How to get a good crop of tomatoes
Tomatoes are a rather whimsical culture. Yes, they can grow with little or no care, but the yield will be very small. And in order to get a good crop of tomatoes, plants need to ensure the most comfortable existence. So, what do you need for tomatoes to please you with an abundance of fruits?

There are several important agrotechnical measures that must be strictly observed – without them there will be no good harvest.

Pasynkovanie

Stepchildren are lateral shoots that appear in the axils of the leaves. During the summer, a large number of them are formed, they greatly thicken the bushes of tomatoes, as a result, the yield drops – all the forces of the plant go to the formation of green mass to the detriment of the crop. Therefore, they must be removed in a timely manner. This is stepchildren (1).

Stepchildren are best removed as soon as they appear – just pluck out a young sprout. If they outgrow, they will have to be cut out with pruners, leaving a rather large wound that does not heal for a long time. And this is an open gate for infections.

It is better to remove stepchildren in the morning so that the cut is weathered in the sun – so it will drag on faster. At the same time, it is important that a small stump remains – then a new shoot will no longer grow in this place. And if you break it completely, dormant buds will wake up in the axil of the leaf and stepchildren will appear again.

However, not all stepchildren need to be removed – the formation of a bush depends on the type of variety and in many cases 2 or 3 shoots must be left. There are 3 main types of tomatoes.

Superdeterminant. These are the smallest varieties and hybrids. They give few stepchildren and are limited in growth – only 3 fruit brushes are formed on the main shoot. But this is not enough, so these tomatoes are formed into 2 stems in the open field and 3 in the greenhouse. Accordingly, one or two of the lowest stepchildren are left on the plant.

Determinant. These tomatoes are taller, form 3-6 fruit clusters on the main shoot and are also limited in growth. In the open ground, all stepchildren must be removed from them – the plants form into 1 stem. On stepchildren, even the lowest, the crop often does not ripen, and they take a lot of strength from the plant. But in a greenhouse, where the warm period lasts longer, such varieties and hybrids form into 3 shoots, therefore, the two lowest stepsons must be left.

Indeterminate. These are tall tomatoes with unlimited growth. They are formed exclusively in one stem, because the first fruit clusters are laid very high – above 10 – 12 leaves. If you leave the stepson, he simply will not have time to grow such a length over the summer, and if he does, the crop will not ripen on him. Moreover, these tomatoes need to cut out extra flower brushes – an infinite number of them can form, but only 5 of the lowest have time to ripen in the open ground in the middle lane – the rest must be removed. And in the greenhouse you can leave 7 brushes.

Watering

For good growth and abundant fruiting, tomatoes need regular watering, but up to a certain point. While the tomatoes grow and bloom, they must be watered once a week, 1 liter per bush. When the fruits begin to pour, watering is increased – 1 time in 1 days, 5 liters per bush. But as soon as the tomatoes begin to ripen, they stop watering completely – otherwise the tomatoes will begin to crack and rot.

Tomatoes should be watered strictly under the root so that water does not fall on the leaves: moisture on the plant leads to outbreaks of diseases. And it is better to water them in 2 – 3 doses, after a short interval of time, so that the water soaks the soil well (2). Better yet, dig a shallow trench between the rows of tomatoes and pour water into it – then even the soil near the shoots will remain dry, which will significantly reduce the risk of infection.

Feeding

Tomatoes for the summer enough to feed 2 times:

  • when the fruits are tied – at this time they need liquid top dressing with a full set of macronutrients, they prepare it like this: 10 teaspoons of ammonium nitrate are diluted in 5 liters of water, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of superphosphate and potassium sulfate – fertilizers should be mixed well and poured tomatoes under the root at the rate of 3 liters per plant;
  • 20 days after the first – the same fertilizers in the same proportions.

It is also useful to mulch tomatoes with humus or rotted compost – they love organic matter. This mulch will keep the soil from drying out quickly and provide the plants with the extra nutrition needed for a good tomato crop.

