The cultivation of tomatoes in the open field has its own characteristics and difficulties. In the spring, as soon as the soil dries up, in the autumn I loosen the dug up soil filled with organic matter with a rake or a hand cultivator, level it out - this contributes to the preservation of moisture, the destruction of weeds.
Choosing a site for growing tomatoes in open ground
Tomatoes are affected by the same diseases and pests as potatoes, peppers, and eggplant. Therefore, I try not to plant them in the same place where these cultures grew before.
After all, pathogenic spores, viruses, pests live in the earth for several years. It is not recommended to sow tomatoes where they grew 3-4 years ago. Their proximity to potatoes is not desirable - this will help avoid infection with late blight. The Colorado potato beetle also will not get.
And the best predecessors of tomatoes are legumes, early white cabbage, pumpkins, zucchini, cucumbers, it is permissible to plant them after onions, late cabbage. I place the tomatoes in a place protected from the wind.
What varieties of tomatoes to choose
I tested many different varieties. Every year I sort out some varieties, add some. Now I am telling you about growing tomatoes from seeds in the open field. For this, I choose medium-sized or often low-growing varieties.
For two years in a row, I planted Beta Lux, I will plant it further. Very like. Low-growing variety, up to 50 cm high. Early ripe. It does not require pinching. Red fruits. The pulp is juicy, sugary. Very tasty. Suitable for both salads and canning.
Variety Alpatieva 95A grown. I like it because it grows like a tree up to 50 cm tall, sometimes lower, it does not bend, although there are enough tomatoes hanging on a bush. Round fruits of good taste, not large. The variety is resistant to late blight.
For many years I planted the Volgograd tomato variety. Like the fact that it is drought tolerant. Dense tomatoes, suitable for salads, canning. Fruits almost to frost.
This year, for the first time, I will sow the variety New Kuban. Mid-late variety for open ground. The plant is up to 40 cm high. The description on the bag promises high taste quality, resistance to late blight.
When and how to plant tomato seeds in open ground
After appropriate, normal preparation, that is, warming, disinfection, washing, I sprout the seeds.
Different varieties require different times for germination - from 2-3 days to a week or even more. I try to equate this to April 10-15 (usually by this time the soil is ready for early planting of vegetables). I make wide holes with a diameter of about 40 cm. I necessarily water the hole with warm water with potassium permanganate. I sow seeds dry and germinated mixed, evenly distributing them over the area of the hole. Seed consumption in this case is increased. But I do so for insurance.
Very often this situation occurred that during a cold snap or accidental frosts, seedlings of germinated seeds perished, they had to be sowed. And from the dry seeds, the plants will hatch later, they will avoid frosts, they will certainly grow.
I also plant tomato seedlings, but, as a result, all plants grown from seeds catch up with seedlings, besides they are stronger, stronger, less affected by diseases.
In the first one and a half to two weeks, a lot of trouble with the emerged shoots. I’m not covering my landings, they grow at the beginning, of course, very slowly.
Thinning seedlings of tomatoes
As soon as 2-3 real leaves appear, seedlings should be thinned out. I try to leave those plants between which the distance is 5-10 cm. Of course, I leave the strongest plants.
I do the second thinning when the small tomato plants already have at least 4-5 true leaves. Again I leave only strong plants in the hole, between which the distance increases - 12-15 cm.
Before the last thinning, I well spill the hole, I try to make the soil very wet. Those tomato plants that I decided to remove from the hole, I do not pull it out of the ground, but carefully dig it out with a lump of earth. They can be transplanted to a new place or planted there, where there were weak shoots. Thus, during the final thinning, I leave 3-4 plants with a distance between them of up to 40 cm. I try to make the plants grow as if around the perimeter of the hole.
Outdoor tomato care
I pour the transplanted bushes of tomatoes with a solution of Kornevin or Heteroauxin. You can spray them with a solution of HB-101 (1-2 drops per 1 liter of water) - it will “revive” them, help to better tolerate stress after transplantation. The treatment with Epin-Extra helps well. I periodically process with them not only transplanted tomatoes, but also those that plant seedlings that remain intact in the holes. Epin-Extra increases the resistance of plants to diseases, adverse weather conditions.
Transplanted tomatoes, as well as those plants that have remained untouched, should be mulled - pour sawdust, dry or mowed grass on top of the soil - so that the very moistened earth “does not take up the crust”, does not dry out the next day. If you have not mulched the soil around the plants, then you must definitely loosen the soil. This must be done after each watering or rain.
Topping tomatoes - open ground
In order for the plants to quickly and well develop, I do top dressing. I start them after the plants began to grow. I feed with ordinary mullein or chicken droppings - what I have. I use potassium permanganate (10 g of water - 1 g of potassium permanganate) and sometimes 1 matchbox of urea - this is for foliar top dressing. I breed 1:10 of mullein, and chicken litter - 1:15, sometimes I add 1 tablespoon of urea. The rate of watering is about 1 liter of solution per plant. It is necessary to feed on already watered, damp earth.
As it grows, weed out all the weeds, loosen the earth while hilling the stem.
At the beginning of fruiting, I try to sprinkle soil with ash, then loosen it and water it. I form undersized tomatoes so that 2-3 stems remain, and sometimes no formation is required.
Processing tomatoes from pests and diseases
When the ovary reaches the size of a walnut, I spray the tomato rescuer with a new preparation. It protects tomatoes from late blight, macrosporiosis, while being a growth stimulator.
I used to spray tomatoes with 1% Bordeaux liquid or copper sulphate (40-50 g per 10 liters of water). Sometimes now I do 1-2 such treatments.
The infusion of garlic helps well from diseases or pests: grind 1.5-2 cups of garlic with a garlic grinder or a meat grinder, add hot water (but not boiling water), put a little potassium permanganate, add up to 10 liters of warm water, mix, strain. No need to insist! This solution can be sprayed. I alternate treatments every 6-10 days. For better adhesion, add liquid soap. I do 3-4 treatments as needed.
Leaves at the bottom of the bush or yellowing leaves break off. Experts say that this technique speeds up the process of ripening, tomatoes - the fruits are larger.
Pinching the tops of fruiting shoots will also help to hasten the ripening of tomatoes; under the fruits lying on the ground, to lay boards or to support them with flyers; regularly ripen ripe or brown tomatoes.
Here is my experience of growing tomatoes in the open field. Share yours - leave a comment!