TOMATO

Tomato is important commercial vegetable crop of India and is second most important crop of world after Potato. Fruits are eaten raw or in cooked form. It is rich source of Vitamin A, C, Potassium and Minerals. It is used in soup, juice and ketch up, powder. The major tomato producing states are Bihar, karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Andra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. Karnal, Sonepat, Rohtak, Faridabad, Jhajjarr are major tomato growing districts of Haryana.

It can grown in varied type of soil ranging from Sandy loam to clay, black soil and red soil having proper drainage. It gives best result when grown under well drained sandy soil with high organic content. For good growth pH of soil should be 7-8.5. It can tolerate moderate acidic and saline soil. Avoid cultivation in high acidic soils. For early crops, light soils are beneficial where for heavy yields clay loam and silt-loam soils are useful.

Hisar Arun (Selection 7): Early variety and ready for first harvesting within 70 days after transplanting. Number of fruits are more and medium to large size. It gives average yield of 100 qtl/acre.

Hisar Lalit (NT 8) : It is resistant to root knot nematode. It gives average yield of 100-120 qtl/acre.  

Hissar Lalima (Selection 18) : Early variety. Fruits are large having red color. Ready to harvest in 60-70 days after transplanting. It gives average yield of 120 qtl/acre.

Punjab Chhuhara: Fruits are seedless, pear shape, red, firm with thick wall or skin. Marketable quality remains for 7 days after harvesting and thus suitable for long distance transportation and processing.

HS 110: Fruits are large in size. Gives average yield of 80-100 qtl/acre.

HS 101: Suitable for growing in north India during winter condition. Plants are dwarf. Fruits are round and medium size and Jiucy. Fruits are borne in cluster. It is resistant to Tomato Leaf Curl Virus. Gives average yield of 100-110 qtl/acre.

HS 102: Early maturing variety. Fruits are small to medium in size, round and juicy. Gives average yield of 100-110 qtl/acre.

H 24: Fruits are medium-large and gives resistant to leaf curl virus. Gives average yield of 80-90 qtl/acre.

H 86: Fruits are medium-large and gives resistant to leaf curl virus. Gives average yield of 80-100 qtl/acre.

Hisar Gaurav: Hybrid gives average yield of 120-130 qtl/acre.

HTH-2-2: Hybrid gives average yield of 120-146 qtl/acre.

Other States Variety

Pusa ruby, P. Early, dwarl, Sioux, Manglobe, Roma, Pusa Rohini, Pusa Uphar

Pusa Sheetal, Pusa Sadabahar, Pusa Hybrid 1

Hybrids : Pusa Hybrid 2, NA 601,  Avinash 2

Keekruth: Plant height is about 100cm. Ready to harvest in 136 days. Fruits are medium to large size, round shape, deep red color.

Keekruth Ageti: Plant height is about 100cm.  Fruits are medium to large size, round shape having green shoulder which disappears on ripening.

For tomato plantation, it required well pulverise and levelled soil. To bring soil to fine tilth, plough land for 4-5 times, then planking is done to make soil level. At the time of last ploughing add well decomposed cow dung and Carbofuron@10kg or Neem cake@8kg per acre should be applied. Transplantation of tomato is done on raised bed. For that prepared raised bed of 80-90cm width. To destroy harmful soil borne pathogen, pest and organism, soil solarization is carried out. It can be done by using transparent plastic film as mulch. This sheet absorb radiation and thus increases soil temperature and kill pathogen.

Time of sowing
For northern state, tomato cultivation for spring season is done in late November and transplanted in second fortnight of January. For autumn crop, sowing is done in July - August and transplanted in August - September. In hilly areas sowing is done in March- April and transplantation is done in April -May.

Spacing
Use spacing of 60cm between two row and 40cm between plant to plant.
 
Sowing Depth
In nursery sow seeds at depth of 0.5cm and then covered with soil. 

Method of sowing
Transplanting of seedlings in main field.

Do solarization for one month before sowing. In nursery, sow tomato seeds on raised beds of 1.5m wide and of 20cm height. After sowing covered bed with mulch and irrigate bed with rose-cane daily in morning. To protect crop from virus attack cover nursery bed with fine nylon net.
10-15 days after transplanting, sprayed 19:19:19 along with micronutrients@2.5 to 3gm/Ltr of water. To make plants healthier and stronger and to harden seedling against transplanting shock take spray of Lihocin@1ml/Ltr water at 20 days after sowing. Damping Off damages crop to great extent, to prevent crop from it avoid overcrowding of seedlings and keep soil wet. If wilting is observed, do drenching of Metalaxyl@2.5gm/Ltr water, 2-3 times till plants are ready for transplantation.
Seedlings are ready for transplantation 25 to 30 days after sowing with 3-4 leaves. In case if seedlings age is more than 30 days transplant it after de-toping. Water seedling beds 24 hours before transplanting so that seedlings can be easily uprooted and be turgid at transplanting time.
To protect crop from Bacterial Wilt during initial growth stage, Dip seedlings in Streptocycline solution@1gm in 40Ltr of water for 30 mins before transplanting.

