TOMATO CULTURE: A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE TOMATO TEXT

Seedsmen's catalogs are published and distributed gratuitously at great expense, and are issued, primarily, for the sake of selling the seeds they offer. They answer the purpose for which they are designed, in proportion as they secure orders for seeds. Will this be measured by the accuracy and completeness of their descriptions? I think that it needs but slight acquaintance with the actual results of advertising to answer in the negative, and whatever your answer may be, the answer given by the catalogs themselves is an emphatic no. In a recent case I looked very carefully through the catalogs of 125 American seedsmen who listed a certain variety which is very markedly deficient in a certain desirable quality, and found that but 37 of the 125 mentioned the quality in connection with the variety at all and of these but 7 admitted the deficiency, while 30 told the opposite of the truth. Even if a complete, exact and reliable description of a variety was published by disinterested persons, one could not be sure of getting seed from seedsmen which would produce plants of that exact type, since there is no agreement or uniformity among them as to the exact type any varietal name shall stand for. One way of getting seed of the exact type wanted is to do as the South Jersey growers did: go to work and breed up a stock which is uniformly of the type wanted; but this involves more painstaking care than many are willing to give, though I think not more than it would be most profitable for them to expend for the sake of getting seed just suited to their needs. A second and easier way is to secure samples of the most promising sorts and from the most reliable sources and grow them on one's own farm; select the stock which seems best for him and buy enough of that exact stock for several years' planting, and in the meantime be looking for a still better one. Tomato seed stored in a cool, dry place will retain its vitality for from three to seven years. CHAPTER XVI Seed Breeding and Growing The potentialities of every plant and its limitations are inherent, fixed and immutable in the seed from which it is developed and are made up of the balanced sum of the different tendencies it receives in varying degree from each of its ancestors back for an indefinite number of generations. A very slight difference in the character or the degree of any one of the tendencies which go to make up this sum may make a most material difference in the balance and so in the resulting character of the plant produced. Different plants, even of the same ancestry, vary greatly in prepotency or in the relative dominance of the influence they have over descendants raised from seed produced by them. In some cases all the plants raised from seed produced by a certain plant will be essentially alike and closely resemble the seed-bearing plant, while seed from another plant of the same parentage will develop into plants differing from each other and seemingly more influenced by some distant ancestor or by varying combinations of such influences than of those of the plant which actually produced the seed from which they were developed. Successful seed breeding can only be accomplished by taking advantage of these principles of heredity and variation, and by a wise use of them it is possible to produce seed which can be depended upon to produce plants of any type possible to the species. =The first essential for breeding= is to have a clear and exact conception of precisely what, in all respects, the type shall be and then the securing of seed which has come from plants of that exact character for the greatest possible number of generations, carefully avoiding the introduction by cross-pollination of tendencies from plants differing in any degree from the desired type. Secondly, seed should be used from plants which have been proven to produce seed, which will develop into plants like themselves or are strongly prepotent. A practical way to accomplish this in the tomato is as follows: By experiment and observation form a very clear conception of precisely the type of plant and fruits which is best suited to your needs. This may be done by the study of available descriptions of sorts, by conference with those who have had experience in your own or similar climatic and soil conditions and in raising fruit for the same purposes and, best of all, by trials of samples of different sorts and stocks on your own grounds. Having formed such a conception, write out the clearest possible description of exactly what you want and the ideal plant you are aiming at, stating as fully and minutely as possible every desirable quality and also those to be avoided. I consider not only the formation of an exact ideal, but the writing out of a most minute and exact description of precisely what in every particular the ideal plant should be and the rigid adherence to that exact ideal in selection, as the most important elements of successful seed breeding. Without it one is certain to vary from year to year in the type selected and in just so far as he does this, even if it be toward what might be called improvements or in regard to an unimportant quality, he undermines all his work and makes it impossible to establish a strain which can be relied upon to produce an exact type. With this description in hand, search out one or more plants which seem the nearest to the ideal. In doing this it should be kept in mind that the character of the seed is determined by the plant rather than by the individual fruit. Therefore, a plant whose fruit is most uniformly of the desired type should be chosen over one having a small proportion of its fruits of very perfect type, the others being different and variable. Save seed from one or more fruits from each of the selected plants, keeping that from each fruit, or at least each plant, separate. Give it a number and make a record of how nearly, in each particular, the plant and fruit of each number come to the desired ideal. I regard the saving of each lot separately and recording its characters as very important, even when all have been selected to and come equally close to precisely the same ideal. Quite often the seed of one plant will produce plants precisely like it, while that of another, equal or superior, will produce plants of which no two are alike and none like that which produced the seed, so that often the mixing of seed from different plants of the same general type, and seemingly of equal quality, prevents the establishment of a uniform type. The next year from 10 to 100 plants raised