Tomato

Plant Characteristics

Lifespan:	⌛	[[Lifespan::short-lived perennial]]
Origin:	✈	[[Origin::Mexico to Peru]]

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	full sun"full sun" is not in the list (sun, part-sun, shade, unknown) of allowed values for the "Exposure" property.
Water:	◍	regular"regular" is not in the list (wet, moist, moderate, dry, less when dormant) of allowed values for the "Water" property.
Features:	✓	fruit
Sunset Zones:		[[Sunset zones::allsn]]

Scientific Names

Solanaceae >

Solanum >

lycopersicum >

Tomatoes are technically fruits (berries to be exact) that are treated like vegetables. Tomatoes are one of the most common garden plants in the United States and have a reputation for being easy to grow, and producing a prolific crop^sn. Plants usually grow 1–3 m high, on a weak, woody stem that often needs support. Leaves are 10–25 cm long, pinnate, with 5–9 leaflets, each leaflet up to 8 cm long, with a serrated margin; both the stem and leaves are densely glandular-hairy. The small, 1-2cm yellow flowers have five pointed lobes on the corolla, and come on a cyme of 3–12 together.

Tomatoes are grown around the world for their edible fruit, and thousands of cultivars having been selected for varying fruit types, colors, sizes, textures, shapes, and for optimum growth in different climates and conditions. They range in size from the 1-2cm cherry tomatoes, to the 10cm or more beefsteak tomatoes. Most cultivars are in the 5-6cm range and red is the most common color, though yellow, orange, pink, purple, green, or white fruit are also easily found. Some have multicolored and striped fruit. Tomatoes grown for canning are usually elongated, at 7–9 cm long and 4–5 cm wide; they are known as plum tomatoes.

Cultivation

Tomato plants in the garden

6 plants provide enough fruit for a family of 4 to use fresh, and preserve^sn. Planting early, mid and late season varieties will ensure tomatoes throughout the season. Grow in sunny spot with good drainage. Soil should be neutral to a little acid^sn, if it's very acid add some sulfur, or if it's very alkaline add lime before planting. Staked and trained plants can be planted 1½ - 3 feet apart, while unstaked/trained plants should be planted 3-4 feet apart. Plant the seedlings deep, up to the first leaves, as they will form additional roots on the buried stem, giving them a healthier root system.

Training the plants to keep them off the ground will help prevent fruit rot and pests on the fruit. Either use a 6 ft. stake, or a wire cylinder made just for this purpose, and sold widely at nurseries (or make a big cylinder from a 7 foot long concrete reinforcing screen with 6 inch mesh, then stake it to the ground, firmly).

Water heavily, and regularly 2-3 times a week, depending on the weather. Rich soil will not require fertilizer, but poor soil could use some Tomato fertilizer.

If night temperatures drop below 13°C (55°F) in the spring, fruit will probably not set^sn. You can use fruit-set hormones to speed up production. When temperatures top 38°C (100°F), fruit production also may stop^sn, but hormones will not help in this case. It is important then if your climate is extreme to choose varieties specifically for your needs.

Fruit is ripe when coloration is complete and fruit are juicy. Continually harvest ripe fruit to extend season. If frost is going to end the season, pick all fruit including unripe, which can be kept in a dry, dark place at 16-21°C (60-70°F) where it may ripen^sn. Or you can pickle the green tomatoes.

Hydroponic and greenhouse cultivation

Young tomato plant

In cooler climates, tomatoes are frequently grown in greenhouses. Cultivars like the British 'Moneymaker' and some of the cultivars grown in Siberia have been specifically bred for indoor growing. Starting seeds in a greenhouse (or at least indoors) in more temperate climates during the winter is a common way to get a head start on the growing season. These greenhouse starts need to be hardened before planting outdoors.

Tomatoes are also grown hydroponically, either for high-density plantings and production, or in hostile climates.

Tomatoes are falsely claimed to be self-pollenating. Outdoors, bees and wind do the trick, but in a greenhouse, pollination must be aided by artificial wind, vibration of the plants (one brand of vibrator is a wand called an "electric bee" that is used manually), or more often today, by cultured bumblebees.

Propagation

From seed. Seeds widely available in stores and catalogs, and heirlooms varieties can be grown from seed from your favorite varieties. Plant seeds indoors 5-7 weeks before moving them to the garden in order to get a head-start on the season and production.^sn Plant seeds under ½ in. of fine soil, firmed over the seeds, and keep damp. Place in sunny window or cold frame. Temperatures from 18-21°C (65-70°F) are perfect, but anywhere from 10-29°C (50-85°F) will do^sn. When seedlings are 2 inches tall, they should be in pots at least 3-4 inches in size. Keep in a sunny spot throughout the growing process. If you buy seedlings at the store, choose the compact and sturdy plants. If they're already flowering or fruiting in a small pot, they are probably root-bound and won't be as productive in the garden.

Pests and diseases

List of tomato diseases

Tomato cultivars vary widely in their resistance to disease. Tobacco mosaic virus is a common problem, so smoking and the use of tobacco products should be kept away from tomatoes.[1] Different forms of mildew and blight are also often tomato afflictions, which accounts for why tomato cultivars usually get marked with letters like VFN, which indicate its disease resistance. V = verticillium wilt resistance, F = fusarium fungus, FF = Race 1 and Race 2 fusarium, T = tobacco mosaic virus, N = nematodes, A = alternaria leaf spot, and L = septoria leaf spot.

