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No garden is complete without tomato beds. This vegetable is loved for its excellent taste and saturation of fruits with useful vitamins and trace elements. How nice it is to eat a fresh tomato freshly picked from the garden on a summer day! And what about those who do not have a garden and a summer residence? For people living in high-rise buildings, breeders have bred special balcony varieties of tomatoes.
What is the peculiarity of balcony tomatoes, how to grow them correctly, and which variety is better to choose – everything in this article.
What should be balcony tomatoes
Tomatoes, like most vegetable crops, are divided according to several criteria, such as:
- The height of the bush. There are determinant tomatoes, that is, those whose growth is limited – after the appearance of a certain number of brushes (usually 5-6 pieces), the plant stops growing. On such bushes, tomatoes ripen almost simultaneously, and ripening occurs quite quickly (80-100 days). Indeterminate varieties of tomatoes are not limited in growth. Such plants are not well suited for growing on a balcony or loggia, although there are exceptions (for example, cherry tomatoes). Especially for balconies, superdeterminant varieties of tomatoes, that is, dwarf ones, have been created.
- Ripening period. Early tomatoes ripen on the 75-100th day after sowing seeds for seedlings. Mid-season generally need 100 to 120 days. Well, late varieties include those that ripen longer than 120 days. Most often, early-ripening tomatoes are chosen for balcony cultivation so that they have enough sunlight and heat.
- Pollination method. A very important factor, because often they forget about it, and plants do not bear fruit, because they are not pollinated. From existing varieties, you need to choose self-pollinating tomatoes or those that do not require pollination at all (parthenocarpic). The inflorescences of self-pollinated varieties will need to be shaken a little, acting as the wind. Then the pollen from the male flowers will fall on the female ones, and the ovary will appear.
- Fruit quality. This includes the shape, size, taste characteristics of tomatoes. As a rule, small tomatoes are grown on balconies.
- Purpose of tomatoes There are canteens intended for conservation and for the production of juice tomatoes.
So, for growing on a balcony, you must choose a variety with the following characteristics:
- early ripening – the growing season is 75-100 days;
- compact undersized bushes that are easier to tie and shape;
- self-pollinated or parthenocarpic varieties;
- with the desired hostess taste and properties;
- varieties and hybrids resistant to fungal diseases, since closed balconies and loggias often create a too humid climate that contributes to the development of late blight and other tomato diseases;
- tomatoes with a slightly developed root system that will fit in pots and boxes.
Based on these characteristics, you need to choose the right hybrid or variety of tomato.
What varieties of tomato are most often planted on balconies
The owners of the “mini-garden” have their favorite, the best varieties of tomatoes for the balcony. Here, much is determined by the taste and preferences of the owner: someone loves large and juicy tomatoes, so they grow varieties on the balcony that are close in their characteristics to garden crops, others prefer to experiment with unusual, exotic types of tomatoes, so they choose cocktail small-fruited hybrids.
“Balcony Miracle”
A very common balcony tomato. The bushes of this plant are low, compact. However, their size does not affect the yield of the variety – about two kilograms of tomatoes can be removed from each bush by the end of the season.
Bushes do not need tying and pinching. The plant is resistant to various diseases, including the most dangerous for tomatoes – late blight. “Balcony Miracle” tolerates cool air and cloudy weather well – these conditions do not affect the taste of the tomato.
The fruits grow small, painted red. Tomatoes are great for fresh consumption, as well as for canning and pickling.
“Room Surprise”
This variety belongs to the super-early – the first vegetables ripen in the beds already on the 75th day after planting the seedlings. The bushes grow small and compact, their height does not exceed 50 cm.
The germination of the seeds of these tomatoes is very high, and the yield of the tomato is also pleasing – up to three kilograms of tomatoes will ripen on each bush. The shape of the fruit is plum-shaped, slightly elongated.
“Bonsai balcony”
A more decorative tomato, which is often used to decorate window sills and loggias. The bushes reach a height of only 30 cm, the fruits have the same small dimensions – their weight rarely exceeds 25 grams. This allows us to classify the hybrid as a dwarf.
Such tomatoes are usually grown for beauty, although the fruits are quite edible – they have a sweetish taste and pleasant aroma.
“Butterfly”
The tomato hybrid belongs to the ultra-early – the fruits ripen very quickly and amicably. The height of the bush is quite large – about 150 cm, which makes it possible to classify the tomato as indeterminate.
The purpose of tomatoes is universal: they are an excellent decoration for window sills and can be grown as an ornamental crop, but the taste of the fruit is very high.
The bushes are crowned with unusual fruits sticking up, which have an elongated, slightly flattened shape. Clusters of tomatoes grow. In the immature state, the fruit is colored green, its distinctive feature is the presence of a dark spot. After ripening, the tomatoes become pinkish-raspberry, and the stain disappears.
The mass of tomatoes of the Butterfly variety is only 30-35 grams, tomatoes belong to cocktail types.
The taste of tomatoes is high, they contain a large dose of lycopene, an antioxidant useful for the human body.
“Romantic F1”
The designation F1 indicates that the tomato belongs to hybrid varieties, that is, those obtained by artificially crossing several species. Such tomatoes are more resistant to diseases, can be grown in almost any conditions, consistently high yields are given.
About 20-25 fruits ripen on each bunch. The shape of the tomatoes is round, slightly flattened. Each tomato weighs about 55 grams. In the immature state, the fruit is painted in a dark green hue, there is a dark spot near the stalk. As the tomato ripens, the spot disappears, and it becomes greenish-brown with yellow spots.
