Discuss briefly the production of tomato under the following headings: (a) climatic and soil requirements; (b) land preparation; (c) nursery practices; (d) planting and spacing; (e) fertilizer application, (f) staking; (g) harvesting
Explanation
Tomato can be produced under the following conditions:
(a) Climatic and soil requirement: (i) Tomato requires warm temperature and a cool night temperature of 15-20`jc (ii) It requires a moderate rainfall of 50 - 125cm per annum (iii) Tomato requires a well drained loamy soil rich in organic materials.
(b) Land preparation: (i) Bush is cleared (ii) The land is ploughed and harrowed (iii) Seed beds are prepared (i Stumping is done if there are stumps on the farm.
(c) Nursery practices: (i) Nursery is done on ground, beds or seed boxes and trays with top soil mixed and sterilise (ii) Seeds are sown in drills 5cm apart and 2.5cm deep. (iii) Shading, weeding, watering and mulching are done regularly. (iv) Transplanting is done when seedlings are 3 weeks old on Nursery.
(d) Planting. and spacing: (i) seedlings are transplanted with ball-of-earth (ii) Transplanting is done either in the morning or evening (iii) seedlings are transplanted one plant per hole. (iv) Spacing is 60cm x 60cm apart and 50cm x 30cm if staked.
(e) Fertilizer Application : (i) Apply NPK 15:15:15 to each plant three weeks after transplanting at 250kg/ha (ii) Compost or farm yard manure can be used. (iii) Care should be taken to avoid fertilizer touching the plants.
(f) Staking: (i) Provides stakes when the plants cannot stand erect or to prevent logging. (ii) Staking allows for good fruiting (iii) Stems are tied or trained to the stakes. (iv) It keeps fruits from disease attack if they touch.or come in contact with the soil.
(g) Harvesting: (i) Fruits start ripening after two months of transplanting (ii) Ripe fruits are handpicked and stored in cool and dry place.