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Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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Posted by canuckistani 5b (My Page) on Fri, May 15, 09 at 23:46
| Any general tips on improving yield, preventing disease, and surface damage? |
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RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| Pick them when they are still green, just beginning to blush. Look for a star shape on the bottom, it it is there than the tomatoes will ripen up just fine off the plant. I have found no difference in taste between vine ripened and fruits ripened off the plant. Tasteless maters are from poor soils not from being picked green. Picking early stops all cracking, cut worms and horns worms eating holes in fruit and other bad things. |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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Good advice thanks. You mention the soil as being the key to producing good tasting maters- can you elaborate a bit?
How do you usually store you maters and for how long before you take them to market? Thank you |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| I agree with boulderbelt. I pick mine when the are starting to turn, maybe a little later than blushing. I bring them into my basement store room and set them in single layer flats. I let them ripen to a nice red. I remember somewhere I read that tomatoes don't turn bright red with temps higher than 90+, can't remember where. This really saves the frustration of waiting to pick and then have something eat at or wind or hail destroy them. I have been known to run out and quickly pick all the close tomatoes when a hailstorm is in the area. As far as storage for tomatoes here is how it works for me.
I go to three markets a week. Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. I don't pick on Saturday, unless I have to due to weather or other reasons. I go to the market, come home and sleep! I pick on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. These pickings are sold on Wednesday. I take all the ripe looking ones and the 3/4 ripe ones. I try to keep them grouped (in my mind), I pick on Wednesday and some on Thursday for Thursdays market. I also take anything that didn't sell on Wednesday as long as it looks good and the slower ripening ones from the basement. Then I pick real heavy on Friday, basically take everything that is blushing. This all will be for my Saturday Market in addition to anything that doesn't sell from Thursday. I take everything with me on Saturday. My goal is to come home with none. Then I start it all over again. If I do have things left over, I will hold them until Wednesday and that is it. It just depends, sometimes they will hold for a week. It depends on the variety. I pick what I need, if things don't sell well on Wednesday, I may not pick much on Thursday. Maybe only the real red ones. You just have to learn your markets and adjust your picking. Ideally, nothing more than 3-5 days post picking. I would also say to improve marketable yield, put up a hoop building or high tunnel. Hands down the best way to get more out of your tomatoes. As far as soil, my soil is off the scale high in potassium and phosphorus (old pig pens from previous owners) I always get praise on how good my tomatoes taste. Good luck! |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| Pick before rainstorms-full sized green maters + rain = splitting |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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pick early,at blush, and I take my boxes with me into the field. I pick and sort right into the boxes, the less handling the better. As long as your tomatoes are staked or trellised, they shouldn't be all that dirty. You can use a wagon or whatever you usually pick with. As a box gets full, get them out and into shade, then into your storage area.
I usually have 4-5 boxes with me and grade them as i go, #1 large, #1 med, #1 smalls, and #2's for canners. |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| If you really want to improve the marketable yield of tomatoes, grow them in a high tunnel. The visual quality of my tomatoes blew away the competition. The taste brought them back. Most people shop on looks. If it looks good, they will buy it. It is hard to sell cracked tomatoes. I had a few this year, but many of mine were perfect and it is easier to ask and get a good price when they are crack and blemish free. |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| I usually pick the larger varieties as soon as we see 'color' once per week. The cherry sized ones need picked more often, usually 3 times per week. I even pick the cherry sized as soon as we see 'color'. I have found that the cherry-sized ones will split faster than the larger sized ones. I don't stake my tomatoes, mainly because we never have enough time to do so. Plus this year, we planted 1800 plants and found out that we don't have enough stakes (something to stock up this winter). Some of growers, plant into black plastic with drip tape. They even plant their green beans into the plastic to keep alot of the dirt from splashing back onto the plants. Otherwise, sort, sort, and more sorting. I do take all of the tomatoes into the market, and my customer will pick up some really ripe, some almost ripe and some barely ripe to make it thru the week. My customers on Saturdays don't shop the Tuesday or Thursday's market and vice versa. |
RE: Any tips for improving marketable yield of tomatoes?
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| The variety of tomato you choose to grow can greatly effect yield, disease and surface blemishes. Generally speaking hybrid varieties have a greater yield and tend to be more disease resistant than heirloom varieties. Some varieties are more crack resistant than others. Also using black plastic mulch and raised beds can help control water and reduce cracking. Healthy soil and proper fertilization will produce a higher quality tomato with a longer shelf-life. Potassium is very important to tomatoes. I use sulfate of potash for potassium, plus a liquid organic source of phosphorus, epsom salts for magnesium and borax for boron. A soil test and leaf analysis can be very useful tools. Your local extension office can help with this. These tips can help with marketable yields, however, your best yields come with growing in a greenhouse where you have more control over your growing environment. Good luck. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Uwharrie Farm
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