Vegetable Crops

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Vegetable Crops PLSC 451/551Lesson 16, Tomato

• Instructor
• Stephen L. Love
• Aberdeen R E Center
• 1693 S 2700 W
• Aberdeen, ID 83210
• Phone [phone] Fax [phone]
• Email slove_at_uidaho.edu

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How do you fix a broken tomato?
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How do you fix a broken tomato? Tomato paste
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Tomato

• Taxonomy
• Dicotyledon
• Family Solanaceae
• Genus and species Lycopersicon esculentum
• Related species pepper, eggplant, ground
  cherry, nightshade

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Cultivated tomato and its wild relative (L.
pimpinellifolium)
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Tomato

• Domestication
• Originated in the Andean region of South America
• First domesticated in Mexico very ancient
• Taken to Europe around 1544
• Use delayed by poisonous reputation
• Cultured in the U.S. around 1830
• Most worldwide production began after 1850

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Tomato

• Botany
• Several botanical varieties
• Commune common tomato
• Grandifolium potato-leafed tomato
• Validum dwarf type tomato
• Carasiforme cherry tomato
• Pyriforme pear tomato

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Tomato

• Botany
• Several botanical varieties
• Commune common tomato
• Grandifolium potato-leafed tomato
• Validum dwarf type tomato
• Carasiforme cherry tomato
• Pyriforme pear tomato

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Tomato

• Botany
• Several botanical varieties
• Commune common tomato
• Grandifolium potato-leafed tomato
• Validum dwarf type tomato
• Carasiforme cherry tomato
• Pyriforme pear tomato

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Tomato

• Botany
• Several botanical varieties
• Commune common tomato
• Grandifolium potato-leafed tomato
• Validum dwarf type tomato
• Carasiforme cherry tomato
• Pyriforme pear tomato

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Tomato

• Botany
• Several botanical varieties
• Commune common tomato
• Grandifolium potato-leafed tomato
• Validum dwarf type tomato
• Carasiforme cherry tomato
• Pyriforme pear tomato

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Tomato

• Botany and Morphology
• Technically a perennial grown as an annual
• Three vine types
• Indeterminate sprawling, staggered ripening
• Semi-determinate intermediate response
• Determinate compact, uniform ripening

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Tomato

• Growth Characteristics
• Warm-season, tender crop
• Cannot withstand frost
• Minimal chilling injury (fruit at ripening)
• Optimal growth in temperature range 65-90
• Early maturity requires warm nights and high soil
  temperatures

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Tomato

• Production Climate and soils
• Fruit set impacted by temperature
• Max day gt100 degrees 1-5 days before anthesis
• Max day gt100 degrees 1-3 days following
  anthesis
• Min night gt80 degrees 5 days before to 3 days
  after anthesis
• Min night lt50 degrees prior to anthesis

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Tomato

• Fruits maturation
• Fruit ripen 35-60 after anthesis
• Color influenced by light and temperature
• Optimum 70-85 degrees (no color gt100)
• Light accelerates and increases intensity
• Accompanied by changes in composition

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Tomato

• Disease Problems
• Fungal
• Late blight
• Early blight
• Pithium damping off
• Fusarium wilt
• Bacterial
• Bacterial wilt

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Tomato

• Disease Problems
• Viral
• Tobacco mosaic
• Tomato spotted wilt
• Tomato leaf curl
• Cucumber mosaic virus
• Physiological
• Blossomend rot
• Nematode
• northern/southern root-knot

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Late blight
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Early blight
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Damping off
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Fusarium wilt
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Bacterial wilt
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Tomato spotted wilt
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Tomato curl leaf virus
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Cucumber mosaic virus
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Root-knot nematodes
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Blossom-end rot
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Tomato

• Disease Control (pathogens)
• Non-Organic
• Certified seed, resistant varieties, sanitation,
  crop rotation, proper irrigation, fungicides,
  soil fumigation, insecticides to control vectors
• Organic
• Avoidance (climates and soils with limited
  problems), resistant varieties, long crop
  rotations (present extreme challenges in some
  environments)

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Tomato

• Disease Control blossom-end rot
• Caused by calcium deficiency in the fruit
• Associated with
• Improper irrigation
• High air and soil temperatures
• Soils low in calcium
• Prevent with proper management, foliar calcium

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Tomato hornworm
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Tomato fruit worm
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Tomato

• Insect Control
• Non-organic
• Insecticides
• Organic
• Physical removal, approved insecticides, corn
  trap crop for fruit worm

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Tomato

• Storage
• Storage practices dependant on stage of ripening
• Mature green
• Susceptible to chilling injury
• Held 55-65 degrees, 85 RH, 2-3 weeks
• Ripening complete at 65-70 degrees
• Fully red
• 45 50 degrees, 90 RH, 4-6 days