“Cherry red or yellow”
This tomato variety belongs to the cherry subspecies. A distinctive feature of such tomatoes is a long whip in the form of a whip. On one such bunch, many small tomatoes will sing at the same time.
The height of the Cherry bush reaches 70-90 cm, the plant belongs to the determinant type, that is, it independently limits growth after the appearance of a certain number of shoots.
Round tomatoes are colored green when unripe, and when ripe they turn red and yellow, respectively. The mass of cherry does not exceed 15 grams.
“Angelica”
These tomatoes are considered very early, their growing season is only 80 days. Kuta of medium height with many inflorescences, 8-10 fruits appear in place of each inflorescence.
The shape of the tomatoes is ovoid, at the end of the fruit there is a rounded pimple. These tomatoes are considered large enough, as for balcony varieties, the weight of each can range from 50 to 70 grams.
Tomatoes are painted in a bright red hue. It is necessary to collect the fruits before the outbreak of late blight begins. If the tomatoes are not yet fully ripe, they must be placed in a dark place where the fruits will ripen.
“Pearl”
Tomatoes of this variety belong to dwarf species, bushes rarely reach a height of more than 40 cm. The fruits ripen quickly enough, from 3 to 7 tomatoes appear in place of each inflorescence.
Tomatoes “Pearl” are small in size, their weight does not exceed 10-20 grams. When unripe, the tomatoes are whitish in color, and as they ripen, they become more and more pink. When the tomato is fully ripe, it will turn bright crimson.
The taste characteristics of tomatoes are very high, besides, these fruits are incredibly useful. All thanks to the balanced composition of the fruit, which includes minerals, salts and sugar.
The main advantage of a tomato is its unpretentiousness. These plants perfectly tolerate hot weather, insufficient watering, lack of top dressing and other “troubles”.
“Ballerina”
Cocktail type tomato, belonging to indeterminate varieties. Bushes reach a height of two meters, so they must be tied up and stepchildren. The inflorescences of tomatoes are simple, in the place of each of them about six fruits appear.
Tomatoes have a very interesting pear shape, glossy surface. They are painted in rich scarlet color. The mass of each can be from 35 to 55 grams.
“Garden gem”
Tomato is one of the most productive. The bushes of the plant are small, compact. Their height does not exceed 0,5 meters, the plant has the same dimensions in width.
The ovaries appear in the form of cascades strewn with fruits. The plant does not need pinching, which greatly simplifies the care of the culture.
Tomatoes grow small, painted red. The yield of tomatoes is very high – about 500 fruits are usually harvested from each bush.
How to grow tomatoes on the balcony
The rules for planting and caring for indoor plants are different from garden crops. Balcony tomato varieties require some care, since their growing conditions differ both from open ground and from the climatic features of greenhouses and greenhouses.
Tomatoes are planted as usual – seedlings. For balcony tomatoes, the best time to sow seeds for seedlings is early March. First, the seeds are sown in boxes that can be filled with purchased soil or earth from the garden, cottages.
Before sowing, it is better to soak the seeds for a day or two in hot water. To do this, you can even use a thermos – so the tomatoes will rise faster and will hurt less. Another very good way is to place the seedlings in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for several hours.
Disinfected seeds are placed in the ground, lightly sprinkled with loose earth. You can only water the holes with a spray bottle so as not to wash out the ground. After watering, the boxes are covered with plastic wrap and placed in a very warm place, the temperature there should be above 25 degrees.
After the sprouts hatch, the film must be removed, otherwise the seedlings will turn yellow. Now the boxes are placed in a cooler and lighter place. During the day, the temperature in the room should be about 23-25 degrees, at night it can drop to 10 degrees.
For normal development, tomatoes need 12-hour lighting, so if there is not enough sunlight, the seedlings are illuminated with lamps.
When 3-4 leaves appear on the seedlings, it can be dived. Dive tomatoes into cups or other individual containers. After transplantation, the plants are fed with urea.
Tomatoes are transplanted into permanent containers somewhere in early to mid-May, when the threat of frost passes and the temperature stabilizes. For balcony tomatoes, it is better to choose cylindrical pots; plant roots fit better in them.
How to care for indoor tomatoes
Caring for tomatoes on the windowsill is practically no different from the usual. Tomatoes need to be watered, fed, if necessary, pinched and tied up.
Particular attention should be paid to watering tomatoes. In a limited capacity and under the sun’s rays penetrating through the windows of the apartment, the earth in pots dries up very quickly. You need to water balcony tomatoes daily, and on especially hot days – even twice a day.
Feed tomatoes at least three times per season, here you also need to be careful – if you overfeed the plants, they will grow instead of giving strength to the fruits.
Pinch not all varieties of tomatoes are needed, but only those that give too many side shoots. Usually, information about the need for pinching is indicated on the bag of seeds. In any case, the shoots should be broken off, leaving no more than 0,5 cm.
It is better to tie up any balcony tomatoes – so it will be easier for the plant to withstand the weight of the fruit. Tall varieties need to be tied up, next to them the support is installed even at the stage of transplanting seedlings. Gradually, the stem is tied up higher and higher, as it grows.
Using balcony varieties, you can feed your family with fresh vegetables, not only in the summer, these tomatoes can grow even in winter. And which variety to prefer, the owner must decide on his own – today there are several dozen indoor hybrids and varieties of tomatoes.
