The Latest Tutorial on Field Management Techniques and Methods for Tomatoes

Tomato is a common summer vegetable that can be eaten raw directly. In the past, it was mainly grown in the warm summers of the south, but now it has long been grown as an off-season vegetable using greenhouses and plastic tunnel facilities. However, regardless of which planting method is used, the field maintenance and management after planting have a direct impact on the growing results. Field management generally includes the following aspects, which I can explain to you one by one.

1. Irrigation

Water once with a small amount at transplanting, then water again one week later. After that, until the fruit-setting stage, do not water unless there is drought, and carry out seedling hardening; early-maturing varieties have weak growth and bloom and bear fruit early, so the time should be short, while mid- and late-maturing varieties have vigorous growth and need vine control, so the time should be extended a bit. When the fruit expands, seedling hardening should be ended and a timely flood irrigation should be carried out once. During the fruiting period, depending on the weather and soil conditions, water once a week and gradually increase the amount of water to keep the soil moist. If drip irrigation facilities are available, drip irrigate once a day. In summer, there is sometimes high temperature and drought, and sometimes a lot of rainfall, so drainage and irrigation ditches should be dug well to keep the soil moist without water accumulation.

2. Fertilization

The tomato root system is relatively strong, generally widespread but not deep, with many roots. Generally, after the seedlings emerge during the seedling stage, a small amount of fertilizer can be added during the first watering to promote more root growth. Before seedling hardening, a compound fertilizer must be applied once to maintain the nutritional needs during the seedling hardening period. After seedling hardening ends, during the fruit expansion stage, a quick-acting fertilizer should be applied once to promote fruit expansion and meet the simultaneous needs of fruit growth and vegetative growth. After that, fertilizer should be applied once more during the fruit color-changing stage so that the fruit has enough nutrients to mature.

3. Intertillage and Weeding

After rain, intertillage can be carried out once between the rows, and some weeds can be pulled out at the same time, but this is generally done when the soil is dry. As long as soil compaction and stickiness occur, appropriate intertillage can be carried out, but the number of intertillage operations must not exceed three times, as it is easy to damage the roots. If weeds are found, they can be pulled out at any time, and if there are too many weeds, chemicals can also be used.

4. Trellising and Tying Vines

For good growth, ventilation and light transmission, and convenient harvesting, trellises are generally set up along the planting rows for the plants to climb. But because strong wind and rain, or too heavy fruit, may make the vines unable to hold on, the vines also need to be tied. Set up the trellis after planting and before seedling emergence, generally as a tripod or quadripod. Do not tie the vines too tightly, as this hinders nutrient transport.

When growing tomatoes, doing the above main aspects of work well should allow the tomatoes to grow better and produce much more fruit, but in different regions there are also some different management measures to assist production. It is still necessary to manage according to actual conditions.