Planting Tomatoes In A Greenhouse

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Experience in growing tomatoes near St. Petersburg

part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5.

Figure 6

Two years later, I realized that all of the listed methods of planting tomatoes did not suit me, because I took the seedlings to the site with a lump of earth. I get to the site for three and a half hours (metro, electric train, 1 hour on foot from the train), it was very difficult, and try to enter the train with seedlings.

And then one day I brought the "tops" separately, the "roots" separately, i.e. broke everything. In the garden house I put the "tops" in jars of water (I mixed them all up), "roots" I dug in the greenhouse. I knew right away that I got double seedlings. Five days later I arrive at the site, and there are beautiful plants with white roots in the jars.

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True, on some the roots are already 3-4 cm long, and on others only 0.5-2 cm. For the first time, I planted half of the greenhouse with "tops". Here there were determinant and indeterminate varieties (I did not have hybrids then). The picture was clear: from the "tops" of indeterminants, I can get not 3-4 brushes along the central shoot, but at least 6-7, because the first fruit clusters touched the ground. And the determinants (medium-sized) were 1 m in height and were crowded. The next year, I deliberately planted the whole greenhouse with "tops", but I began to cut the seedlings at home, and grew roots in the apartment.

Figure 7

I do it like this. Seedlings grow in boxes. When 8 leaves are formed on the plants, I count 4 leaves from the bottom and cut off the top (see Fig. 7), put them in a jar of water (see Fig. 8). And there is no need to add any "mineral water", you just select each variety separately. I put all the seedlings in jars in a place where there is no sun.

After 5-7 days (differently for each variety), roots are formed on the stem. I take such plants out of the jar, wrap each variety separately in a damp soft cloth. Then I put it in a small plastic bag so that the leaves are ajar. Then I put it in a small cardboard box (select according to the length of the seedlings) in a horizontal position.

I line the box inside with a film, first cover the seedlings with a film so that water does not evaporate through the leaves, and then I close the box, tie it up, and this light structure is not difficult to bring to the site.

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I have a box 50 cm long, 15 cm high, 20 cm wide. I bring it to the site and try to immediately plant it in the greenhouse. But sometimes I arrive late in the evening, then I take out the seedlings from the box and, without unrolling the rags, I put the plants in a basin of water, and in the morning - planting in a greenhouse. Figure 9 shows "vershok" seedlings planted in the ground, and Fig. 4 seedlings that I did not cut or buried.

Figure 8

Why did I stop at such a method?

- I do not worry that the seedlings will stretch out;

- easy to transport;

- if I left 4 leaves on the "roots", then there will no longer be four stepsons on my "tops" plants;

- plants develop well on new roots;

- determinant varieties and hybrids are not higher than 1 m, which means that there is more air in the greenhouse, more light;

- indeterminate varieties manage to tie 6-7 brushes along the central shoot before the trellis (Fig. 10), and this is almost twice as many.

Having applied the "cutting" method, I have not discovered anything new. O. Ganichkina described this method in the book "To My Gardeners", and Yu. Ushakov - in the magazine "Household Economy". But they have described the best option - by cutting off the top, immediately plant it in the soil at home.

Figure 9

I can't do that, because then you have to transport the seedlings in pots with soil, so this method doesn't work for me, it's very difficult. I will briefly describe another planting method that has been used by practitioners for many years. They have a greenhouse height of three meters. Seedlings are grown in pots with a capacity of up to 1.5 liters, but two plants in a pot. They have seedlings with one or two flower clusters. These two plants are planted in one hole, the distance between the holes is 1x1 m or 90x90 cm, i.e. there are two tomatoes on one square meter. Each plant is formed into one shoot. The yield in such a greenhouse is very high.

What am I doing with the roots? This question is asked by all gardeners when I explain my method. The lower parts of the plant remain in the boxes after cutting. There are 4 leaves on the stem. I continue to water, and stepchildren wake up from the axils of the leaves. I leave the two upper stepsons, but one is also possible, I remove the lower stepsons. It turns out a good seedling. I did a yield control. Planted "vershok", and next to the "root" of the same variety. It can be formed into two shoots (i.e. two stepsons), or it can be formed into one shoot. This is what the control showed. If the crop at the "top" is estimated at 5 points, then the stepchildren get 3.5 points, but sometimes it turned out to be 4 points. I usually have enough seedlings from my "tops", and the "roots" are taken apart by those who wish, although I myself sometimes plant them in open ground.

