Recent advancements in tomato production Harlene Hatterman-Valenti North Dakota State University Breeding the perfect tomato Top attributes Texture Flavor (sweetness & acidity) Aroma 1 Anthocyanin enhanced tomatoes Two processes Oregon State University Conventional breeding method Indigo series John Innes Centre, UK Gene splicing technique Utilized snapdragon genes Concentration 100x greater Blue tomato cultivars Black Beauty Blue Bayou Blue Chocolate Blue Gold Dancing with Smurfs Dark Galaxy Fahrenheit Blues Helsing Junction Blues Indigo Blue Berries Indigo Rose Indigo Ruby Midnight Rose SunBlack Purple Bumblebee 2 Optimizing shelf life conditions for anthocyanin- rich tomatoes T. Petric, C. Kiferle, P. Perata, and S. Gonzali, PlantLab, Inst. Life Sciences, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy Intercropping tomatoes Intercropped tomato with: Zucchini Basil Green bean Lettuce Compared yields Mono culture Intercropped Determined land equivalent ratios 3 Intercropping results Tomato-green bean and tomato-lettuce were the only two that didn’t decrease tomato yield. Physiological response and sulfur metabolism of the V. dahlia infected tomato plants in tomato/potato onion companion cropping. Xuepeng Fu, Chunxia Li, Xingang Zhou, Shouwei Liu & Fengzhi Wu Companion cropping tomato with potato onion ( Allium cepa var. agrogatum Don.) increased resistance to Tomato Verticillium wilt. Potato onions induced sulfur-containing defense compounds in tomato. 4 How many leaders should you leave? (Indeterminate cultivars only) Why prune tomatoes Improve airflow/less disease Bigger fruit Earlier ripening Leader number? Conflicting reports Your situation may limit pruning Pruning method Remove flowers until plants are 12-18” tall. Remove suckers beneath fruit clusters (wait for flower cluster). Tip 4 wks before expected frost. 5 Grafting tomatoes Overcome biotic stresses Soil insects Soil pathogens Foliar pathogens Overcome abiotic stresses Drought Salinity Nutrient stress Chill stress Heavy metals Types of grafts and responses Homografting (same species) Variable responses Increase TSS & [Vc] Increase TSS & TA Increase yield, but ≈ TSS, [Vc], [Lyco.] Heterografting (different species) To Lycium chinense (goji berry) Increase TSS, TA, Vc, & TSS/TA ratio To Solanum tuberosum (potato) Tom: Inc. TSS, Vc, fruit #; dec. TA & fruit size Pot: Dec. tuber #, startch, Vc; Inc. reducing sugars To Solanum melongena (egg plant) Inc. TSS, Vc, TSS/TA ratio; Dec. TA, fruit yield, bacterial wilt 6 Cultivars to consider Cherokee Purple Chocolate Stripes Black Krim Green Zebra Orange Blossom Chef’s Choice Orange Heirloom look alike – Syngenta Arawak All are fusarium resistant Tomawak Gigawak 7.