There are unusual tomatoes, painted in a variety of shades. They can be yellow, orange, green, striped. Among the variety of varieties, one of the most delicious and unusual are Black Prince tomatoes. They are successfully grown in open ground, as well as in greenhouses, under temporary shelters, in tunnels.
Grade Features
Tomato Black Prince has a long history. During the cultivation of this variety, he overgrown with legends. To this day, they cannot say exactly where the tomato was bred: in Russia, China, Holland, and Ukraine. Now there are many subspecies of the variety, which are differently characterized by different agricultural companies. But there are a number of persistent traits specific to this species.
Black Prince tomato is characterized by a dark color. It is not completely black, but dark chocolate with a purple tint. Sometimes this variety is confused with the Black Moor, but they are plum and small. Tomato Black Prince has large fruits, at least 150 grams, and are larger - up to three hundred grams. Fruits are rounded, slightly flattened, with characteristic ribs. The skin is thin, the pulp is juicy, with a small amount of seeds. Inside the tomato is greenish-brown, with an orange, burgundy tint.
Grade description
According to the description, Black Prince tomato is a tall, mid-ripening variety intended for greenhouses and open ground. From seedlings to ripening of the first fruits 115-120 days pass.
Bushes are of indeterminate types, requiring garter and pinching. When grown in open ground, the plant is led into two stems, and when grown in greenhouse, into one.
The leaf of the plant is medium in size, green in color. Inflorescences are simple, intermediate. The first fruit twig is laid over the eighth leaf, the next - every three leaves.
The yield of the variety is quite high, about three kilograms of fruit from one bush. According to reviews, tomato Black Prince is resistant to a variety of diseases. This plant is not grown because of productivity, but because of tasty, beautiful fruits, salad purposes. However, many summer residents use the variety for conservation: it is used for the preparation of salads for the winter, tomatoes, small specimens go for whole-canning. During processing, the fruits turn red.
Getting seedlings
To be sure that you are planting seedlings of Black Prince tomato varieties, it is recommended to plant it yourself. After all, there are no guarantees that the purchased seedlings belong to this variety.
For sowing, you can use ready-made soil for seedlings of tomato and pepper, sold in each country store. Seedling boxes are filled with soil mixture, then disinfection is carried out by pouring with boiling water. Once the soil has cooled, seeds can be planted in it. They are sown to a depth of 1-1.5 cm. The box is placed in a bright, warm place. Five days later, shoots appear.
As soon as a 5-6 leaflet blooms on the seedlings, it is necessary to pick the plants in glasses. This procedure is necessary to build a powerful root system. When the seedlings reach the age of sixty days, it is planted in the ground.
According to the description of the Black Prince tomato variety, it is recommended to plant it up to four plants per square meter. Most often, tall tomatoes are planted in long rows in one bush. For the best development of the bushes, it is recommended to plant in a checkerboard pattern.
Top dressing
During the growing season, it is recommended to carry out three feeding of tomatoes. The first is done ten days after transplanting. To do this, take bird droppings or manure, in a concentration of a kilogram per bucket of water. You can use ready-made complex fertilizers such as "Biohumus", "Agricola" and others. All conducted top dressing is carried out together with watering: first, the soil is watered, and then it is shed with fertilizers.
The second top dressing is carried out two weeks after the opening of the first brush, at the beginning of the formation of fruits on it. For this top dressing, three grams of copper sulphate and potassium permanganate are necessarily added to the fertilizer. Under each plant, two liters of fertilizing is applied.
The third time fertilizers are used during the collection of the first fruits. The composition is used the same as for the first or second top dressing (at the discretion of the gardener). Under each bush make 2.5 liters of solution.
Features of watering
Tall tomatoes are watered only at the root: you can not wet the foliage and fruits. At least three liters of water are poured under each bush.
Do not moisten the soil under tomatoes too often. On cloudy days, plants are watered no more than twice a week. In hot weather - more often as the soil dries.
It is better to water in the first half of the day, using settled water, with a temperature of 25 degrees. Watering is recommended to alternate with loosening. It is not carried out very deeply so as not to damage the root system.
With the advent of autumn, before the onset of frost, the stems with ripening fruits are untied and laid inside the beds. Plants are not watered at this time.
Garter
As can be seen in the photo, the Black Prince tomatoes need a garter. To do this, long stakes are hammered along the rear edge of the bed, on which a nylon cord is stretched. Plants are tied to it. The first cord should be located at a height of thirty centimeters above the ground level, the next - every half meter. At a height of 2.2 m, plants do not tie up, but give them the opportunity to grow arbitrarily, hanging down. The central stem must be nipped to limit growth. This is usually done at an altitude of 2.2-2.5 m.
Bushes
All indeterminate varieties need to be formed. The first stepsoning is carried out two weeks after transplanting. Tall varieties are kept in one, two or three stems.
Usually the first stepson appears after the first fruit brush. To obtain a high crop, it is recommended to leave one flower brush on it, two leaves are left behind it, and then a pinch is done.
At the next stepson you can leave two fruit brushes. And so they lead the plant to the very top. When leading into two stems, the first stepson is not removed, but left - this will be the second stalk. If weather conditions allow, then you can lead the plant in three stems, but it is more suitable for the southern regions of the country, where all the fruits that are set have time to ripen.
When the fruits ripen on the brush, it is necessary to remove the lower sheets. This will help improve air circulation, as well as prevent the spread of fungal and bacterial pathologies. In addition, the bushes can deliver more nutrition to the following fruit brushes. How to form different types of tomatoes is described in the video below.
The benefits of black tomatoes
Among the tomatoes, black varieties are considered a real delicacy. This variety has a lot of useful properties.
- Black tomatoes contain substances that are useful for the prevention of cancer. They contain more antioxidants than red varieties.
- Tomatoes contain a lot of vitamin C.
- Tomato Black Prince has a rejuvenating effect on the body due to the content of B vitamins.
- The black variety has a positive effect on the cardiovascular system, strengthening it.
Reviews of summer residents
According to reviews, a photo of tomato Black Prince, these plants give a fairly large crop in comparison with other aronia varieties. Tall plants can produce more crop than low-growing varieties. They breed to the very frosts.
When growing a variety, some summer residents are faced with the problem of cracking fruits: this is due to the characteristics of the variety. The rest of the summer residents speak well of the variety. I especially like the fact that different fruits ripen on it: large fruits are good in salads, tomatoes, ketchups are prepared from them, and smaller fruits are perfect for whole-canning. By the way, as summer residents say, after processing tomatoes, they lose their color, turn red, and taste much better and more pleasant than red-fruited varieties.
In some regions, summer residents are faced with the problem of falling ovaries and flowers. This is due to a lack of moisture, due to overgrown seedlings, when it is deepened during planting to a permanent place.