from each lot are set in blocks and labeled. As they develop the blocks are studied and compared with the original description of the desired type and that of each plant from which seed was saved, and the block selected in which all the plants come the nearest to the desired type, and which show the least variation. From it plants are selected in the same way and to the same type as the previous year. It is better to make selections from such a block than to take the most superior plants from all of the blocks, or from one which produced but one or but a few superlative ones, the rest being variable. It is also well to consider the relative importance of different qualities in connection with the degree to which the different lots approach the ideal in these respects. Such a course of selection intelligently and carefully carried out will give, in from three to five years, strains of seed greatly superior and better adapted to one's own conditions than any which it is possible to purchase. A single or but a very few selections may be made each year, and the superior value of the seed of the remainder of the seed blocks for use in the field will be far more than the cost of the whole work. =Growing and saving commercial seed.=--The ideal way is for the seedsman to grow and select seed as described above and give this stock seed to farmers who plant in fields and cultivate it, much as is recommended for canning, and save seed from the entire crop, the pulp being thrown away. Only a few pickings are necessary and the seed is separated by machines worked by horse power at small cost, often not exceeding 10 cents a pound. They secure from 75 to 250 pounds per acre, according to the variety and crop, and the seedsmen pay them 40 cents to $1 a pound for it. Some of our more careful seedsmen produce all the seed they use in this way; others buy of professional seed growers, who use more or less carefully grown stock seed. In other cases when the fruit is fully ripe it is gathered, and the seeds, pulp and skins, are separated by machinery; the seed is sold to seedsmen, the pulp made into catsup, and only the skins are thrown away. Still others get their supply by washing out and saving the seed from the waste of canneries. Such seed is just as good as seed saved _from the same grade of tomatoes_ in any other way, but the fruit used by the canneries is, usually, a mixture of different crops and grades, and even of different varieties, and consequently the seed is mixed and entirely lacking in uniformity and distinctness of type. Generally from 5 to 20 per cent. of the plants produced by seed as commonly grown either by the farmer himself or the seedsmen, though they may be alike in more conspicuous characteristics, will show varietal differences of such importance as to affect more or less materially the value of the plant for the conditions and the purposes for which it is grown. In a book like this it is useless to attempt to give long varietal descriptions even of the sorts commonly listed by seedsmen, since such descriptions would be more a statement of what the writer thought seed of that variety should be rather than of what one would be likely to receive under that name. CHAPTER XVII Production for Canning =Growing for canning= has many advantages over growing for market. Some of these are that it is not necessary to start the plants so early, that they can be grown at less cost, and set in the field when smaller and with less check, and on this latter account are apt to give a large yield. It is not necessary to gather the fruit so often, nor to handle it so carefully, while practically all of it is saleable. For these reasons the cost of production is lower and it is less variable than with crops grown for market. Still farmers and writers do not agree at all as to the actual cost. It is claimed by some that where the factory is within easy reach of the field the cost of growing, gathering and delivering a full yield of tomatoes need not exceed $12 to $18 an acre, while others declare they cannot be grown for less than $40. Nearly one-third of this cost is for picking and delivering, and varies more with the facilities for doing this easily and promptly and with the yield than with crops grown for market. A large proportion of the crops grown for canning are poorly cultivated and unwisely handled, so that the average yield throughout the entire country is very low, hardly exceeding 100 bushels an acre. But where weather and other conditions are favorable, and with judicious cultivation, a yield of 300 to 800 bushels an acre can be expected. I have known of many larger ones. A large proportion of the tomatoes grown for canning are planted under contract, by which the farmer agrees to deliver the entire yield of fruit fit for canning, which may be produced on a given area, at the contract price per bushel or ton. The canner is to judge what fruit is fit for canning and this often results in great dissatisfaction. To the grower it seems in many cases as though the quantity of acceptable fruit paid for was determined quite as much by the abundance or scarcity of the general crop as by the weight hauled to the factory. The prices paid by the factories for the past 10 years run from 10 to 25 cents a bushel, while canning tomatoes in the open market for the same period have brought from 8 to 50 cents a bushel, which, however, are exceptional prices. In all but two of the past 10 years uncontracted tomatoes could generally be sold, in most sections, for more than was paid on contract. I have given the price a bushel, though canning tomatoes are usually sold by the ton. The cost of the product of a well-equipped cannery is divided about as follows: fruit, 30 per cent.; handling, preparing and processing the fruit, 18 per cent.; cost of cans, labels, cases, etc., 43 per cent.; labeling, packing and selling, 0.035 per cent.; incidentals, 0.055 per cent. =Canning on the farm.