Seed Rate
For winter sowing, use seed rate of 400-500 gm per acre and for spring season, seed rate of 200 gm is required. When hybrids are used about 60gm of seeds required for one acre sowing.

Seed Treatment
To protect crop from soil borne disease and pest, before sowing do seed treatment with Thiram@3gm or Carbendazim @2gm/kg of seeds. After chemical treatment, treat seed with Trichoderma@5gm/kg of seeds. Keep it in shade and use it for sowing.

Fertilizer Requirement (kg/acre)

Nutrient Requirement (kg/acre)

At the time of land preparation, apply well rotten cow dung@10 ton/acre and mix well in the soil. Apply fertilizer dose of N:P:K @40:25:20 kg/acre in form of Urea@90kg/acre, Single Super Phosphate@155 kg/acre and MOP@35 kg/acre. Apply half dose of nitrogen, full dose of Phosphorus and Potash applied as basal dose, apply it before transplanting. 20 to 30days after transplantation apply Remaining 1/4th dose of nitrogen. Two month after transplantation, apply remaining dose of Urea.

WSF: 10-15days after transplanting, take spray of 19:19:19 along with micronutrient@2.5 to 3 gm/Ltr of water. Due to low temperature, plant absorbs less nutrient and growth get affected. In such cases Foliar spray helps in growth of plants. In vegetative growth stage take spray of 19:19:19 or 12:61:0 @ 3-5gm/Ltr. For better growth and more yield, Spray with 50ml Brassinolide per acre in 150Ltr of water at 40-50 days after transplanting for two times at 10 days intervals.

Obtain good fruit quality along with good yield, take spray of 12:61:00 (Monoammonium Phosphate)@10 gm/Ltr before flowering. When flowering start, in initial days take spray of Boron@25gm/10liter of water. It will help to control flower and fruit dropping. Sometime black spots is observed on fruits, these are due to calcium deficiency. Take spray of calcium nitrate@2gm/Ltr of water. In high temperature Flower drop is seen, spray with NAA@50ppm (50ml/10L water) when crop is in flowering stage. Give one spray of sulphate of potash(00:00:50+18S) during fruit development stage@3-5gm/ltr of water. It will give good fruit development and colour. Fruit cracking reduces fruit quality and lowers prices up to 20%. Take spray of chelated boron(Solubor)@200gm/acre/200Ltr water at fruit ripening stage. To improve plant growth, flowering and fruit set, Spray with sea weed extract (Biozyme/Dhanzyme)@3-4ml/Ltr water twice a month. Maintain good soil moisture.

Do frequent weeding, hoeing and earthing up and keep field weed free till 45 days. If weed left uncontrolled then it will reduce crop yield upto 70-90%. Two to three days of after transplantation take spray of Fluchloralin (Basalin) @ 44ml/10Ltr water as pre-emergence weedicide. If weed intensity is high, take post emergence spray of Sencor@300 gm/acre. Mulching is also an effective way to reduce soil temperature along with weed control.

In winter, apply irrigation with interval of 6 to 7 days and in summer month, apply with interval of 10-15 days depending upon soil moisture. Period of drought follow by heavy watering leads to cracking of fruits. Flowering stage is critical for irrigation, water stress during this stage can leads to flower drop and adversely affecting fruiting and productivity. According to various researches, it is found that, half inch irrigation at every fortnight causes maximum penetration of roots and thus give high yield.

• Pest and their control
  

Leaf Miner: Maggots of leaf miner, feed on leaf and make serpentine mines into leaf. It affects the photosynthesis and fruit formation.
At initial stage, take spray of Neem Seed Kernel Extract@5%, 50gm/Ltr of water. To control leaf miner, spray with Dimethoate 30EC@15ml or Spinosad@5ml in 15Ltr of water or Triazophos@2ml/Ltr of water.
 

Gram Pod borer or Heliothis armigera: It is a major pest of tomato. Crop loss due to Helicoverpa is about 22-37% if not controlled at proper stage. It feeds on leaves also on flower and fruits. On fruits they make circular holes and feed on flesh.
In case of initial infestation, hand picked grown up larvae. At early stage use HNPV or Neem extract@50gm/Litre of water. To control fruit Borer, Put 5 pheromone traps/acre at equal distance after 20 days of transplanting. Destroy infested parts. If pest population is high, spray Spinosad@6ml+sticker@5ml/10Ltr of water. To control shoot and fruit borer, spray Rynaxypyr(Coragen)@5ml/15Ltr water.

Thrips: Commonly observed pest. Mostly observed in dry weather. They suck sap from the foliage and results in curling of leaves, leaves become cup shaped or curved upward. Also causes flower drop.
To check severity of thrips incidence, keep blue sticky traps @6-8 per acre. To reduce the incidence spray Verticillium lecani@5gm/Ltr water. If incidence of thrips is more, then take spray of Imidacloprid 17.8SL@60ml/150ltr or Fipronil@2ml/Ltr water or Acephate 75% WP@600gm/150Ltr or Spinosad@80ml/acre in 150Ltr water.

