Tomato growers honor champs (Continued from Page D 2) Speedling_ transplants. In an average day (9 hours) he can plant 80,000 to 100,000 plants Two people follow the planter, mainly to keep the boxes filled with plants, also to watch for skips. He can direct-seed about V-h acres per hour with his 3-row Mechanical Plug-Mix Planter John increased his plug-mix acreage by 10 more acres this year, since he recently acquired the capability to irrigate about one-third or more of his total acreage. During a dry planting season irrigation is very essential for a good stand from the plug-mix plantings. Mason explamed no manures were applied and Penn S*ate soil test recommendations for total lime and fertilizer needs were followed. A starter solution using 18 pounds of 10-52-8 in 200 gallons of water per acre was applied at planting time. A week after planting, John side dressed with 250 pounds of 10-20-20 per acre and at blossom time with 30 pounds of actual nitrogen per acre Plants were shallowcultivated about four tunes using a 3-row Nobil (Danish tine) cultivator. For weed control m most transplanted fields a tank-mix of 1% pints of Treflan plus 3 quarts of Tillam per acre was preplant in corporated to a depth of 3 inches; some fields received a preplant treatment of Devrmol Approximately three weeks after transplanting pound at Industrial Radiators Radio Pager Dispatched Service Personnel This puts our service personnel within your reach 24 hrs. a day, 7 days a week. MARTIN MACHINERY Metnbuzm per acre was appheo as a broadcast spray over the plants. When necessary, the Metnbuzm application was repeated later m the season A combination of herbicides were used in the plug mix operation, including Devrmol, Ami ben and Metnbuzm Ethephon, used to stimulate the ripening process, was applied to all tomatoes at the highest labeled rate using a John Beam sprayer with a 45-foot wide boom. In secticides and fungicides were also applied with this sprayer, using 50 to 80 gallons of water per acre as a carrier. Pesticides used included Guthion, Manzate, Parathion, Difolatan, Bravo, Systox, and Kocide. This was the first tune John needed to use Kocide for Bacterial Speck control Except for a few acres of hand harvested tomatoes (not included in the above production figures), Mason used a 1971 model Button- Johnson total crew of 15 to machine-harvest all tomatoes The machine and 10 to 12 men and women sorters, supervised by wife Sue, operated for about 6 to 7 hours per day; sometimes harvesting over 100 tons a day. Harvesting began about 8.30 a.m and rarely went past 5 p.m with a 45 minute lunch break. This schedule was particularly suited to the women sorters who had school-age cluldren. For the first tune all of the crop was harvested directly into bulk dumpers and then hauled to processing plants in bulk semi trailers Last year John won the Emergency or Prime Power Systems from 1 to 1000 KW Balanced Design to Give You Peak Performance For Your Application: Farm - Industrial - Commercial - Residential Safety Fan Energy Saving Low Watt Density Thermostatically Controlled, Block Heater Deep Heavy Duty Mam Frame Channels For Added Rigidity And Vibration Absorbtion OPENINGS FOR DEALERS IN DELAWARE, MARYLAND & PARTS OF PENNSYLVANIA P.O. Box 35, Martindale, PA 17549 215-445-4800 or 267-7771 MARTIN MACHINERY Heavy Duty Industrial Engines High Clearance x° SS Safety Sysu .1 To Protect To Oil Dram. Etc Engine From Damage Due To Low Oil Pressure. High Water Temperature, And Overspeed Champion Tomato Grower Award for the Class 3 Machine Harvest category. Leon Epler Farms Leon Epler Farms, Rl, Nor thumberland, produced 586.71 tons of usable tomatoes on 30 acres to become the Class 4 Machine Harvest Champion Tomato Grower for 1980 Epler Farms averaged 19 56 tons per acre usable, machine-harvested tomatoes for Furman Canning Co Varieties and number of Georgia-grown transplants used were 129,000 US-141; 80,000 C-37; 26,000 Red Rock; 16,000 US-68 (formerly 778-68) and 14,000 US-28. US-68 tended to shatter and fall off the vine prematurely under this season’s hot, very-dry conditions and thus may not be grown on the farm next year. Field Manager Dan Van Kirk indicated that the farm follows a three-year rotation pattern of winter wheat, sod (orchardgrass timothy-clover mixture), and then either tomatoes or potatoes. The total farm operation consists of a large retail farm market; 30 acres tomatoes; 84 acres potatoes; 200 acres alfalfa; 300 to 350 acres field com; a 20,000 layer poultry operation and 160 dairy cattle. Transplanting began about May 15 and ended about May 29 using a 3-row transplanter comprised of two Powell units and a Holland unit, all with standard fingers. Spacing was 5 feet by 1 foot. Van Kirk indicated that about 10 tons of poultry manure was applied to the sod during the summer of 1979 and that the tomato fields Check These Features: Large Dry Type Conservatively Air ClMner Rated Alternator * Lancaster Farming, Saturday, February 14,1981—03 - )ty —.I Ag presented with a pin by Dave Geise, center, Pa. Food Processors Assoc, and Pete Ferretti, Penn State Horticultural Extension Agent for his contribution to the state's tomato industry. received 1% tons of lime last fall. He followed Penn State sod test recommendations for fertilizer needs. All fertilizer was applied broadcast prior to planting. No side-dressings were applied. A starter solution using 15 pounds of 16-32-16 in 275 gallons of water per acre was applied at planting tune. For weed control a tank-mix 3% quarts of Tillam plus % pound of Sencor 50 WP per acre was preplant incorporated to a depth of 3 to 4 mches. About five weeks after transplanting, % pound of Sencor 50 WP was applied as a broadcast spray over the plants. Smce the weather had been sunny, Deluxe Engine Control System With Cycle Cranking Minimum of Five Channel Cross Members I For Free Literature or Demonstration, I Send This Coupon | Name I Address I Phone warm, and dry immediately prior to the post Sencor treatment, no foliage injury was observed even at this 3 A pound rate. Plants were shallow cultivated about two weeks after planting and again after six to seven weeks. Two timely overhead sprinkler irrigations were credited as being the most important cultural practice followed in growing this season’s processing tomato crops. Two inches of irrigation was ap plied at blossom-time and 1% inches m late July when most of the fruit was about the size of golf balls Since US-68 (formerly 778-68) 68) was the earliest maturing (Turn to Page D 4) Control Large Shock iMounted Control Box Completely ■ Brushless Alternators Modern Solid ■State Voltage' Regulator Martin Machinery P.O. Box 35 Martindale, PA 17549
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