Tomatoes were grown in open ground in the 18th century, because the popularity of this vegetable can hardly be overestimated. Due to the high risk of freezing young shoots, experienced summer residents grow tomatoes from seedlings. However, this method has a lot of nuances.
Soil preparation
Before transplanting seedlings, it is necessary to treat the soil with copper sulfate to prevent the disease of tomatoes with late blight. The solution is made from 1 tbsp. l a drug diluted in one liter of well or purified water. Wells are prepared one day prior to disembarkation. To do this, dig holes to the depth of one bayonet of a shovel, 40-50 cm wide. The distance between the bushes should be at least 35-50 cm, and between rows - about 60 cm. The exact measurements will entirely depend on the selected tomato variety. Tall tomatoes in open ground will require more space than dwarf or mid-sized species. All the excavated soil should be scattered evenly around the garden, and pour the mixture of humus, spiced with superphosphate (120-150 g), urea (30 g), ash (50 g) and potassium chloride (30 g) into one hole in the obtained holes. All ingredients are mixed and watered abundantly with plain water.
Rooting seedlings
Strong early tomatoes for open ground are obtained by planting young seedlings the day after preparatory work with the ground. If the vegetable grower prefers to grow seedlings in convenient peat pots, it remains only to place the plant with the container in the ground and sprinkle it with humus. The edges of the container when planting should be 3 cm below the soil level, from above the tomatoes in the open ground are watered abundantly.
Some gardeners are against planting plants directly in peat pots, since the walls of the container can slightly slow down the natural growth of the tomato root system. Therefore, there are also such recommendations that advise you to remove seedlings from containers or cut its walls in order to free up space for quick rooting. With regular and plentiful watering, the pots themselves quickly dissolve and will not create any obstacles to the normal growth of the plant.
Garden Care
Immediately after planting, tomatoes in open ground do not require much moisture. Therefore, you need to water the plant depending on the weather, but at least once a week. The roots grow up to 2-3 meters in depth, so they require not very frequent, but plentiful watering for normal development. So that the wells do not dry out, it is good to carry out the mulching procedure. Regular weeding and loosening of the soil will also be mandatory; there should be no weeds or crusts on the ground.
Two weeks after transplanting seedlings, the first top dressing of tomatoes is carried out, then fertilizers are applied after 11-14 days. The soil recharge scheme includes the alternation of mineral and organic substances. Fertilizers are applied during irrigation.
Once every two weeks, tomato is treated with Ordan to protect the bushes from disease. However, all spraying should be stopped 2 weeks before the final ripening of the crop. Adhering to these simple rules, you can get strong healthy fruits even when grown in open ground in central Russia.