THESE POINTS MAY HELP YOUR TOMATO PROFITS 



1. Plant Pedigreed Stocks 



The losses consequent to carelessness in planting run-out, 

 off-type, low-producing strains are difficult to compute. Such 

 stocks are partly responsible for the 3-ton yields that are so 

 prevalent. The growers who are making the profits in Toma- 

 toes are planting nothing but strains that are bred for their 

 special purpose — stocks that have been disinfected for seed- 

 borne diseases and have recently been tested for strong 

 germination and high vitality. 



2. Southern Plants Are a Success 



All indications show that they are here to stay, for the reason 

 that a stronger plant can be bought for less money. This, of 

 course, does not apply to the men who use blocked plants. 

 Both growers and state officials are putting up a winning 

 fight against diseases. Our one note of warning is that you 

 make certain that the plants you receive from the South have 

 been grown from seed that has a pedigree. This last year's 

 records again prove that most of the heaviest acreages in the 

 North were produced from Southern-grown plants. 



3. Handle Your Plants Carefully 



If you are using Southern plants, and if you trench them 

 before planting, thoroughly wet down the trench, place the 

 plants in it, fill the trench, and then wet it down again. Under 

 no circumstances should you have flowing water in the trench 

 itself, for if there are disease organisms on any of your plants 

 you are likely to spread them down the whole row. Plants 

 of the Marglobe type are usually spaced 4 feet apart in the 

 row, in rows 5 feet apart. In the latitude of Philadelphia we 

 recommend that the plants be set in the field as near May 1 

 as possible. 



4. Have Your Soil Analyzed 



Calcium and magnesium are very essential to the growth of 

 Tomatoes, but if there is plenty of organic matter in the soil, 

 deficiency of these is not so serious. The use of finely ground 

 dolomitic limestone, 300-screen, is strongly recommended. 

 We are of the opinion that any great deficiency of these ele- 

 ments may have a direct connection with heavy infestations of 

 collar rot and other diseases. 



5. Use Plenty of Fertilizer 



Many of our customers are succeeding with Tomatoes with 

 an application of stable manure, some with an application of 

 chemical fertilizer. A combination of both is recommended 

 when available. Your County Agent can make recommenda- 

 tions on this after the soil analysis. A good standard formula 

 is 5-10-8, 800 pounds in the row and 200 pounds as a side- 

 dressing after the plants have been in the field about a month. 



6. Cultivate Constantly 



For this we recommend two-horse riding cultivators with 

 1-inch teeth next to the plant and 2-inch teeth in the centers. 

 The field will bear cultivating once a week. Cross the rows 

 with a one-horse cultivator. Crab grass and weeds must be 

 kept down. As one good grower has said, "One crop at a 

 time is enough for any field." 



7. Keep Ahead of Potato Bugs and Tomato Worms 



The important matter of spraying must not be neglected. 

 A combination of calcium arsenate and Bordeaux Mixture is 

 very desirable. Use plenty of pressure on your pump — ^at 

 least 200 pounds. Good, ready-mixed formulas are now 

 commercially available at a reasonable cost. 



8. Watch Your Picking 



This is a vitally important factor in Tomato profits. It will 

 undoubtedly profit you to pay your pickers by the day and not 

 by the basket. If you do not believe this, give it a trial. We 

 have some very illuminating figures on the subject. One grower 

 reports an average cost of 3.7 cents per basket. But the real 

 gain is shown on the inspection platform. It will pay any 

 grower to be with his men in the field as much as possible. 

 The man who won the prize for first quality in New Jersey in 

 1935 invariably stored his Tomatoes under a tarpaulin for a 

 12-hour period before delivering them to the cannery. His 

 season's averages were as follows: U. S. No. 1, 86 per cent; 

 U. S. No. 2, 13 per cent; Culls, 1 per cent. His net profit per 

 acre was in excess of $135. He used Stokes Master Marglobe, 

 Southern-grown plants. 



Stokesdale Proving Grounds on occasion of a midsummer field meeting 



Erdman Air Seriice 



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