Protection against diseases

The main problem of tomatoes is late blight, which first affects the leaves and then the fruits. As a preventive measure, you need to cut off all the lower leaves on the plants up to the first flower brush. In this case, moist air will not stagnate between the plants, which means that the risk of infection will be significantly reduced. In addition, fungal spores will not be able to splash from the soil onto the leaves, where they settle in the first place.

A good prevention of late blight is mulching the beds with hay. In the process of decomposition, hay bacillus actively reproduces in it, which releases a natural antibiotic, subtillin, into the soil, and it suppresses the reproduction of pathogenic fungi.

If the tomatoes began to become stained, treat them with biological products – Fitosporin-M or Fitolavin. And if the fruits are already beginning to ripen – Ordan (3). The last drug has a short duration of action, and after 3 days you can harvest.

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How to accelerate fruit ripening

It happens that summer is coming to an end, tomatoes are actively blooming, but the fruits are reluctantly tied. This is fixable – there are ways that will make them hurry up.

Tap the bush with a stick. This should be done during flowering in the morning. This simple method helps the flowers to pollinate better – the pollen, when tapped, falls on the stigmas of the pistils. The ovaries after such a procedure are formed faster, the fruits ripen about a week earlier, the yield increases.

Get rid of the roots. Grasp the main stem of the tomato plant as close to the soil as possible and gently pull it up so that the roots in the ground are slightly torn. This should be done when green fruits are hanging on the bushes and they are not in a hurry to sing – this happens in a cool summer or at the end of the season, when the air temperature drops. After such a reception, the plant begins to actively redirect nutrients to the fruits, and they ripen faster.

Cut the stem. At the base of the main shoot, 3 – 5 cm from the ground, make a vertical cut in the center about 10 cm long. And insert wooden spacer sticks into it. This operation will disrupt the outflow of substances from the tops to the roots and redirect them to the fruits. And they mature faster. This method works well in dry summers, but it is better not to use it in wet weather – fungal infections can get into the wound.

Give injections of vodka. This is perhaps the most unusual way, but it works great. Type ordinary vodka into a disposable syringe and make several injections into each green fruit so that the vodka is evenly distributed in them. The norm is 0,5 ml per tomato. Ethyl alcohol, which forms the basis of vodka, accelerates the ripening of fruits – they begin to sing 1 to 2 weeks earlier.

Popular questions and answers

She gave us some tips on growing tomatoes. agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mihailova.

After what crops can tomatoes be planted?

Good predecessors for tomatoes are cucumbers, carrots, early varieties of cabbage, and onions.

 

You can not plant tomatoes after nightshade crops – potatoes, eggplants, peppers, physalis. They have common diseases that accumulate in the soil.

Should I tie up the tomatoes?

In the old days, in the villages, tomatoes were not tied up – they were grown in spreading, like cucumbers. However, this is not the best way – with this option, the plants turn out to be too thick, because it is impossible to remove stepchildren from them, which leads to frequent outbreaks of diseases. And the fruits are often rotten. So it’s better to tie up.

Do I need to cut off the lower leaves of tomatoes?

It is necessary – to the first flower brush. The fact is that the spores of pathogenic fungi are in the soil and, together with splashes of water during irrigation and rain, they fall on the leaves and infect plants. There will be no lower leaves – tomatoes are less likely to get sick. In addition, without leaves, the lower part of the bushes is well blown by the wind, the topsoil dries out faster, which, again, is a disease prevention.

Sources of

  1. Yakubovskaya L.D., Yakubovsky V.N., Rozhkova L.N. ABC of a summer resident // Minsk, OOO “Orakul”, OOO Lazurak, IPKA “Publicity”, 1994 – 415 p.
  2. Shuin K.A., Zakraevskaya N.K., Ippolitova N.Ya. Garden from spring to autumn // Minsk, Uradzhay, 1990 – 256 p.
  3. State catalog of pesticides and agrochemicals approved for use on the territory of the Federation as of July 6, 2021 // Ministry of Agriculture of the Federation https://mcx.gov.ru/ministry/departments/departament-rastenievodstva-mekhanizatsii-khimizatsii- i-zashchity-rasteniy/industry-information/info-gosudarstvennaya-usluga-po-gosudarstvennoy-registratsii-pestitsidov-i-agrokhimikatov/

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