Distance when planting tomato seedlings and the formation of tomatoes

Figure 10

Everyone chooses the distance when planting in a greenhouse or greenhouse individually, since everything here depends not only on the standards for the food area, but also on what the soil is filled with; what is the height of the greenhouse; one or two doors for ventilation, there are vents or there are few of them; what the owner is going to feed his pets; how many shoots on the plant will leave when forming, etc.

About what distance is needed when planting standard varieties and how I form them, I have already told above. Superdeterminate plants form 2-4 flower clusters on the central shoot and grow, i.e. stop growing (see Fig. 11). Carefully read the description of the variety on the packages. If there is no description, then when the plant is flowering, count the number of inflorescences on the central shoot, make notes, and next year you will know how to form such a variety.

I will analyze a few examples on the varieties that I myself used.

Figure 11

The Olya F1 hybrid is perfect for the northern and northwestern regions, because cold-resistant with early planting, with a cold snap in mid-May, it blooms profusely and only warmth comes - the fruits on all brushes begin to pour. Along the central shoot, this hybrid gains three brushes and bends. To get an early harvest, you can remove all stepchildren, leave only the central shoot.

I, of course, do not use this hybrid like that - there are standard varieties for this, they are more profitable, because I get my seeds. If you formed this tomato into one shoot, then you can place five plants on 1m². In a brush, a tomato Olya F1 gives 6-8 fruits, 100-150 g each, which means that from one plant you can get about 2 kg of fruits, and from five per 1m² - 9-10 kg.

In addition to the central shoot, I also leave two stepsons. The first stepson is under the first flower brush, the second is under the second. Each of them will give three flower brushes and complete. In a greenhouse, I plant no more than three such plants per 1 m². As a result, I collect 16-17 kilograms of fruits from them. It's more profitable for me: I need less seedlings, and more crops. The harvest, of course, can be more significant. For example, I took the minimum numbers. By the way, if you have a lot of seedlings, then you can plant tomatoes according to the 40x40 cm scheme, but in two shoots (see Fig. 12). I do not spoil tomatoes with organic matter in the greenhouse - a lot of biomass is growing.

Figure 12

But in the greenhouses, you can add rotted manure, and make the bed "warm", then the hybrid Olya F1 can be formed into four shoots, i.e. above the last brush, a stepson will surely grow, he is also called "replacement escape" or "continuation escape". And you get three brushes on the plant four times.

If you tie tomatoes to stakes in the greenhouse, then it is better not to leave this stepson, because the plant will already be above a meter. If they are not tied up, lie on the ground, then you can leave it, but in this case 1m² for three plants will not be enough, and the fruiting will stretch. In my zone, I do not give such a load, I do everything so that the fruits have time to ripen by mid-August.

For several years now I have been growing hybrids from superdeterminant tomatoes: Fancy F1, Kalroma F1, Wunderkind F1 - their fruits are medium-sized, very dense, sweet, good in canning and freezing. But in terms of productivity in our area, of the superdeterminants, the first place is occupied by the Semko-Sinbad F1 hybrid. What am I doing with him? On the central shoot, he gives 4 brushes and bends. I plant two plants per 1 m² in the greenhouse and give a heavy load, i.e. I form in five shoots - a central shoot and 4 stepsons. Bottom stepson under the first flower brush, or perhaps above the first flower brush. I tie the escape and the stepsons to the trellis. Each of them gives 4 brushes, and even the second generation of stepsons appears (stepsons from stepchildren), they bloom after the second leaf.

I do not tie the second generation of stepchildren, even if creases form in their hands, then there is nothing wrong. All the same, the fruits are full-fledged, they turn red. Amazing hybrid! Everything blooms at once, pours, turns red. Productivity - 18 kg / m², i.e. from two plants. I use the fruits for canning, their size is just for cans. Gardeners may think that all super determinate varieties can be shaped like this. Unfortunately no. Only Semko-Sinbad, with such a load, will tie everything up, feed and give red tomatoes by mid-August. I will repeat once again - in red.

Read the fourth part: Features of the formation of determinant and indeterminate varieties of tomatoes → Every year with red tomatoes:

• Part 1: Preparing and sowing tomato seeds, growing seedlings
• Part 2: Growing tomato seedlings in "diapers", forming a bush
• Part 3: Planting tomatoes in a greenhouse
• Part 4: Features of the formation of determinant and indeterminate varieties of tomatoes
• Part 5: Prevention of tomato diseases, harvesting and storage of crops