1. CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

2.  Groups of vegetables are grown on different sections of a plot of ground each year  Helps in maintaining the balance of soil nutrients for successive crops  Avoids the build-up of pests & diseases  Assists in weed control  Leguminous crops should be included to maintain soil fertility What is crop rotation CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

3. Method and planning for crop rotation Make group of vegetables according to their botanical relationship Allocate each rotation group to a plot of land marked A, B, C, and D and draw up a monthly time table for each space It saves more time later than fighting disease and pests if not done prior to planting Contd…. CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

4. Tomato belongs to Solanaceous group and can be rotated with any one crop from the following group Legumes : Broad bean, French bean, Pea, and Runner bean Brassicacea: Cabbage, Cauliflower, Radish, Turnip Onion family: Onion, Garlic, Leek, Shallots Leafy vegetable: Palak, Spinach, Methi, Bathua Contd…. CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

5. Minimum tillage operation may be adopted Tomato should be planted on raised bed to reduce the fruit rotting and water requirement Bed solarization by covering bed with transparent polythene sheet during hot summer month (May) after harrowing is beneficial Burning not advisable due loss of beneficial microorganism Compost/FYM should be mixed with Trichoderma Greenmanuring is recommended for areas with assured rainfall and for irrigated crop Cultural practices CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

6.  The land may be ploughed and harrowed 3 or 4 times to obtain a fine tilth.  About 10 tonnes of well Farm Yard Manure (FYM) or vermicompost/compost @ 1-1.5 t per acre is applied at the last ploughing.  Beds are prepared against the slope and field channels of 50 cm breadth are prepared at intervals of 1 m Field and bed preparation practices CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

7. Tomato is well fitted in different cropping systems of cereals, grains, pulses and oilseeds Cropping systems rice-tomato, okra-potato-tomato, tomato-onion are popular Maize -tomato-watermelon and paddy-peas-tomato are economical systems Palak or radish can be grown as inter-crop in tomato successfully Intercropping in tomato CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO

8.  Pre emergence or one week after planting application of alachlor or butachlor @2kg ai/ha  Post emergence (after weed germination) application of Metribuzin @ 0.5 kg ai/ha will control the weed upto 45 days  One or two hand weeding sufficient at one month interval  Organic weed control by using organic matter as mulches  Crop rotation, mulching, sanitation, and shallow tilling also helps  After transplantation, regular weeding is required to remove weeds Weed control Chemical Weed Control CULTURAL PRACTICES UNDER INM IN TOMATO