Solanum lycopersicum

Solanum lycopersicum, Tomato, is a species belonging to the Solanaceae family that originated in Central and South America and now grown worldwide for its edible fruits. It is perennial in its native habitat but grown as an annual in temperate climates, usually growing about 3 m in height. It is covered with fine short hairs. The leaves are compound, odd pinnate, with five to nine leaflets on petioles. The flowers are yellow in cyme inflorescence. The fruits are classified as berries. Tomato fruits can be used for first aid treatment for burns, scalds, and sunburn. Root decoction is ingested for relief from tooth pain. Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, a substance with beneficial effects on the heart and prostate. It is also used for rheumatism and headaches.Tomato fruits are consumed in many various ways and forms, either raw or cooked. It can also be made into juice, or dried and ground into a powder. The seeds yield edible oil. The oil can also be used in making soap. Tomato leaves can be made into a spray as an effective insecticide.

Solanum lycopersicum is a ANNUAL growing to 2 m by 1.5 m at a fast rate.
It is hardy to zone 10. The flowers are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile.
Suitable for: light , medium and heavy soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: acid and neutral soils and can grow in very acid soils.
It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.

A plant of the tropics, it is also widely cultivated in the subtropics and temperate zone . In the tropics it can be grown at elevations from sea level up to 2,000 metres, but generally fruits better above 1,000 metres. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 20 - 27°c, but can tolerate 7 - 35°c. It prefers a diurnal temperature variation of at least 5 - 6°c. The plant cannot tolerate frosts. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 600 - 1,300mm, but tolerates 400 - 1,800mm. High rainfall and high relative humidity adversely affect growth. Requires a fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil in a warm sunny position. Slightly acid conditions, with a pH in the range 5.8 - 6.8, are preferred, though the plant can tolerate 5 - 7.5. Yields of ripe fruit from upright forms of the plant can commence 2 - 3 months after sowing the seed;other forms might take 4 - 5 months. Yields of 15 tonnes per hectare can be obtained. Yields are mainly between 20 - 40 tonnes per hectare, but yields up to 150 tonnes have been recorded. There are many named varieties and over the considerable period of cultivation by humans two distinct types have emerged. These are:- L. Esculentum cerasiforme A.Gray. This is the cherry tomato. Closer to the original species, it produces a large crop of small fruits with a delicious sweetness. L. Esculentum esculentum. This is the more commonly grown tomato with much larger fruits. There are a very large number of cultivars with a wide variety of colours and fruit shapes and sizes. This species hybridizes with the currant tomato , but does not hybridize with the wild tomato .