=--While as a general proposition such work as canning tomatoes can usually be done at less cost in a central plant, yet in many cases the grower can profitably do this on the farm, thus saving not only the expense of delivery at the factory, but the dissatisfaction with weights credited and delays in receiving the fruit. But very little special apparatus or machinery (more than some form of boiler for supplying steam) is needed, and this and the cans can be readily obtained of dealers in canners' supplies. In Maryland and neighboring states many dealers furnish all necessary machinery, cans and other requisites and contract for the crop delivered in cans. Canning on the farm where the fruit is grown would be more generally practiced except for the popular demand that the canned product shall be brighter colored than it is possible to produce from fruit alone, and the necessary dyeing and other doctoring can be more easily and skilfully done at a central factory, though it is always at the sacrifice of flavor and healthfulness for the sake of appearance. Another advantage of canning on the farm is that it can be done with less waste of fruit. The hauling to the factory and delay in working the fruit result in a great deal of waste. The average cannery does not obtain more than 1,200 pounds of product from a ton of fruit, there being 800 pounds of waste, while with sound, ripe, perfectly fresh fruit, it is entirely practical to secure from 1,600 to 1,800 pounds of canned goods from a ton, and this saving in waste would more than counterbalance the gain from the use of the better machinery possible in the factory. =The process of canning= is simple and consists first of rinsing off the fruit, then in wire baskets or pails dipping it into boiling hot water to start the skins, which will require but two to four minutes. While they are still hot they should be peeled and imperfections cut out, then promptly placed in the cans, which should be fully filled; it is well to do this by adding the juice which has escaped while peeling, instead of water, as is done in the larger factories. This will give the canned fruit better color and lessen the need of dye. Place in a hot box for three to five minutes until heated through, wipe top of can clean and drop perforated cap in place, add flux and solder, seal cap in place with round capper, close perforation in cap with drop of solder. Place in box or kettle and steam or boil for 20 to 40 minutes. If the tomatoes were all ripe and none over-ripe, and have been kept hot from the time they went into the scalding kettle until the sealed cans are in the kettle, 20 minutes' cooking will make them surer to keep than 40 minutes would with fruit such as is commonly received at factories, or that which has been allowed to cool once or twice while in process. CHAPTER XVIII Cost of Production There are a few vegetables or fruits where the cost of production and the price received are more variable than with the tomato. The cost per acre for raising the fruit varies with the conditions of soil, facilities for doing the work economically and with the season, while that of marketing the product varies still more. Under usual conditions, the growing of an acre of tomatoes and the gathering and marketing of the fruit will cost from $18 to $90, of which from 15 to 40 per cent. is spent in fertilizing and preparing the ground, 5 to 10 per cent. for plants, 20 to 30 per cent. for cultivation, and 25 to 40 per cent. for gathering and handling the fruit. The last item, of course, varies somewhat with, but not in proportion to, the amount of the crop, as it costs proportionately less to gather a large than a small crop, and for canners' use than for market. The expense of shipping and marketing the crop varies so greatly according to the conditions and methods that I do not attempt to state the amount. The total yield of fruit runs from 200 to 600 or 700 bushels to the acre, a 200-bushel crop of tomatoes comparing as to amount with one of 25 bushels of wheat and a 700-bushel crop of tomatoes with one of 60 bushels of wheat; with the best and wisest cultivation and under the most favorable conditions one can as reasonably hope for one as for the other. Of this total yield, from 10 to 25 per cent. of the fruit should be such as, because of earliness and quality, can be sold as extras, and there is usually from 5 to 10 per cent., and sometimes a much larger per cent., which should be rejected as unsalable. The selected fruit should net from $1 to $5 a bushel, the common from 30 to 75 cents--making the returns for a 200-bushel yield well sold in a nearby market $70 to $350, and proportionately larger, for a better yield. In practice I have known of crops which gave a profit above expenses of over $1,000 an acre. This came, however, from exceptionally favorable conditions and skilled marketing, and I have known of many more crops where, though the fruit was equally large and well grown, the profit was less than $100. In this country a greenhouse is seldom used solely for the growing of tomatoes, but other crops--such as lettuce--are grown in connection with the tomatoes, so that it is impracticable to give the cost of production. As grown at the Ohio state experiment station--and the crop ripened in late spring or early summer and sold on the market of smaller cities--greenhouse tomatoes have yielded about two pounds a square foot of glass and brought an average price of 12 cents per pound. In other cases yields as high as 10 pounds a foot of glass and an average price of 40 cents a pound have been reported. CHAPTER XIX Insects Injurious to the Tomato By DR. F. H. CHITTENDEN Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Department of Agriculture From the time tomato plants are set in the field until the fruit has ripened they are subject to the attacks of insects which frequently cause serious injury. On the whole, however, the tomato is not so susceptible to damage as are some related crops--such as the potato. =Cutworms.=--Of insects most to be feared and of those which attack the plants when they are first set out are cutworms of various species. The grower is as a rule quite too familiar with these insects, and no description of their methods is necessary, beyond the statement that they cut off and destroy more than they eat and re-setting is frequently necessary. The best remedy is a poisoned bait, prepared by dipping bunches of clover, weeds, or other vegetation in a solution of Paris green or other arsenical, 1 pound to 100 gallons of water. These baits are distributed in small lots over the ground _before_ the plants are set, the precaution being observed that the land is free for two or three weeks from any form of vegetation. This will force the hungry "worms" to feed on the baits, to their prompt destruction. A bran-mash is also used instead of weeds or clover, and is prepared by combining one part by weight of arsenic, one of sugar, and six of sweetened bran, with enough water added to make a mash. The baits are renewed if they become too dry, or they can be kept moist by placing them under shingles or pieces of board. [Illustration: FIG. 35--CUTWORM AND PARENT MOTH (_Feltia subgothica_) (From Chittenden, U. S. Department of Agriculture)] =Flea-beetles= attack the plants soon after they are set, and their