White fly: The nymphs and adults of white fly suck the cell sap from the leaves and weaken the plants. They secrete honey dew on which black sooty mould develops on leaves. They also transmit leaf curl diseases.
After sowing of seeds in nursery, cover bed with 400mesh nylon net or thin white cloth. It helps to protect seedlings from pest-disease attack. To check infestation use yellow sticky traps coated with grease and sticky oils. To control spread of whiteflies, uproot and destroy affected plants. In case of severe infestation, take spray of Acetamiprid 20SP@4gm/10Ltr of water or Triazophos@2.5ml/litre or Profenophos@2ml/litre of water. Repeat the spray after 15days.

Mite: It is a serious pest and it may cause yield loss up to 80%. These are widely distributed pest observed throughout the world. Nymphs and adults feed exclusively on the lower surface of the leaves. Infected leaves give cup shape appearance. Heavy infestation results in defoliation bud shedding and drying of leaves.
If Infestation of yellow mite & thrips is observed in field, spray of Chlorfenapyr@1.5ml/Ltr, Abamectin@1.5ml/Ltr or Fenazaquin @1ml/Ltr are found effective. For effective control spray Spiromesifen 22.9SC(Oberon)@200ml/acre/180Ltr of water.

• Disease and their control:
  

Fruit Rot: Major disease of tomato and observed due to changing weather. Water soaked lesions are appeared on fruits. Afterwards they turn into black or brown color and causing rotting of fruits. 
Before sowing, do seed treatment with Tricoderma@5-10gm or Carbendazim@2gm or Thiram@3gm/Kg of seeds. If infection observed in field Collect and destroyed infected fruit and leaves which lies on ground. Take spray of Mancozeb@25gm or Tabuconazol@10ml or Streptomycin@1gm + COC@25gm/10Ltr water. Fruit rot and Anthracnose attacked mostly observed in cloudy weather, to control take spray of Mancozeb@25gm or Copper Oxychloride@30gm or Chlorothalonil@25gm/10Ltr water. Repeat spray with 15 days interval.

Early Blight: Common and major disease of tomato. Initially small, brown isolated spots are observed on leaf. Later spots are seen on stem and also on fruits. Fully developed spots become irregular, dark brown color with concentric ring inside spots. In severe condition defoliation occurred. 
If infestation of early blight is observed, take spray of Mancozeb@25gm or Tabuconazol@10ml/10Ltr. Repeat spray 10-15 days after first spray. In cloudy weather, chances of incidence of early and late blight increases, As a preventive measure, spray with Chlorothalonil@25gm/10Ltr of water. Also sudden rain pattern aggravate blight and other diseases take spray of Copper based fungicides@2gm/Ltr+Streptocycline@2gm/10Ltr water to control blight disease.

Wilt and Damping off: Moist and poorly drain soil causes damping off disease. It is soil borne disease. Water soaking and shriveling of stem occurs. Seedlings killed before emergence. If it appears in nursery the entire lot of seedling may get destroyed.
To prevent root rot, drench soil with 1% Urea@10gm/Ltr and Copper oxychloride @2.5gm/Ltr water. To control Wilt, Drench nearby soil with Copper oxychloride@25gm or Carbendazim@20gm/10Ltr of water. Increased temperature and humidity due to watering facilitate fungal growth at roots, to overcome it, apply Trichoderma viride 2 kg/acre along with cowdung near roots of plants. To control soil born disease, Drench soil with Carbendazim@1gm/Ltr or Bordo mixture@10gm/Ltr, 1 month after that apply 2 kg Trichoderma viride/acre, Mixed with 100 kg cowdung.

Anthracnose: Warm temperatures, high moisture are ideal condition for spread of this disease. It is characterized by black spots that are formed on infected parts. Spots are usually circular, water-soaked and sunken with black margins. The fruits with many spots drop off prematurely resulting in heavy loss of yield.
If Infestation of Anthracnose is observed. To control spray Propiconazole or Hexaconazole@1ml/Ltr of water.

Powdery Mildew: Patchy, white powdery growth appears on lower side of leaves. It parasitizes the plant using it as a food source. It commonly occurs on older leaves just before or at fruit set. But it can develop at any stage of crop development. In severe infestation it causes defoliation.
Avoid water lodging in field. Keep field clean. To control spray with Hexaconazole along with sticker @1ml/Ltr of water. In case of sudden rain, chances of powdery mildew. Mild infestation take spray of water soluble Sulphur@ 20gm/10Ltr of water 2-3 times with interval of 10 days.

Plant starts yielding, 70 days after transplantation. Harvesting is done depending upon purpose like for fresh market, long distance transport etc. Mature green tomatoes, 1/4th fruits portion gives pink color are harvested for long distance markets. Almost all fruits turn into pink or red color but having firm flesh are harvested for local markets. For processing and seed extraction purpose, fully ripe fruits with soft flesh are used.

After harvesting, grading is done. Then fruits are packed in bamboo baskets or crates or wooden boxes. To increase shelf life of tomato during long distance transport pre-cooling is carried out. From ripen tomatoes several products like Puree, syrup, juice and ketch up are made after processing.