Created by painstaking selection work, many different varieties of tomatoes are amazing. Nevertheless, each gardener always has their own preferences, but most gardeners love raspberry tomatoes for their beauty, excellent taste and delicate thin skin. Today we’ll talk about some varieties of this group, their cultivation and care features.
Tomato Raspberry Giant F1: Key Features
Mid-growth hybrid of early ripening, reaching 130 cm in height, gives fruit on the 100-105th day after seed germination. This variety is universal: it is equally good in growing both in open beds and in film greenhouses. The variety is characterized by a very high yield (18-20 kg / sq. M) and excellent fruits - large, tasty, round with a small ribbing of bright raspberry color, reaching 250-280 grams. In addition, the tomato Raspberry giant is resistant to a whole complex of misfortunes of various origins. The formation of the bush occurs in two stems: one is the central conductor, the other appears from a side shoot formed under the first brush. Throughout the season, the remaining stepchildren should be removed. For growing medium and tall tomatoes, the binding of bushes to vertical or horizontal supports is mandatory.
Tomato Raspberry Elephant: Description
Despite the fact that the variety is not very good keeping quality, it has enough admirers. The handsome tomato Raspberry elephant, reviews of which, although contradictory, is inclined to believe that its fruits is the dream of lovers of sweet tomatoes with thin skin, is a large-fruited plant, excellently grown both in open ridges of warm regions of the country and in various types of greenhouses . The method of cultivation does not affect yield (20 kg / sq. M).
Variety of tomato Raspberry elephant, as a representative of varieties of medium ripening, gives the first fruits 115 days after germination of seedlings. The culture is characterized by unlimited growth of shoots and grows up to two meters. To obtain high-quality large fruits, the bush is formed into one lash, systematically breaking off the side shoots of the stepson and carefully monitoring so as not to miss their growth. Stepsons pull on nutrients, significantly reducing the weight of the fruit. The shape of the tomatoes is round or slightly flattened. Ripe tomatoes have a bright raspberry color, amazing sweet taste and excellent flesh.
Usually up to 6 fruits are tied in a brush. Since the weight of each of them is on average 400-500 g, 1-2 ovaries can be removed by slightly easing the brush of the plant. So you can get tomatoes of even greater weight. Justifying its own name, tomato Raspberry elephant (gardeners confirm reviews) often reaches record levels, increasing weight to 700-750 g.
Features of planting seedlings
Despite varietal differences, tomato cultivation has much in common. Sowing seedlings is carried out in March, using plastic containers. They are preliminarily prepared: they must be clean and have drainage holes in order to prevent stagnation of water, thereby causing undesirable diseases (for example, a black leg).
Soil for filling the container can be purchased at the store or prepared a soil mixture in the fall, consisting of equal parts of garden soil and humus mixed with wood ash and sand. The seeds are etched for half an hour in a manganese solution the color of ripe cherries, after which they must be washed. Planted, buried no more than 1 cm in a well-moistened substrate, level the soil and cover the containers with a film to create a greenhouse microclimate and accelerate the process of seed germination. It is important not to thicken the planting, but to plant the seeds in the grooves with an interval of 1-1.5 cm. As a rule, seedlings germinate on the 3-6th day.
Seedling lighting
Tomatoes in a greenhouse or on ridges are long-day crops and need additional illumination. For normal development, tomato seedlings should receive, in addition to light during the day, backlighting in the evening hours. The lamps are placed above the drawers with seedlings at a distance of 8-12 cm from the tops of the plants, trying to place them so as to ensure a uniform light supply.
Pick
5-6 weeks after seed germination, when 3-5 seedlings appear in the seedlings, the plants are transplanted into separate containers. This is done so that the plants do not stretch and do not lack nutrition. Starting to pick, the seedlings are well watered. Pour the soil into the pots intended for transplantation, slightly compact and in the center of each make a recess, where the seedling is carefully arranged, having previously removed the cotyledon and the first two real leaves.
Seedlings planted in this way are watered with a solution of
peat-humic fertilizers "Fitop" or "Flora", after which they add a little earth to the container and slightly dust it with ash. Spiked plants still continue to highlight. It is important to choose only the strongest and most healthy plants for a dive.
Seedling hardening
2-3 weeks before final planting in the ground or greenhouse plants begin to take out to fresh air, starting from 1-2 hours and gradually increasing time. In bright sunlight in the early days it is better to keep seedlings in the shade, avoiding burns that damage leaves.
If there is no threat of frost, then the seedlings can be left on the balcony, covering with a film for the night. Perfectly tempered tomato Raspberry elephant. The reviews of those who planted it on seedlings are unambiguous: it withstands pickings, responds to top dressing and is remarkably hardy.
Agriculture and Landing
Favorite tomato soil is well-warmed, light sandy loam with an acidity level of pH 6-6.5. The best predecessors for growing tomatoes are zucchini, cucumbers, onions. Tomatoes are planted in greenhouses at the end of May, in an open garden - depending on the region during the spring frost retreat.
The culture is arranged according to the scheme of 60 x 40 cm, that is, more than 4 bushes are not placed on one square meter, otherwise they will crush each other, because the tomato Raspberry elephant (reviews of which also indicate that it is a fairly large plant) is very spreading. Land for planting is preliminarily prepared: in the dug out landing holes 25 cm deep (oriented to the length of the seedling roots), humus or rotted manure is poured.
Pots with plants are completely dipped in a bucket with a solution of mullein or peat-humic fertilizers so that the lump of soil is saturated. Break off the lower leaves. Carefully turning the pot over, take out the plant along with a lump of earth and set it in the hole. The soil impregnated with the solution retains the shape of the container and does not crumble. Each well is sprinkled a little with earth, and then the plant is well watered, and only after that the seedlings are finally closed up, the top layer is compacted and watered again.
The value of soil mulching
This method of planting is considered the most painless, since the closed root system does not suffer in any way, the tomatoes in the greenhouse quickly adapt to new conditions and start growing. A good effect, according to reviews of vegetable growers, is the use of mulch, which is used as humus, rotted sawdust, peat or any plant residues. Under a layer of 5-6 cm, the roots of the plants do not dry out and are not exposed to stressful overheating or hypothermia. In addition, the use of mulch provokes the propagation of earthworms, whose vital activity greatly contributes to the qualitative development of tomatoes. Another advantage of using mulch is that the soil layer is not covered with crust, and loosening after watering is not required for plants, which releases a significant amount of time and effort. If not only tall, but also stunted tomatoes are planted in the greenhouse, then they are planted first next, and tall ones behind them.
Top dressing and watering
Tomatoes are fed once every 10-15 days with good organics: for a day they insist a solution of 1 bucket of manure and 100 liters of water and watered - 1 bush of 2-3 liters of solution. Such dressings stimulate the development of the bush, in addition, their start time coincides with the mass fruit setting. Generous watering is carried out every 5-7 days. They should be regular, but reasonable. Excessive overmoistening of tomatoes significantly harms, provoking the occurrence of late blight. And, although the enviable resistance against this disease in the considered varieties is developed at the species level, it is better to preserve plant health.
As evidenced by numerous reviews, the listed tomato varieties are quite suitable for the Moscow Region; they showed excellent performance in Siberia and the Far East.