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Tomato

• Use and importance
• Cultivated throughout the world
• Second in production and use (behind potato)
• Versatile vegetable, used in many ways
• Important source of lycopene and vitamin C

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Tomato

• Consumer use
• Production supports two major markets
• Fresh
• Produced for table use
• Processed
• Canned whole, soups, sauces, purees, powdered,
  or pickled

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Tomato

• World Production and Use
• China now the largest producer
• Dominates production of processing exports
• US and Europe major users of fresh tomatoes
• Mexico the largest exporter of fresh tomatoes
• Turkey a major exporter into Europe

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Tomato World Production
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Tomato

• World Production and Use
• Off-season production - major economic driver in
  developed countries
• Tropical production is a critical income source
• Primarily limited to highland regions and
  dry-season production

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Tomato

• World Production and Use
• Tropical production is limited by four major
  disease problems
• Bacterial bacterial wilt (no control)
• Viral tomato leaf curl
• - tomato yellow leaf curl
• - cucumber mosaic virus
• (vector control requires bi-weekly insecticide
  applications)

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Processing Tomato

• Production systems
• Modern intensive production in North America,
  Australia, Europe, Mediterranean
• Combined or cooperative market garden operations
  in Asia, South America, Malaysia

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Processing Tomato

• Propagation
• Direct seeded in modern intensive production
• Large acreage, high labor costs to transplant
• Often transplanted in smaller market-garden
  operations in developed countries
• Low labor costs

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Processing Tomato

• Direct Seeding
• Planted into carefully prepared beds
• Planted when day temps are 70-80 degrees
• Precision seeded
• Seed often pelletized or osmoconditioned
• Seed usually treated with fungicide

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Processing Tomato

• Variety Selection
• Strongly determinate
• Dark red color
• Small fruit size
• Thick-walled, high in pulp content

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Processing Tomato

• Fruit Quality
• Physical and chemical characteristics important
• High solids (thick-walled, high in pulp)
• High soluble solids (sugars)
• Acceptably high acid content
• High product viscosity

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Processing Tomato

• Harvest
• Harvested by machine (cut and strip)
• Usually harvested at pink to red stage
• Once-over harvest
• Immature fruits are exposed to ethylene
• Handled in bulk
• Processed within two days

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Processing Tomatoe

• Harvest
• Harvested by machine (cut and strip)
• Usually harvested at pink to red stage
• Once-over harvest
• Immature fruits are exposed to ethylene
• Handled in bulk
• Processed within two days

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Fresh Tomato

• Production systems
• Modern intensive production in developed
  countries, associated export countries
• Market garden production worldwide, valuable
  income item
• Subsistence production widespread, important in
  3rd world countries

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Fresh Tomato

• Stand Establishment
• Transplanted
• Transplants produced in greenhouses (3-4 weeks
  before needed)
• About 7 oz seed required per acre of production
• Transplanted after all frost danger is past
• Transplant shock minimized with irrigation or
  row covers

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Fresh Tomato

• Variety Selection
• Semi-determinate (early) or indeterminate
• Large, high quality fruit
• Large fruit size
• Suitable for shipping/handling
• Attractive, good flavor

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Fresh Tomato

• Variety Selection
• Market garden opportunities
• Heirloom varieties
• Unusual colors
• Unique culinary

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Tomato

• Production Staking and Pruning
• Fresh market production is usually staked (both
  greenhouse and field production)
• Pruned to 2 or 3 stems prior to fruit set
• Tied to stakes or trellises
• Lateral branches sometimes removed later

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Staked tomato field
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Staked tomatoes Florida weave system
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Staked tomatoes mesh trellis
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Staked tomatoes vertical string
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Fresh Tomato

• Fruit Quality
• Appearance and flavor characteristics important
• Attractive, uniform color
• Juicy (thin fruit walls with abundant gel)
• Minimal defect problems
• Good flavor (high sugars, low acid)

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Fresh Tomato

• Harvest
• Harvested at various stages
• Mature green or breaker for shipping
• Pink or turning red for local markets
• Full red for home use

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Fresh Tomato

• Harvest
• Harvested by hand
• Harvest timing dependent on market
• Sequential harvest
• Handled in boxes and cartons
• Shelf life dependant on ripeness

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Fresh Tomato

• Greenhouse production
• Important for winter or short-season production
• Propagated with transplants
• On raised beds or hydroponic culture
• Requires adequate heating, cooling, ventilation
• Requires vibration-assisted pollination
• Pruning necessary for adequate size and
  production
• Disease and insect management critical

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Tomato

• Greenhouse production
• Important for winter or short-season production
• Propagated with transplants
• On raised beds or hydroponic culture
• Requires adequate heating, cooling, ventilation
• Requires assisted pollination by vibration
• Pruning necessary for adequate size and
  production
• Disease and insect management critical