Currently, it is Georgia's most popular home garden vegetable and second only to potatoes in the United States in per capita consumption. They are consumed raw or cooked and are widely used in soups, salads, pickles, catsups, sauces and many other food products. It is a herbaceous, warm-season perennial of the family Solanaceae and is cultivated in Georgia as an annual. Georgia's tomato acreage is chiefly devoted to fresh market production. The state's acreage continues to increase, with over 6,000 acres grown annually.
Tomato production occurs throughout the state with most acreage located in the southwest.
Challenges Tomato production has changed considerably. Traditionally, tomatoes were produced on bare ground and many still are. Commercial tomato production, however, will normally utilize raised soil beds, plastic mulch, stakes and drip irrigation. If one could reduce this initially high investment of needed materials and still produce profitable tomato yields, improvements to the farmer's income, product quality, and the environment would most likely occur. The study did not use raised beds, plastic mulch, or drip irrigation.