Some common tomato pests are cutworms, tomato hornworms, aphids, cabbage loopers, whiteflies, tomato fruitworms, flea beetles, slugs, and Colorado potato beetles.

Cultivars

A selection of tomato cultivars showing the variation in shape and color available

See List of tomato cultivars

There are countless tomato cultivars today, and some of the more common are listed below. Heirlooms tend to be grown for their flavor, colors and shapes, while hybrids are chosen for disease resistance, larger crops and uniformity.

Determinate or indeterminate

Tomatoes are first of all commonly classified as determinate or indeterminate.

• Determinate, or bush, types bear a full crop all at once and grow to a specific height; these can work well in containers
• Indeterminate cultivars grow like vines that, continuing growth and production until killed by frost (most, if not all heirlooms are are indeterminate.)
• There are also tomatoes called "vigorous determinate" or "semi-determinate", which stop growth like determinates, but produce a second crop after the first one.

Beyond this, tomato cultivars can be divided into several rough, overlapping categories.

Standard tomatoes

aka main crop, slicing or globe.

• 'Celebrity', 'Big Boy' and 'Better Boy' - widely grown
• 'Heatwave' - popular where summers are very hot
• 'Ace' and 'Pearson' - popular in California
• 'Marglobe' and 'Rutgers' - old favorites

Early tomatoes

Fruit-set begins at lower night temperatures, and usually do well in cooler summer areas.

Includes: 'Early girl', 'Burpee's Early Pick', 'Pilgrim', 'First Lady', 'Dona'

Cool-summer tomatoes

Require less heat for fruit-set and ripening.

Includes: 'Oregon Spring', 'Swift', 'Manitoba', 'Stokesalaska'

Hybrid tomatoes

These are usually the first generation crosses between two parent lines, and sometimes indicated with an F₁ following the name. Hybrids can fall into any of these categories.

Novelty tomatoes

Variations in shape, color and price

These are grown for their unusual characteristics and colors. Many are heirloom varieties.

• Yellow and orange fruits - 'Yellow Pear', 'Orange Queen', 'Mountain Gold', 'Lemon Boy', 'Husky Gold'
• Deep reddish black/brown - 'Black Krim', 'Black Prince', 'Black Cherry'
• White fruit - 'White beauty', 'New Snowball'
• Striped fruit - 'Black Krim', 'Green Zebra', 'Tigerella'
• Green fruit - 'Evergreen'
• Hollow tomatoes for stuffing - 'Stuffer', 'Yellow Stuffer'
• 'Long Keeper' - lasts for 3 months in proper storage
• 'Caro Rich' - high in beta carotene (and vitamin A)

Large-fruited tomatoes

aka beefsteak. Grow best where days and nights stay warm.

• 'Beefmaster' -
• 'Beefsteak' -
• 'Big Beef' -
• 'Burpee's Supersteak Hybrid' - 2-lb tomatoes
• 'Delicious' - tomatoes have exceeded 7-lbs.
• Mortgage Lifter (a popular heirloom beefsteak known for gigantic fruit)

Paste tomatoes

aka plum. Used for sauces, paste, canning, drying. Lots of small, oval fruit. Meat is thick with few seeds.

Includes: 'Roma', 'San Marzano', 'Viva Italia', 'Italian Gold' (yellow), 'San Marzano'

Small-fruited tomatoes

aka cherry, marble. Can be as small as a currant.

Cherry: 'Red Cherry', 'Yellow Cherry', 'Red Pear', 'Yellow Pear', 'Juliet'

Very small: 'Gardener's Delight', 'Sweet Million', 'Supersweet 100', 'Sweet 100', 'Santa F1'

Heirloom tomatoes

A variety of heirloom tomatoes.

A very wide variety of Heirlooms, kept for many generations exist today.

• 'Aunt Ruby's German Green' (spicy green beefsteak type)
• 'Azoykcha' (Russian yellow variety)
• 'Andrew Rahart Jumbo Red' (red beefsteak)
• 'Backfield' (deep red indeterminate beefsteak type)
• 'Box Car Willie' (red beefsteak)
• 'Brandywine' (red beefsteak, Sudduth strain)
• 'Cherokee Purple' (purple beefsteak)
• 'Crnkovic Yugoslavian' (red beefsteak)
• 'Earl’s Faux' (pink/red beefsteak)
• 'Elbe' (orange beefsteak)
• 'German Johnson (sweet beefsteak type)
• 'Great Divide' (red beefsteak)
• 'Ispolin' (pink Siberian strain)
• 'Lucky Cross' (bi-color red/orange)
• 'Marianna’s Peace' (red beefsteak)
• 'Mortgage Lifter' (red beefsteak, various strains)
• 'Red Pear' (pear shaped salad cherry type with beefsteak flavor)
• 'Rose' (very large sweet Amish beefsteak type)
• 'Urbikany' (Siberian variety)

Patio

Small plants good for container gardens

• 'Patio'
• 'Small Fry'
• 'Tiny Tim'

Many varieties of processing tomatoes are grown commercially, but just five hybrid cultivars grown in California constitute over 60% of total production of processing tomatoes.

Gallery

• 

  Tomato vegetable

• 

  Greenhouse tomato

• 

  Unripe tomatoes on a vine, good for pickling

• 

  The flower and leaves are visible in this photo of a tomato plant.

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  Tomato seedling

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  Tomato slices

References

• Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608

External links

• w:Tomato. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
• Tomato QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)