In Tanzania, tomato is the first vegetable crop that is cultivated and eaten in abundance compared to other vegetables. Tomatoes are used in almost every meal. Tomatoes are an important crop as food and also as a crop that brings income to the farmer.
SUITABLE CLIMATE FOR TOMATO CULTIVATION
Requirements of tomato crop Tomatoes grow well in warm areas, without much fog, especially when the crop produces flowers and fruits. This crop likes a long period of sun and heat to increase fruit growth and reduce mold/fungal diseases. This crop does not like a lot of rain although it needs a lot of water. In a period with a lot of rain and little sun, tomatoes fail to produce enough flowers and fruits, but they keep a lot of leaves. During this period too, tomatoes are heavily attacked by fungal diseases.
SOIL SUITABLE FOR TOMATO CULTIVATION
Tomatoes prefer soil that drains easily and is sufficiently fertile and therefore likes manure. The soil should be loosened enough to allow the roots to take root.
QUANTITY OF SEED
for one acre, you will need 100-150 grams of seeds for OPV variety, and 30-50 grams for hybrid (F1). The cost of one acre for OPV variety is 100,000-180,000 tsh, and for Hybrid (F1) the cost is between 200,000-400,000 tsh depending on the type of seed.
GROWING OF TOMATO SEEDLINGS
Tomato seedlings are produced in the nursery by sowing seeds. Tomato seeds germinate after 5 to 10 days. After growing in the nursery for 4 to 5 weeks from germination, the seedlings are planted in the field. Before planting in the field, the seedlings are prepared by reducing the irrigation for one or two days so that the seedlings get used to the difficult conditions before being transferred to the field. In the field, seedlings are transplanted by immersing them in
a deeper depth than it is in the nursery. This helps the seedlings to produce more lateral roots for absorbing water and nutrients. After transplanting, water it well. Do not water the tomato plant. During
the hot sun, spread grass on the embankment to reduce water loss and you can provide shade using tree leaves or bananas. Depending on the type of tomato and soil fertility, the planting space is 60 cm between row to row and 45 to 60
seedling to seedling space OR 90 cm to 50 OR 75 to 40 cm. If the soil is not fertile enough
it is recommended to use a larger space of planting.
Care of the tomato crop
Short tomatoes that do not grow upwards, are very easy to care for and do not require much maintenance. The big problem is that by crawling on the ground, during the rainy season, they are close to soil-borne diseases. During the hot sun, the fruits burn because the plant has only a few leaves that protect the fruits from being hit by the sun's rays.
FERTILIZER
Apart from planting fertilizer, you are advised to add fertilizer two or three weeks after transplanting the seedlings in the garden. This growing fertilizer should be placed around the stem of
the plant at a distance of 5 to seven centimeters from the stem. For fertilizers such as CAN, NPK, or SA use one cover of soda per stem. This fertilizer can be applied twice before the first harvest. In order to prolong the production period of the tomato crop (and even other fruit-bearing crops such as bitter tomatoes, eggplants, green peppers, etc.) it is necessary to add fertilizers during the harvesting period, for example after harvesting twice, it is recommended to add manure and fertilizers such as NPK. This helps the plant continue to produce flowers tirelessly. Usually short tomatoes "Roma" can bear and be harvested in a period of only 6 to 8 weeks. But if you will be
adding fertilizers and taking care of the garden (especially the cleanliness of the garden and watering it enough), tomatoes can continue to produce for a longer time. This is different from the practices of many farmers that once the tomatoes begin to bear, weeding and field cleaning services are abandoned and attention is paid only to the work of harvesting. This is more evident in short tomato varieties. For short tomatoes it is good to make sure there are as many branches as possible to be able to get more fruits. So do not cut the branches in this type of tomato. For tall tomatoes that need support, we recommend growing tomatoes with one branch without side shoots or two branches and leaving the tomato tall. Thinning the leaves is also important in reducing fungal infections in the stems as well as providing space for light to penetrate and allow air circulation. The leaves should be cut in the morning by hand and not with a knife as it can spread diseases from seedling to seedling. With tall tomatoes, the lower leaves of the fruit are removed as you continue to harvest. You are advised to cut the leaves
in the morning by hand and also do not remove more than three leaves from the plant at one time.
TOMATO IRRIGATION
Tomato is a crop that needs a lot of water for the growth of the plant and its fruits. Irrigation should be consistent for each scheduled day. Do not arbitrarily change the amount of water and the watering schedule. This causes rotting of the tomato butt. Also, to maintain water in the soil, it is recommended to put mulch around the tomato stem or the whole garden. A well-grown tomato uses two liters of water a day in the hot sun. So in irrigation it is wise to consider this amount of water in a period like this. Also, if you use a can, ball or pipe, do not water the tomato branches because this type of irrigation will cause the spread of fungal diseases.
CHALLENGES OF TOMATO FARMING
Problems that disturb the cultivation of this crop are diseases and pests. Here we will learn various methods to prevent diseases and pests.
DESTROYING INSECTS OF TOMATO
i> Worms that attack fruits (Funga wa vitumba)
This worm attacks other crops such as cotton, corn, sorghum, beans, etc. This insect attacks tomato fruits by piercing them and thus making them lose the market because they are not suitable for sale in the market and can also rot during transportation. .To control, use insecticides such as thiodan, powdered sevin, karate, selecron, etc. Neem is also used to reduce the damage of this insect.
ii>Whiteflies
These insects fly in the tomato field and stay under the leaves. This insect spreads viral diseases such as "tomato leprosy". Cleanliness of the farm and its environment is important in reducing the reproduction of these insects.
