A kind of symbol of a successful harvest for each summer resident is the number of ripened tomatoes collected “from the root” - red, yellow, orange and other shades that determine the commercial maturity of a vegetable of a particular variety.
But there are different kinds of circumstances when, it would seem, subject to all the rules of agricultural technology, the tomatoes do not blush for a long time, and hang on the branches glossy and elastic, but, unfortunately, green. About the reasons for this phenomenon and about how to help your favorite vegetable reach the highest degree of maturation, our publication will tell.
So, to the question of why tomatoes do not blush, there are several answers. Let's start by considering the most likely causes. They usually lie in flaws in the care of planting or in the wrong arrangement of ridges or greenhouses.
Where to arrange tomato planting
Tomatoes are light-loving plants, and the lack of solar energy immediately turns into a slowdown in the development of culture. And therefore, even at the planning stage of the garden, a place for them is chosen open, sunny, protected from through winds. The same principles are observed when installing greenhouses or hotbeds. The main factor in creating normal conditions for ripening tomatoes is the constant access of sunlight. Focus on high-quality natural lighting is the key to the absence of many problems in the subsequent cultivation of tomatoes, otherwise one should not be surprised why tomatoes do not blush in the greenhouse.
Using Feet, Trellis and Garter
Even with the correct placement of greenhouses on the plot, the plants need the care of the gardener so that the question does not arise in the future: "Why do not the tomatoes blush?" For maximum coverage of each bush, additional supports are used that fix its optimal position. This can be trellis, on which it is easy to deploy each stalk to the sun, or garter with a soft cord to the beams stretched from above or additional stakes. Low-growing varieties of tomatoes are fixed with spacers.
Compliance with the optimum temperature in the greenhouse
For the comfortable development of tomatoes, the temperature factor is also important. When the air temperature in the greenhouse drops to 14-15 ° C or, conversely, increases to 35-40 ° C, the plants stop developing and the fruits do not redden, but acquire an atypical orange color with an uneven yellow-green fringing around the stem. Why don't tomatoes blush at the stalk? This happens when a violation of the temperature regime provokes the synthesis of lycopene, a coloring pigment antioxidant of the carotenoid group. Similar problems with the coloring of tomatoes can occur with sharp changes in day and night temperatures or when the fruits are in the hot open sun, when they simply bake. That is why tomatoes do not blush at the stem. Airing in the greenhouse helps to reduce the temperature in the greenhouse, the installation of protective awnings or any other temporary structures.
Maintaining the optimal humidity level in the greenhouse
Tomatoes are water-loving plants and welcome adequate watering, but the air in the greenhouse should remain dry. High humidity, dew or condensation on the leaves adversely affect the development of the crop, provoking the occurrence of diseases that are traditional for tomatoes. These include late blight, a well-known scourge of nightshade crops that can destroy plantings in a matter of days. It is clear that with the advent of late blight, one should not be surprised that tomatoes do not blush. What to do to prevent the disease? The main condition is maintaining a dry microclimate in the greenhouse and processing with special preparations both for prevention and at the first signs of the disease. In these cases, use an infusion of garlic or hot pepper, as well as products that go on sale in a huge assortment.
Excessive thickening of plantings or shrubs: remove leaves
Plants are planted at a distance of 45-50 cm from each other. Plants closer than the indicated interval begin to oppress each other, literally fighting for a place in the sun. Therefore, you have to withstand the right distance when planting in the spring.
Thickness (as the reason why tomatoes do not blush) is also manifested in insufficient care for the bush. Experienced gardeners know how much power the leaves take away from the plant, especially those that have already served their time, faded and dry out. But not only them. All leaves, both green and obsolete, must be removed from the stem up to the fruit brushes.
Growing stepsons as a cause of thickening
Another condition for the early ripening of the crop is the rationing of fruit formation, that is, the question “why tomatoes do not blush” will become logical if new peduncles growing in the axils of the leaves are not cut off in time. After all, tomatoes are very strong plants, in a hurry to reproduce as many fruits as possible, and their ripening can stretch for an indefinite period, since the culture throws all its forces into the formation of new shoots. Therefore, the gardener is forced to direct the energy of the plant in the right direction, i.e., to pour and ripen the fruit that has begun. Stepson, quickly transforming into peduncles, should be cut off 2-3 times a week.
In early August, pinch the tops of all tall varieties, remove flower stalks and twigs with unobtrusive inflorescences, and all medium-sized flower brushes from medium and low-growing tomatoes. Thus, the forces of the plant will be focused on filling the already formed fruits. True, even after this procedure, stepchildren appear with enviable regularity, therefore, periodic pinching is carried out constantly by gardeners.
Tomato malnutrition
Lack of nutrients may be another answer to the question of why tomatoes do not blush in the greenhouse. If all agrotechnical methods are used by the gardener, fertilizers are applied on time, and the plant is in no hurry to give ripe fruits, experienced gardeners recommend resorting to the help of a familiar and effective trace element - iodine. Feeding with iodine is foliar and is carried out by spraying leaves and fruits 2-3 times a week. The working solution is prepared as follows: 35-40 drops of pharmacy 5% iodine are dissolved in 10 liters of warm water.
Ways to Speed Up Maturation
Understanding why tomatoes do not blush is not always possible until the end. But there are very effective ways to stimulate fruit ripening. In them, the properties of plants are taken as a basis to activate forces when any threats arise. So, it is noted that the mechanical effect, which results in the restriction of access to nutrients, stimulates the ripening of tomatoes in the vine.
Such methods include, for example, a small through cut at the base of the stem or a slight pulling of it with wire. The result of such operations is a decrease in the flow of nutrients necessary for the plant and activation of fruit ripening. A similar effect arises with a partial tearing of the accessory roots, which is carried out with a small jerk of the stem up to an audible rupture of the roots.
These very barbaric methods show good results, forcing tomatoes to ripen faster, but creating comfortable conditions for the development of culture is still preferable.