With the modern variety of varieties, the appearance of a tomato has long departed from the image of a rounded giant familiar to everyone from childhood, a slightly flattened shape of bright red color. At the moment, there are tomatoes of almost all shades, except perhaps blue, even purple, and even then they can meet. And how diverse are the shapes and sizes of tomato fruits? In this sense, tomatoes are interesting, which, in their appearance, are more reminiscent of other vegetable crops, such as eggplant or cucumbers. Similar varieties of tomatoes have become very popular in recent years, and one of the brightest representatives of tomatoes with the original shape of the fruit has become French grape.
Even the name of this tomato variety can attract an inexperienced summer resident, since bushes hung with clusters of tomatoes, in the manner of lady’s finger grapes, immediately appear to the rich imagination. By the way, in this regard, the name of the variety more or less corresponds to reality, since the bushes of ripening tomatoes do indeed somewhat resemble grape vines. But the word “French” is added solely for the beauty of the image, since the tomato has nothing to do with France at all.
Nevertheless, the French grape tomato has already managed to gain quite a lot of popularity among gardeners and summer residents, whose yield reviews and photos are evidence of this.
Variety description
The tomato variety French grape is the brainchild of specialists from the Siberian Garden company. Tomato bushes of this variety have great growth strength and are able to form a significant bush.
It is interesting that in the description and characteristics of the French grape variety, it is positioned as determinant. Indeed, in the open field, it rarely grows more than one meter. But in good greenhouse conditions, this tomato is able to grow up to 1,8 meters or even more.
Manufacturers also assure that the bush must be tied up, but at the same time it does not need pinching and shaping. This question has always been quite controversial among gardeners. The fact is that it is really better not to stepchild ordinary determinant varieties – in this case they are able to show much better yield results, especially when grown in greenhouses. But here it is necessary to take into account the fact that heavily overgrown bushes require enhanced nutrition and watering, and this should not be forgotten. In addition, they need to be planted at a considerable distance from each other so that all shoots with tomatoes can get enough sunlight.
Therefore, if in the southern regions, even in open ground, it is really not customary to pinch many determinant varieties of tomatoes, then in more northern regions they may not have enough light to ripen all the fruits.
And for varieties of medium and late ripening, this can be very noticeable, especially in northern latitudes, where most of the tomatoes simply do not have time to ripen. Therefore, each gardener must decide on the issue of pruning and pinching tomatoes individually, based on their specific climatic conditions.
Moreover, in terms of ripening, this variety belongs to mid-ripening tomatoes, the harvest can be obtained no earlier than 120 days from the moment of emergence. But in greenhouse conditions, it is able to bear fruit until the onset of the first frost.
The yield of a variety is directly dependent on the conditions of care and the ability to grow it without pinching. According to gardeners, when grown in greenhouses and kept in 4-5 trunks, the yield can reach 5-6 kg per bush, but on average, about 2 kg of tomatoes can be obtained from one bush.
A valuable advantage of the French grape variety is its resistance to all major diseases that tomatoes are usually susceptible to, and its general unpretentiousness in care. This allows even novice gardeners to grow it.
Characteristics of tomatoes
French bunch tomatoes are distinguished by the following characteristics:
- The shape of the tomatoes is very original – they are somewhat elongated in length, slightly reminiscent of fingers with some thickening near the stem and a prominent spout.
- The color of the fruit is standard, in the stage of full maturity – red.
- Tomatoes have a very smooth and dense skin, thanks to which they are not at all prone to cracking.
- The size of the tomatoes is small, on average their weight is 85-100 grams. On the bush, the fruits grow in large clusters of 8 to 14 pieces each. On average, one bush can have 3-4 such clusters.
- Naturally, the more shoots left on a tomato bush, the more clusters, with proper care, can form and ripen on it. Hence the secrets of a possible high yield. But in this case, the care of the tomato should be very intensive.
- The taste of tomatoes is good, experts rate it as a solid four, but because of the dense skin, it is more suitable not for salads, but for pickling.
- An ideal pickling variety, because it is suitable for any size, even a small jar, does not crack and looks very nice when whole-fruited canning.
- Tomatoes of the French bunch variety are very well stored, they can lie in a cool place for several months. They are also great for long-term transportation, so they are suitable for industrial cultivation.
Testimonials from truck drivers
The reviews of those who grew this variety of tomatoes are mostly positive. Tomatoes delight with their unpretentiousness and productivity. As for taste, opinions differ here, since this parameter is already very subjective.
Conclusion
French grape tomato is an unpretentious and productive modern variety, ideal for a variety of twists for the winter. Due to its disease resistance, it will delight you with a harvest even in conditions where the rest of the tomatoes do not ripen.
