What Is the Price of Tomato Seeds? A Detailed Guide to Growing Methods

Tomato is also known as fan qie, tomato, and foreign persimmon, among other names. It is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Solanum (tomato genus) in the nightshade family, native to South America. It is widely cultivated in both northern and southern China. The fruit is rich in nutrients and has a distinctive flavor. It can be eaten raw, cooked, or processed into tomato sauce, juice, or canned whole fruit. Let us take a look below at tomato seed prices and growing methods!

How much do tomato seeds cost?

Note: There are many tomato varieties. The main cultivated varieties include Maofen 802, Yukang No. 4, Yukang No. 5, Qinfen No. 2, Xifen No. 2, Xifen No. 3, Ruby, Super Zaofeng, Zaokui, Qiangfeng, Taiwan Red, Zhongshu No. 4, and others. For early spring or late autumn delayed cultivation, early-maturing varieties should be selected; for cultivation in the main season, mid-to-late-maturing varieties should be selected.

Growing Conditions for Tomatoes

1. Temperature: Tomato is a warmth-loving vegetable. Under normal conditions, the optimum temperature is 20-25°C, and the optimum soil temperature for root growth is 20-22°C. Raising the soil temperature not only promotes root development but also significantly increases the nitrate nitrogen content in the soil, accelerating growth and development and increasing yield.

2. Light: Tomato is a light-loving crop. Its light saturation point is 70000 lux, and the suitable light intensity is 30000-50000 lux. At the same time, during the transition from vegetative growth to reproductive growth, it basically requires short-day conditions, but the requirement is not strict.

3. Water: Tomato needs a fair amount of water, but it does not require frequent large-scale irrigation. Generally, a soil moisture of 60-80% and an air humidity of 45-50% are suitable. High air humidity not only hinders normal pollination, but under conditions of high temperature and high humidity, diseases become severe.

4. Soil: Tomato is not very strict about soil conditions, but to obtain high yields and promote good root development, fertile loam with deep soil layers, good drainage, and rich organic matter should be selected, with a pH of 6-7 being suitable.

Sowing Methods for Tomatoes

1. Soil Preparation: Tomato nutrient soil requires a porosity of about 60%, pH 6-7, available phosphorus above 100 mg/kg, available potassium above 100 mg/kg, available nitrogen above 150 mg/kg, and should be loose, fertilizer-retentive, and water-retentive, then evenly spread on the sowing bed.

2. Seed Treatment: For soaking tomato seeds, warm water soaking or trisodium phosphate soaking can be chosen. After soaking treatment, the seeds can be sown directly, but it is best to carry out germination and then sow. Seeds that have been germinated emerge quickly and uniformly after sowing, which is conducive to cultivating strong seedlings.

3. Sowing Density: Tomato seeds contain about 300 seeds per gram. According to the planting density, generally 20-30 g of seed is used per 6 mu of field, and 10-15 g can be sown per square meter of sowing bed. If the seed germination rate is below 85%, the sowing amount should be appropriately increased.

4. Sowing Time: Tomato sowing time should be comprehensively considered based on factors such as planting season, climatic conditions, and cultivation methods. For spring open-field cultivation in the Beijing area, sowing is usually from mid-February to early March. For autumn open-field cultivation south of the Yangtze River, sowing is from late July to early August.

5. Sowing Method: Tomatoes are usually broadcast-sown, drilled, or spot-sown. After sowing, cover with soil immediately. For every square meter of seedling bed, mix 8 g of 50% carbendazim wettable powder with soil and evenly sprinkle it thinly on the bed surface to prevent damping-off of seedlings. In winter and spring, the seedling bed surface also needs to be covered with plastic film.

Growing Methods for Tomatoes

1. Land Selection and Preparation: The field for tomato cultivation should be autumn-plowed and sun-dried, with a plowing depth of about 30 cm. Even when crop rotation is frequent and sun-drying the soil is difficult, deep plowing should still be carried out immediately after the previous crop is harvested, striving for as long a sun-drying period as possible.

2. Applying Sufficient Base Fertilizer: After deep plowing and fine harrowing of the tomato cultivation land, form beds 80 cm wide and 16-24 cm high. Apply 3000-5000 kg of decomposed organic fertilizer per mu, together with 25 kg of superphosphate and 20 kg of potassium fertilizer (or 80 kg of plant ash).

3. Timely Planting: For early-maturing cultivation of tomatoes under protection in spring, plant from late February to early March, seizing weather at the tail end of a cold spell and the beginning of warmth. For open-field plastic-mulch cultivation, plant around March 20, also seizing weather at the tail end of a cold spell and the beginning of warmth. For early-maturing varieties, 3000 plants per mu; for mid-to-late-maturing varieties, 3500 plants per mu.

4. Pruning and Trellising: There are two pruning methods for tomatoes. One is to keep only the main stem and remove all side branches. The other is to keep the main stem and also keep the side branch below the first inflorescence, removing all other side branches. Regardless of which pruning method is used, care must be taken to tie the vines in a timely manner.

5. Protecting Flowers and Promoting Fruit Set: To prevent flower and fruit drop in tomatoes, 20-30 ppm of Tomatotone can be sprayed on the flowers during the flowering period. In the middle and late stages of plant growth, the lower old leaves can be appropriately removed. For indeterminate varieties, after 4-5 trusses of fruit, the growing tip should be removed in a timely manner to increase the fruit-setting rate and promote fruit ripening.

6. Reasonable Topdressing: After tomato planting and seedling recovery, apply a seedling-promoting fertilizer. After the first truss of fruit begins to swell, carry out the second topdressing. During fruit growth, use 1.5% superphosphate or 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate solution for foliar topdressing.

7. Drainage and Irrigation: After tomato planting and seedling recovery, intertillage is needed to conserve soil moisture. During the flowering period of the first inflorescence, irrigation should be controlled to prevent excessive stem and leaf growth from causing flower and fruit drop. After the first truss of fruit sets, the plants need more water and should be irrigated in a timely manner. Pay attention to drainage during the rainy season.

8. Timely Harvesting: Tomato ripening has 4 stages: mature green, turning, ripe, and full ripe. For storage and freshness preservation, harvest at the mature green stage. For transport and sale, pick at the turning stage. For local sale or personal consumption, pick at the ripe stage, that is, when more than 1/3 of the fruit has turned red.