Frank J. Dainello,
Extension Horticulturist
Department of
Horticultural Sciences,
Texas A&M University
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VARIETIES
| Fresh market- | Merced, Celebrity, Carnival, Summer Flavor 5000, Spitfire, Sanibel, Sunrise Florida 51, Bingo |
| Heat set- | Heatwave, Sunchaser, Florida 91, Florasette (Heat set types will set fruit under temperatures only 2 - 3 degrees higher than the non heat set types) |
| Processing- | Ohio 8245, Chico III |
SOIL PREFERENCE
Well drained sandy loams and silty loams with pH 5.5 - 7.3; avoid fields with heavy soils, low areas and those prone to salt problems.
OPTIMUM GROWING CONDITIONS
A cold sensitive crop. 80 - 85oF days with 60 - 70oF nights, low humidity and sparse rainfall.
ESTABLISHMENT
| Method | Fresh market- transplanted Processing- direct seeded |
| Seeding rate lbs/A= | 1 - 1.5 |
| Seed/oz= | 7,000 - 12,000 |
| Seeding depth= | 0.5 - 0.75" |
| Transplanting depth= | completely cover root ball |
| Optimum time= | Direct seeded- seed zone temperature > 55oF Transplant- when danger of frost has passed |
| Seedling spacing= | 18 "- 24 " on 6 ' wide raised beds |
FERTILITY/FERTILIZATION
Rates presented as actual lbs/Acre N, P2O and K2O (base actual rates on soil test results).
| Generalized rate lbs/A: | 150 - 80 - 100 |
| N= | 50 - 80, pre-plant broadcast incorporated + 25 lbs side-dressed at 0.5" fruit diameter + 3 - 4 weeks |
| P= | 80 - 100, banded 2 " below seed at planting or 2 " below transplant root mass. |
| K= | 80 - 100, pre-plant with N, normally not needed in most areas of Texas |
*NOTE- Use starter solution when setting transplants
Starter Solution= 2 pts liquid 10-34-0/50 gal water applied at 1 cup/plant
WATER/IRRIGATION
20 - 25 " per season uniformly applied from bloom through harvest applied at 1.5 times pan evaporation. Excessive and/or fluctuations in moisture induces fruit disorders and split stems.
PEST MANAGEMENT
| Major Diseases | Control |
| Early blight | Bravo, Cabrio, Endura, Flint, mancozeb, Quadris |
| Late blight | Acrobat, Aliette, Bravo, Gavel, mancozeb |
| Bacterial spot | Agri-mycin (transplants prior to field planting), Actigard, fixed copper |
| Powdery mildew | Bravo, Cabrio, Flint, Nova, Quadris |
| Verticillium & Fusarium wilts | Resistant varieties |
| Blossom end rot | Factors related to calcium nutrition and water management; CaNO3 sprays and preventing moisture stress |
| Nematode | Resistant varieties, K-Pam, Telone II, Telone C-17 |
| Major Insects | Control |
| Aphid | Actara/Platinum, Admire, Assail, dimethoate, endosulfan, Fulfill, Monitor (24c), Provado, Vydate |
| Whitefly | Actara/Platinum, Admire, Assail, endosulfan, Knack, Provado |
| Cutworm | Asana, diazinon, Lannate, Sevin bait, Warrior |
| Fruitworm | Asana, Avaunt, B.t.'s, Baythroid, Danitol, Fury/Mustang, Guthion, Intrepid, Monitor, Spintor, Warrior |
| Pinworm | Agri-mek, Baythroid, Fury/Mustang, NoMate, Spintor |
| Leafminer | Agri-mek, Spintor, Trigard |
| Stinkbug | Baythroid, endosulfan, Fury, Monitor (24c), Sevin, Warrior |
| Mite | Agri-mek, Danitol, Kelthane, sulfur |
| Weeds | Control |
| Preplant incorporated | Devrinol, Sencor, Tillam, Treflan |
| Preemergence | None |
| Postemergence | Dacthal, Matrix, Poast, Sandea, Select, Tillam |
HARVEST
| Maturity Stage= | Mature green(gelly-like substance formed around seeds) or breaker(pink color at blossom end) stages. |
| Days after planting= | 60 - 100 |
| Normal method= | |
| Fresh market- | hand |
| Processing- | mechanically |
| Containers= | Field boxes, baskets; Processing, bulk wagons |
| Grade= | US 1, US 2, Culls based on size and defects |
| Packaging/handling= | 30 lb cartons, volume fill pack |
| Anticipated yield/A= | |
| Fresh Market- | 20,000 - 30,000 lbs(600 - 1000 cartons)/A |
| Processing- | 5 - 10 tons/A |
TRANSIT CONDITIONS
55 - 70oF at 90 - 95 % RH
COMMENTS / PRODUCTION KEYS
- Windbreaks should be used in areas with prevailing winds.
- Excessive N fertilizer can delay maturity and reduce yield.
- Responds well to black plastic mulch and drip irrigation.
- Trellising reduces fruit rots and facilitate easy harvest; Row covers over trellised plants reduces frost damage and induces earliness (remove when plants begin to flower or if temperature > 90oF for 2 consecutive days).
- Can be trellised by staking, caging, or staking + string weaving (preferred commercial method).
- Harvest mature green for long distance shipment and breaker stage (1st pink at blossom end) for local markets.
- Forced ripening of mature green tomatoes accomplished by holding fruit at 68-77oF and 85-95% RH and exposing to 100-150 ppm ethylene gas for 24-48 hours in an air tight room.
- Field ripening can be induced with Ethrel (refer to label).
- Fall production is marginal in most areas of Texas.
- Remove calyx cap at harvest to reduce fruit bruising.
- Harvest 2-3 times/week.
- Bloom drop, poor fruit set and/or cat-facing (deformed fruit) induced by high temperature (> 92oF) due to reduced pollination (condition aggravated by high relative humidity).
Texas Cooperative Extension, Horticulture Crop Guides Series
Revised November, 2003
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/vegetable/cropguides/tomato.html
Prepared for Web delivery by Brooke Bludau, Amanda Zan, and Dan Lineberger