How to Start Tomato Farming

Harvest cash all season. Tomato is the fruit of the plant Lycopersicon esculentum. (Botanically speaking, tomato is not only a fruit, but also a berry since it is formed from a single ovary.) The French sometimes refer to the tomato as pomme d'amour, meaning "love apple," and in Italy, tomato is sometimes referred to as "pomodoro" or "golden apple," probably referring to tomato varieties that were yellow/orange/tangerine in color.

Tomatoes are flavorful garden fruits that can be used in many recipes. It is used in cooking stews, soups, portages and making salad and so many others including indomie. Some people eat raw/fresh tomatoes with letus and bread. It is consumed almost daily. 

Tomatoes are widely known for their outstanding antioxidant content, including, of course, their oftentimes-rich concentration of lycopene. Intake of tomatoes has long been linked to heart health. Fresh tomatoes and tomato extracts have been shown to help lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. Tomatoes provide an excellent amount of vitamin C and beta-carotene; a very good amount of the mineral manganese; and a good amount of vitamin E. In terms of phytonutrients

In Nigeria, demand is more than supply, millions of people consume tomatoes almost on daily basis, So, you can see the potential in the farming business.Tomato farming can be done either in your backyard or on a large farm.

If you're trying to decide which tomato varieties to grow, here's what to think about:

• disease resistance
• growth habit
• time to maturity
• flavor and texture

Disease resistance is important, because tomatoes are vulnerable to a number of diseases that can weaken the plant and reduce yields. Look at the seed packet or plant label to see if the variety has resistance to verticillium and fusarium wilt, two very common soil-borne diseases that affect tomatoes. Resistance to these diseases is designated by a V or F after the variety name. 

Growth habit is important to consider because to get a bumper tomato crop, you need to provide enough room for the plant and adequate support. Tomato plants have one of two growth habits: 

• Determinate varieties grow to a certain height (usually 2 to 3 feet), set fruit, and then concentrate on ripening that fruit.
• Indeterminate varieties keep growing taller and taller, setting and ripening fruit until they’re killed by frost. These varieties require more support (from cages and stakes) and more a bit more attention from the owner.

STEPS

 

Select a good Species
 

Roma and Celebrity Tomatoes are good. Roma tomatoes are used both for canning and producing tomato paste because of their slender and firm nature, also known as Italian tomatoes. Like most tomatoes, Celebrities prefer strong, nutrient-rich soil that is at least 8 inches deep and loose-packed for easy root spread. Celebrities are almost entirely maintenance-free.

Roma Tomatoes

Celebrity Tomatoes

Get the nursery ready 

It can be done during any season as long as the conditions are favorable but preferably around March/April when the rain is just beginning in most parts of the country. Tomatoes does very well in most soil types in Nigeria but better on a well drained, deep and loamy (rich with sand, silt and clay) soil.  

Tomatoes favor on more acidic soil with a pH of 6.2 to 6.8. Use a pH soil testing kit, available at garden stores, to test the pH levels of the soil. Choose an area where the soil receives at least 6 hours of direct sunlight. Prepare the ground by clearing the grasses, loosen the soil with hand trowel, shovel and hoes and if soil pH conditions aren't ideal for growing tomato plants, add fertilizer (Purchase a fertilizer with a 5-10-5 ratio of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium) to prepare your soil for planting, The richer the soil, the better the growing conditions. 

Remove the seeds from the tomatoes and spread it on the prepared soil. It will germinate within a week. Transplant after a month.

Transplant to your Garden/Farm Land

Here is where they would grow to maturity and production. You need to be careful with the tender plan to avoid breaking it. Transplant is best done with hands for better results. Do not water at night, as this creates dangerous conditions for your plants as insects love wet dark environments and rot and other diseases such as mold are easily avoided by watering during the morning. Open the soil with piece of small wood, insert the seedling into the hole and cover it with soil. 

Weed and Apply Fertilizer

After two months from transplant, it will be time for weeding. Weed carefully to avoid damaging the tomato plants. After the first weed, it will be time to apply fertilizer to help replenish the soil nutrients taken by the weeds. 

Harvest and Market Your Tomatoes

Tomatoes are generally ready to pick within three to four months after planting the seeds, depending on the variety. Tomatoes can be harvested when they are still green and allowed to ripen off the plant. You can pick tomatoes every two days in some cases during the peak growing season to prevent over-ripening on the plant. 

Most ripe tomatoes are a bright red color, although tomatoes that ripen in hot weather may be yellowish-orange. Note that different varieties of tomatoes will have different mature colors. Tomatoes can ripen to colors of red, orange, yellow, pink and purple. You should check the bottoms of the tomatoes for the mature ripe color of the variety you are picking because that is where tomatoes begin to ripen first. 

Tomatoes that are appropriately ripe should feel slightly firm when you lightly squeeze them. A hard tomato needs additional time to ripen. Tomatoes that are heavy and dense are usually ripe and ready to pick and eat.

Like I mentioned earlier, millions of people consumes tomatoes almost on daily basis, so if you can produce more and sell it cheap, you will make more money. Locate your target area and supply to them or they can come to your garden/ storage venue to buy them off.

Please contribute your knowledge to help us all in this business and feel free to ask questions using the comment section.