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Manuring Apply well rotten farmyard manure or compost @ 20-25 t/ha alon with AMF, Psuedomonas, Trichoderma and Azotobacter each @ 5 kg /ha at the time of land preparation and mix well with the soil.Cultivate Cowpea as a catch crop in these fields. A fertilizer dose of 75:40:25 kg N:P2O5:K2O / ha may be given. Half the dose of nitrogen, full phosphorus and half of potash may be applied as basal dose before transplanting. One fourth of nitrogen and half of potash may be applied 20-30 days after planting. The remaining quantity may be applied two months after planting. Growth regulators Application of growth hormone to tomato crop has been recommended for improving seed germination, to enhance flowering and fruit set, for faster and uniform fruit ripening; and for realizing higher yield. The growth regulators commonly used for tomato, their dosage and effect of application are detailed in the table below.
After cultivation Tomato crop responds well to irrigation. Flowering and fruit development are the critical stages of irrigation for tomato and therefore water stress should be avoided during these periods. Provide light irrigation 2-3 days after transplanting. Avoid heavy irrigation especially after a long spell of drought as it causes cracking of the fruits. Weed control Field should be kept weed free, especially in the initial stages of plant growth, as weeds compete with the crop and reduce the yield drastically. Providing 2-3 hoeing at regular interval helps to keep the field free from weeds and facilitates soil aeration and root development. Deep cultivation, on the other hand, injures root system and expose moist soil to the surface. Weeding can be combined with fertilizer application and earthing up and can be done at one and two months after transplanting. Pre emergence application of basalin (1 kg a.i./ha) or pendimethalin (1 kg a.i./ha), coupled with one hand weeding 45 days after transplanting is also effective for controlling weed growth. Another way to control weed growth is by mulching with black or transparent sheet plus use of herbicides such as pendimethalin (0.75 kg a.i./ha) or oxyfluorfen (0.12 kg a.i./ha). Crop rotation and intercropping Continuous cropping of tomato in the same field should be avoided as it results in build up of pests and diseases. At least one year gap should be given between two successive tomato crops or other solanaceous crops like chilli, brinjal, etc. However, cereals like rice, corn, sorghum, millets, etc. and crops like watermelon, groundnut, safflower, sunflower, sesame and marigold can be successfully grown after tomatoes. Tomato also fits well as an intercrop in different cropping systems of cereals, grains, pulses and oilseeds; and cropping systems like rice-tomato, rice-maize are popular. Staking Stake the plants depending on the growth and bearing habit of the variety. Staking is essential for hybrids because of their tall growing habit and heavy bearing nature. Also, staking facilitates intercultural operations and helps in maintaining the quality of the fruits. Staking should be done 2-3 weeks after transplanting either by wooden stakes or laying overhead wires to which individual plant can be tied. In the case of indeterminate types, two or three wires are stretched parallel to each other along the row and plants are tied to these wires. |
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