• To control these pests in the vegetable garden as well as in their hideouts, apply pesticides such as karate, cypermethrin regularly.
• Plant other plants (such as tobacco) that attract these insects in garden areas and then spray the tobacco plants to kill them in large numbers.
iii>Worms
This worm lives in soil with sufficient moisture. It attacks the tomato roots and destroys the water and food transport system in the affected tomato. If you pull up a tomato plant you will see knots on the roots. Prevention Methods to control the increase of these insects is to destroy the soil conditions that allow them to live and reproduce.
These methods are:
• Cultivating the field by weeding after harvesting tomatoes so that the bottom soil stays in the sun and dries. This helps destroy these insects with heat and lack of water.
• Burn and burn the remains of tomatoes after harvesting.
• rotate the type of tomato crop or the variety of tomato with other crops that are not attacked by this enemy. This makes the worms unable to find shelter and food from the plants they use to live and reproduce. So their number decreases in the soil.
• before planting, put a lot of manure in the soil in the area affected by these insects because they don't like soil with a lot of manure.
• Plant tagetes (Tagetes spp) in the area affected by these worms, these plants produce some kind of poison that affects the growth and reproduction of these worms.
TOMATO DISEASES
Studies have shown that tomatoes and other crops, the tomato family are more susceptible to diseases than other vegetable crops.
i>FOG
This is a disease that likes high humidity in the air. So it appears more during the spring. Also places with a lot of dew at night, this disease appears even in summer
Symptoms of mildew in tomatoes
This disease attacks the stems, flowers and fruits. Burning of leaves as if scalded by hot water. Under the leaf you will see a white powder. Fruits are also attacked by this disease and turn black and hard.
Prevention
• It is necessary to combine different methods to fight this disease.
• First is the cleanliness of the farm in general, that is, make sure you remove weeds from the garden.
• Spread grass over the terraces planted with tomatoes.
• Remove old leaves that show symptoms of this disease. in cutting the leaves, make sure the lower part of the plant is open and there is good air circulation.
Cut the leaves in the plant to
reduce dew and mold on the plant.
• After cutting the leaves and shoots, make sure you throw away the leaves and not leave them on the garden embankment.
• Completely remove the plant with symptoms of this disease
• Spraying during the rainy season immediately after heavy rain. Do it once or twice a week depending on the amount or sequence of rain.
When you see the sun is out, take medicine so that the disease does not appear again.
Some of the drugs that are suitable to prevent this disease are Dithane M45, Bravo, Benlate, Ridomil, Topsin etc. Remember that every year more powerful drugs are made, so ask the experts near you. Although Blue Copper is sold
at a cheap price, its power is very little to cure this disease. Neem can also be used to reduce this disease. Mix the flour made from neem seeds in the amount of half a kilo of flour in 20 liters of water.
ii> Tomato leprosy disease
This is a viral disease spread by the white fly. These flies attack tomatoes more during the summer, especially during the hot season.
Symptoms
• Young leaves curl and later all leaves.
• Decrease in flowering and fruiting and even if the fruiting occurs, it is usually small.
• The plant is stunted and completely barren.
Prevention
An effective method is to reduce the spread of this disease in the field by controlling the reproduction and spread of the insect (white fly) as we have seen in the fight against the insect, namely: •
Removing a few infected plants because these insects take this disease from these plants .
• Using seeds that are guaranteed to tolerate this disease and produce good yields.
• Do not plant tomatoes near the area with crops such as okra, papaya because these plants harbor whiteflies.
• Kill whiteflies that suck tomatoes and spread the virus using drugs. Use drugs such as Selecron, Decis, Karate etc.
• Avoid mixing the tomato crop with other crops harboring these flies such as papaya and okra.
• Uproot and burn all plants affected by this disease.
iii> Disease of the tomato plant rotting the part of the stem that touches the soil and the plant withers as if it has lacked water
• The insects that cause this disease are found in the ground.
• There is no medicine to treat this disease after symptoms appear.
• Spraying industrial pesticides on the ground before planting tomatoes helps to reduce disease pests.
• Avoid planting tomatoes or tomato crops in the same area for a long time in a row. Some of the crops related to tomatoes are eggplant, pepper, corn,
sweet potato, etc
iv> The disease of young tomato seedlings rotting the part of the stem that touches the soil and dying suddenly. This disease attacks the seedlings in the nursery and is caused by insects living in the ground. Once the symptoms appear, this disease has no medicine, but it can be prevented by using the following methods:
• Burn the nursery soil before planting your seeds. Using compost helps protect seedlings against this disease.
• Avoid overwatering and using heavy shade.
v> Tomato fruit rotting butt.
This is a disease caused by:
• Irregular irrigation of tomatoes in the garden. For example, watering plants a lot and then leaving them without water for several days.
vi>Lack of lime nutrients.
Its symptoms are tomato fruits rotting in the bottom and showing a black color.
To prevent this disease, consider having a good watering system that does not change arbitrarily with the amount of water applied. Fertilize plants with lime minerals by using CAN fertilizers containing these minerals.
TOMATO HARVESTING
Tomatoes to be sent to the market must be harvested as soon as they begin to ripen to make them safe while waiting for sale and shipment. Tomatoes that are sent to factories should be harvested after their ripening is complete. To transport tomatoes properly, use wooden crates