INCREASE TOMATO PRODUCTION (2024)

FAQs

INCREASE TOMATO PRODUCTION? ›

Potassium. Tomatoes have a relatively high potassium requirement with over 300kg/ha of potassium typically being utilized. High potassium levels provide high tomato yields. Balance to other nutrients such as calcium and magnesium is also important.

Potassium. Tomatoes have a relatively high potassium requirement with over 300kg/ha of potassium typically being utilized. High potassium levels provide high tomato yields. Balance to other nutrients such as calcium and magnesium is also important.

Here's a simple recipe for side-dressing tomatoes: When fruit begins to develop, spread ½ cup of a 5-10-5 fertilizer around the base of a tomato plant. Gently work the fertilizer into the top inch of soil. Fertilize tomatoes again with a ½ cup of 5-10-5 when the first fruit is harvested.

Some growers prefer to use a high-phosphorus fertilizer, indicated by a larger middle number. You can also keep things simple with a fertilizer especially formulated for tomatoes – usually with a ratio like 3-4-6 or 4-7-10. Most importantly, don't over-fertilize. Too little fertilizer is always better than too much.

Adding Epsom salts to your plant either through foliar spray or direct watering is a great way of boosting micronutrient absorption. This helps your tomato plant produce large, juicy, and very sweet fruits. Remember that a little bit goes a long way and too much can cause more problem than it fixes.

Pruning, or selectively removing some of the tomato plant growth, can improve harvestable yields and prolong the harvest season. Further, keeping tomato plants off the ground reduces common fungal diseases like early blight, Septoria leaf spot, and anthracnose, and improves fruit quality.

Pruning at the right time directs energy toward creating and ripening fruit instead of making more leaves. Overall, you will probably have fewer fruit on a pruned plant, but it will be bigger.

How do you force tomato plants to fruit? ›

To force ripening, water the plant less frequently, but don't let it completely dry out. Increase sunlight: Tomatoes need plenty of sunlight to ripen. Make sure your plant is getting at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight each day.

The advantage in removing the lower leaves is that the plants energies go into producing fruit rather than a lot of foliage. Also the lower leaves tend to get powdery mildew so it is good to remove them to stop disease spreading.

Add compost and other sources of organic matter. This is the key to soil quality. Organic matter supplies nutrients, increases moisture holding capacity, improves tilth, encourages diversity of soil life and can reduce plant disease. Compost makes a good mulch for tomatoes.

Like many vegetables, tomatoes prefer a goldilocks soil that is moisture retentive yet well drained and, of course, rich in nutrients. The very best way to achieve that is simply to add plenty of well-rotted organic matter to the surface of your soil in the weeks or months before planting.

Use a Sea Salt Fertilizer

It's true that a lot of salt can be bad for plants, but several studies and taste tests have shown that tomatoes grown with salty, brackish water end up tasting better.

Boron. Boron plays an important role in pollen germination and tomato fruit set. Pre-flowering applications ensure good fruit set and full yield potentials are achieved. While boron is quickly taken up from the soil, it is relatively immobile in the plant, so foliar sprays are often more effective.