To grow a good crop of vegetables, many summer residents use greenhouse technology. This allows you to grow even heat-loving crops. One of these vegetables is a tomato. He requires special attention. If you meet all the requirements that the culture puts forward to grow, you can get a plentiful harvest at the end of the season. At the same time, summer residents solve many issues. How to tie tomatoes in a greenhouse will be described in detail in the article.
Greenhouses for growing tomatoes
Tomatoes are one of the most beloved and popular vegetable crops widely used for cooking a variety of dishes. Almost every summer resident and gardener seeks to grow tomatoes on his site. However, climatic conditions do not allow everyone to do this. To obtain a rich tomato crop, even in the northern regions, gardeners have long and successfully used greenhouses.
The design of the greenhouse is different. Currently, the most widely used greenhouses with a film coating on a wooden or metal frame or facilities with a polycarbonate coating. Greenhouses also differ in their shape and size.
Since tomatoes are a thermophilic plant, for their successful cultivation, it is necessary to provide a suitable temperature regime in the greenhouse, which is not always possible when using a film coating. Therefore, to obtain a rich tomato crop, especially in the northern regions, the design of a polycarbonate-coated greenhouse should be preferred.
Polycarbonate Greenhouse Benefits
Polycarbonate is a very practical and reliable material. Therefore, greenhouses from it have a long service life. A very dense cellular polycarbonate is used for coating. Inside, it consists of cells that provide a uniform distribution of sunlight indoors.
Polycarbonate is frost-resistant and able to withstand large mechanical loads. It perfectly retains heat inside, which saves on heating. And with all these advantages, the price of the presented material is low, which makes it the most preferred material for arranging greenhouses. It is in such designs that tomatoes are grown.
Selection of tomato varieties
Tomatoes for the greenhouse, first of all, must be resistant to various microorganisms. A greenhouse with a high level of temperature and humidity is a suitable place for the development of pathogenic bacteria, fungi and pests. That is why the most important condition for growing tomatoes is mandatory ventilation. Therefore, the design of the room should include the presence of side and upper windows.
Varieties for growing in a greenhouse should be selected based on considerations of high productivity. It is better to purchase seed from trusted sellers. This will allow you to get the maximum yield of fruits, while using the minimum area, since the space in the greenhouse is limited. Based on this, tomatoes for the greenhouse are usually selected tall varieties with abundant fruiting.
So that the branches of plants do not break under the weight of the fruit, they should be tied. How to tie up tomatoes? And why is this procedure so important for high yields? Experienced gardeners will answer these questions. Their advice will allow even a novice to grow a plentiful crop of vegetables.
Tying materials
Tying tomatoes involves attaching the stems and branches of plants to the support. When choosing material for garter, one should be guided by the fact that it should not damage the delicate and fragile stems of plants. Therefore, it is immediately necessary to exclude all the thin binding fishing lines, threads and wire that will cut into the stem. A large selection of materials is available for sale for this process. If desired, garter tapes can be made independently. Also, tape and electrical tape cannot be used for these purposes.
How and how to tie tomatoes in a greenhouse without harming the plants? To do this, it is best to use strips of cotton fabric 4-5 cm wide or old tights, knee-highs cut into strips. Some gardeners use twine to tie tomatoes. It is a reliable and durable material for carrying out such work. It is important that it is made from soft raw materials that are not harmful to plants. The choice of material must be taken with all responsibility.
You can purchase a variety of devices on the market. They can be applied for several seasons in a row. Such clips include, for example, plastic clips. With their help, the stems are tied up, and the brushes with fruits are also held. They have different sizes. Such clamps are convenient to use, do not break and can be operated continuously for several years.
When and how to tie tomatoes in a greenhouse? Do this immediately after pinching and the appearance of fruit ovaries. As the stem grows, the procedure is repeated. Later it should be tied up and branches with fruits.
Important! Do not tie knots tight and do not pull the stems too close to the support. This disrupts the circulation in the stems of the juices. As a result, they may dry out.
The benefits of proper garter
Garter provides a number of benefits in plant care and ultimately increases yield. Tomatoes do not like moisture on stems and leaves; this can cause rotting of plants and the appearance of various diseases. The vertical fixation method avoids an adverse outcome. Plants after such a procedure are conveniently watered at the very root.
Hanging fruits, unlike those lying on the ground, are not afraid of slugs and late blight. And collecting them is much easier. This is another reason why the presented procedure is performed. Branches of tied plants do not break under the weight of the fruit.
The bound plants receive a sufficient amount of lighting and air, develop better, bear fruit faster and more abundantly. It’s easier to care for tied bushes - weed, fertilize, etc.
Tomato garter options should be thought out in advance, based on the height of the plant. At the same time, its yield, configuration and features of the greenhouse and other factors are taken into account. Before you begin, you need to consider the popular methods of garter tomatoes, which can be used with the greenhouse method of growing crops.
Fixing to a personal support
This option is suitable for portable structures and small greenhouses covered with a film. In this case, stakes, as well as profile pipes, can serve as a support. You can also use rods (the diameter should be large). They are fixed next to the bush.
The height of the rods should be no less than a mature plant. The stalk is tied to the support with a strip of fabric. It is not recommended to use this method for too elongated tomatoes, as they can fall, despite even the support.
Wire and linear frame
The framework, which consists of thick wire, is used for varieties with a large number of tomatoes on the branches. The metal grill should have large cells (5 by 5 cm). It is wrapped around a plant. Support should be dug lightly into the soil. The design will serve as a fixation of both the stem and the fruit.
One of the most favorite methods of garter of a tomato in a greenhouse, where a large number of crops are grown at the same time, is linear fixation. On both sides of the beds they drive in pipes (metal or plastic). Between them along the row you need to tie an ordinary rope. Tomatoes are tied to it at an equal distance. The option is simple and economical, but not suitable for too elongated and heavy plants. In this case, a different garter method is used.
Trellis fixing
Recommended for polycarbonate greenhouses. Durable poles are installed at the edges of the room. An ordinary rope is attached to them. A solid mesh is formed from it, to which vegetables can be attached with fabric garters, plastic clips. Other convenient methods may also be used.
To fix bushes with wide, sprawling branches, it is recommended to use trellises. They are made of thin but durable battens. The material should be very firmly fixed so that the supports do not fall under the weight of the plants. Vertical trellis is usually used in industrial greenhouses for gartering tall bushes. They have pre-cut side shoots.
A method is popular among gardeners in which a rope is fixed next to each plant, the upper end of which is fixed on the roof of the greenhouse. This is a very reliable option, in which the support does not break, withstanding the heaviest tomatoes on the branches. The rope for such a fastener should be wide enough. Soft materials should be preferred.
Mesh fixing
There is another popular way to tie tomatoes in a greenhouse. To do this, build a grid. It is created from strong rods and has large cells. This design is installed between the posts. Its advantage is the ability to untie the branches, and then fix them in a more convenient place.
General recommendations
When choosing a method of garter of a tomato in a greenhouse, it should be borne in mind that temporary fasteners are best used for test cultivation and with frequent changes of vegetable crops inside the greenhouse.
Capital constructions will cost more, but they will last several years without requiring any additional devices.
Many gardeners, in order to save money, store old garter material for use in the next season. It should be remembered that on such garter spores of pathogens can remain. Even if in the past season the tomatoes did not show signs of disease, old garters must be washed and disinfected well. Only after that they can be used next year.
Compliance with all the rules of garter of tomatoes is one of the most important conditions for their proper development and high productivity. Given the advice of experienced gardeners, you can get a high result of their work. The quality and abundance of the crop will surprise even a novice summer resident.