The right tomato cultivar pays dividends

This story showed how in the Eastern Cape some varieties of tomatoes can stand wet weather, cold, strong winds, and drought and still maintain good yields and resistance to disease.

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Tomato trials in the Eastern Cape have shown certain commercial varieties to be extremely high yielding, widely adaptable and multi-disease-resistant compared to cultivars currently grown in the area.

The technical managing director of Mayford Seeds, Rodney Zingel, says these varieties were bred under local conditions to suit South African requirements.

“The breeding programme is part of an ongoing development that has been conducted over the past 25 years,” says Zingel.

“Local farmers and market agents helped select the varieties for their adaptability to local conditions and market requirements.

“Some attributes selected for were firm fruit, pleasant taste, and long shelf life to give them good market appeal.

“Plant selection for general health and hardiness has been stressed. They adapt well to various climatic conditions throughout the country, resulting in a significant increase in first-grade fruit and high yields, with reduced risk,” says Zingel.

Many varieties were planted in the Eastern Cape trials, and three, Expresso, Zeal and Zest, showed up well.

EXPRESSO