At present, it is impossible to imagine our table without such a delicious vegetable as a tomato (which, in fact, is a berry), although it appeared in Russia not so long ago - during the reign of Catherine the Great. Mass cultivation of tomatoes began only in the 19th century. People knew about the existence of tomatoes for a long time, but were afraid to eat, because they noticed that if livestock was fed with the tops of this plant, it could die. In addition, caterpillars and other pests do not eat tomato leaves.
The "edible" qualities of tomatoes were discovered by chance by a runaway Indian pursued by the Dutch during the capture of America. He did not want to be taken prisoner, he didn’t have a horse, and he couldn’t run away without it, so he decided to commit suicide with the help of the fruits of a tomato plant that had caught his eye. In front of the pursuers, he ate all the fruits from the bush and began to wait for death, which still did not occur ... He was again captured, but never died. That's when the invaders decided to try these fruits themselves, which the locals called "tomato". After this, a lot of time passed before it became clear that tomatoes are poisonous only in green form, and foliage and tops are mortally dangerous all the time, since they contain lycoalkaloids that cause poisoning. In ripe fruits (and when preserving green), these substances disintegrate.
Initially, in Russia, tomatoes were grown in greenhouses, as they did not have time to ripen in open ground. Currently, there are a variety of varieties of tomatoes for open ground and for greenhouses, which have individual characteristics and differ in the ripening period of the fruits and productivity. In different countries and even different regions of one country, for example Russia, various varieties of tomato are popular. So in the Krasnodar Territory, various varieties of tomatoes for open ground, such as Dubok, Corsair and Lionheart, can be successfully grown. And in the Urals, in greenhouses, tomato varieties for closed ground are best taken root - Typhoon, Hurricane, Semko-Sinbad, Druzhok and Blagovest. Recently, Dutch tomato varieties have become increasingly popular due to their early maturity and resistance to environmental conditions.
In most countries of Western Europe , the so-called "carpal" varieties of tomatoes are very popular, the ripe fruits of which are conveniently picked with a whole brush. These include F1 Fatalist, F1 Pharaoh, F1 Fanat, and others. These varieties are characterized by bright red, smooth, shiny, flat-round fruits of high quality, with an average weight of 100 to 200 grams. A fairly characteristic feature of the fruits of these hybrids is increased resistance to cracking, they can withstand long-term transportation and are perfectly stored at room temperature. Ripe tomato brushes are very dense and have fruits of the same size, which are practically not affected by common tomato diseases.
The key to a plentiful harvest is the correct selection of tomato varieties for open ground, as well as the condition of the soil in which they will be planted. If the soil has high acidity, it can be reduced by adding chalk, lime or ash, and do not forget about mineral fertilizers. Transplanting seedlings to a permanent place is necessary when it reaches a height of 15 cm, in addition, two weeks before the plants are transplanted, they must be hardened. All varieties of tomatoes for open ground are planted on a bed of one plant in a hole, the depth of which is equal to the depth of a temporary pot. Pits are dug at a distance of 45 cm from each other, the earth in dry weather should be additionally moistened. As the tomatoes grow, they must be tied up, while avoiding damage to the stem. Tomatoes require thorough watering at the root, but not at all on the leaves, the ground under them must be constantly moist, since a lack of moisture leads to falling of leaves and ovaries.