Tomato macerate

Tomato macerate

Tomato macerate is one of the natural pesticides that can be prepared on the farm or for small gardens.
Tomato macerate is a natural pesticide that acts against some insects such as aphids, cabbage, and others.
The effect of tomato macerate is due to some substances contained in the tomato, including solanine, which is a glycosidic alkaloid that the plant uses as a natural defense against fungi and insects. This substance is present in every part of the plant, and the parts that contain the most are the leaves, the stems and the fruit not yet ripe.
Remember that solanine has a certain degree of toxicity, hence the natural antiparasitic action of tomato macerate. The greatest concentration of solanine occurs in the green parts of the plant (inedible) and in the immature fruits.
The toxicity of the ripe fruit is very low, and in humans it is completely disposed of by the digestive and urinary systems within a day.

Preparation –
The preparation of the tomato macerate is very easy.
For the preparation it is necessary to use 2,5 kg of leaves, such as female leaves or pruning waste; these must be finely cut and left to macerate in 10 liters of water for 3 days.
For maceration it is advisable to use an earthenware jar (or at most hard plastic), avoiding metal containers.
Furthermore, during maceration, the container must be kept open, which is necessary in order to oxygenate the mixture and thus facilitate maceration. From time to time the mixture must be mixed, in order to better release the positive effects.
The macerate thus obtained must be adequately filtered, using jute bags, as usual, if there is no other material, and diluted in a further 10 liters of water.
The product can also be stored in dark colored glass bottles, or in airtight containers. Furthermore, the storage period must not be too long, 2 or 3 months at the most.
This preparation is particularly effective against aphids and phytophagous insects, that is, which feed on the leaves, such as cabbage.

How to use –
The tomato macerate, with its repulsive action, prevents insects from attacking the plant. Given the properties of the alkaloids, however, the tomato macerate can also be used by contact, when infestation is in progress. This makes it a useful remedy, as it has no phytotoxicity for humans and useful garden insects, such as pollinators and natural predators.
The use of the macerate, after careful filtering, must then be done in the cool evening hours of the day. This caution is even more necessary in the summer, since the sun increases the degradation of the macerate, decreasing its effectiveness.