Spread and mix decomposed animal manure or compost at 1.5 kg/square meter; preferably at least two
weeks before planting.
If soil is acidic (pH below 5.8), lime should be applied a month before transplanting at a rate of 2-4t/ha.
Bed Preparation

The width of the beds to be prepared can either be 0.5 m or 1 m wide depending on the normal practice
of the production area.
In the lowlands or rice fields, 1 m wide beds spaced 0.5 m in between are usually prepared. The height
of the beds is around 20-30 cm. Higher beds are prepared during the wet season.
Irrigation and drainage canals should be well prepared to prevent water logging during rains. Cover the
beds with mulching material to minimize weeding.
Incorporate 300-400 kg (or 6-8 bags)/hectare of complete fertilizer as basal.
Mulching

Tomatoes can be planted without mulch but the yield and quality of fruits *especially salad and cherry
tomatoes) can be further improved by mulching. In the dry season, the mulch helps to retain soil
moisture.

The use of reflectorized plastic mulch can also help minimize insect pest particularly in the early stages
of growth. Plastic mulching is especially recommended during the wet season to improve drainage.
Leaching of nutrients is also reduced. Moreover, it is a practical way of controlling weed growth. The
advantages of using plastic mulch especially in the wet season (when the market price is high) more
than compensates for the cost of the material. In the dry season, when the tomato price can drop down
to P1/kilo, mulching may be not cost-effective. Fifteen rolls of plastic mulch are needed for one hectare.

Sowing

Seedling trays are recommended in growing healthy seedling.

Prepare soil mix; generally 2:1:1 peat moss, garden soil and sand. Coir dust or decomposed rice hull can
be used as an alternative for peat moss.
Sterilize soil media either by drenching with systemic fungicide, drenching 2-3 times with boiling water,
heating in halved drum container for 2 hours or exposing to intense sunlight for 2-3 days.
Sow 1 seed per cell of the seedling trays. Cover lightly with soil after sowing. 150 grams of seed should
be used for 1 ha.
Hand water then sprinkle appropriate insecticide (e.g. Furadan) to prevent insect damage. Saturate the
seedling trays with water for three days. Regulate watering after germination.
A week after sowing, drench germinated seedlings with foliar fertilizer (e.g. 19-19-19 crop giant at 4
tbsp/16L water). Drenching should be done early in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid leaf
burning. Drench the seedlings again after 6 days using 10 tbsp of dissolved complete fertilizer or calcium
nitrate in 16 L of water.
Seedling beds can be utilize in growing seedlings, however, a lot of seedlings maybe damage during
uprooting due to interconnecting roots. This would also lengthen the transplanting recovery of the
seedlings.

Hardening

Harden seedlings at least 3-6 days before transplanting.
This is done by regulating the watering and fertilizer application and exposing the seedlings to full
sunlight to enable the plants to withstand stress during transplanting.
Planting/Transplanting

Seedlings can be transplanted 15-21 days after sowing when the seedlings are about 5 inches tall or
when seedlings have at least 3-5 true leaves.
Transplanting can be done anytime of the day especially in cool areas or when the tomatoes have been
hardened. In hot areas/days, however, planting is usually done late in the afternoon around 3:00 PM
when the heat is less intense to minimize transpiration of the seedlings which permit them to recover
faster.
Press the soil around the plant base for faster root establishment. Irrigate the field as soon as possible.
Scatter Furadan around the base of the plants to control sucking and chewing insects. Damping off and
other fungal diseases attacking the roots can be prevented by drenching with fungicide.
In 1 meter wide beds with double rows, planting distance is 0.5 m between hills and 0.75 m between
rows. In areas using the single row system, the distance between rows is about 1.5 meters while the
distance between hills is 0.4 m.

Watering

Water newly transplanted seedlings daily until the have recovered (1-2 weeks).
After seedling recovery, irrigation maybe done only when the soil gets dry which is usually at 7-10 days
interval depending on soil type and weather conditions.
Trellising

This is usually done 2 weeks after transplanting or just before flowering. Any system of trellising with the
use of available materials can be adopted as long as the fruits are raised from the soil to prevent fungal
disease development especially on the fruits.

Fertilization

1st sidedressing 2 Weeks After Transplanting 1.0 tbsp (16-16-16) + 1.0 tbsp (0-18-0)/plant
2nd sidedressing 4 Weeks After Transplanting 1.5 tbsp (16-16-16) + 0.5 tbsp (0-0-60)/plant
3rd sidedressing 6 Weeks After Transplanting 1.5 tbsp (16-16-16) + 0.5 tbsp (0-0-60)/plant
1 tablespoon (tbsp) = 10 grams. 14-14-14 may used as substitute for 16-16-16 Fertilization may vary
depending on soil analysis and stand of the crop.

Weed Control

Harvesting of tomatoes can be done anytime of the day but it is best harvested in the morning when
there is less transpiration and moisture loss of the fruits. In Luzon, fruits are harvested at
breaker/turning stage. In contrast, tomatoes are harvested at green mature stage in Mindanao due to
transport. Tomato fruits should kept under shade right after picking. Harvest the fruits at a 3-4 day
interval. AT least 7-8 harvests can be done using a determinate type.

Proper handling starting at harvesting should be observed to avoid visible and internal damages, which
would result to faster senescence and increased susceptibility to decay. Fruits at different stages of
ripening must be packed separately to minimize handling damage. It is important to remove any particle
such as soil adhering to the fruits since these would like induce infection.

Tomatoes are packed either in wooden or bamboo crates called 'kaing'. Wooden crates are
recommended for long distance transport since these are rigid enough and can be stacked on top of one
another. Shake the crate every now and then to permit filling up of all spaces when packing. Over and
under packing should be avoided to decrease the chances of mechanical injury.