Scheduling a Greenhouse Tomato Crop
Wednesday, 08 September 2010 08:36
Greenhouse tomatoes are usually scheduled to come into production when field tomatoes are not available. In Northern sections of the country, such as New England, the field production season occurs late in the summer and is short in duration. As a result, greenhouse tomato growers in New England, find they can market greenhouse tomatoes through most of the summer and still get a good price.
The time interval between sowing a crop and harvesting ripe fruit will vary with the season since the rate of seedling and fruit development are affected by temperature. Light during seedling development will also affect the timing of initial flowering. Under ideal conditions, high light and warm temperatures, it will take about eight (8) weeks from seeding until the first flowers open and another eight (8) weeks from flowering until first harvest. Seedlings are generally transplanted into the production greenhouse 2-3 weeks before flowering. During less than ideal conditions the period from seed to harvest will be longer than 16 weeks. Use the schedules listed below as a general guide. Remember the actual time required will vary between cultivars and with the light and temperature conditions in your greenhouse.
Crop season, Development stage, Time interval, Weeks from seed
Early Spring
Seed: Oct 25-Nov 25
Transplant: Jan 1-Jan 15, Weeks from seed: 9-10
Harvest: April 1-July, Weeks from seed: 22-23
Late spring
Seed: Dec 15-Jan 15
Transplant: Feb 1-March 1, Weeks from seed: 6-7
Harvest: May 1-July, Weeks from seed: 19-20
Fall
Seed: June: 15-July 15
Transplant: July 20-Aug 15, Weeks from seed: 5
Harvest: Oct 1-Dec, Weeks from seed: 16
Richard McAvoy
Plant Science Department, University of Connecticut
Links to presentations and handouts from Greenhouse and High Tunnel Tomato Conference held November 2009.
