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Tomatoes are one of the most popular crops in garden plots. Planting these plants in the Moscow region has its own characteristics. The timing depends on weather conditions and the method of disembarkation: outdoor priming, greenhouse or greenhouse.
Regardless of the chosen method, it is necessary to provide the tomatoes with the necessary conditions. Then the plants will be able to develop and produce maximum yield.
How to choose a place for tomatoes
Tomatoes prefer plenty of warmth and sunny color. This must be taken into account when choosing a bed. Tomatoes do not tolerate wind loads well, and frosts can destroy the plant.
Tomatoes do well in places where cabbage, onions, carrots or legumes used to grow. If last year potatoes or eggplants grew in the garden bed, then you should select another area. Repeat planting of tomatoes in the same place is allowed only after three years.
Preparing the soil for planting
Tomatoes are planted in light soil.If the soil is heavy, it must first be fertilized. Humus and special fertilizers for tomatoes are suitable as fertilizing. Manure should be added to the soil with caution. Its excess causes active leaf growth, which negatively affects fruiting.
It is best to prepare the soil for tomatoes in the fall. The soil needs to be dug up and then fertilized. Immediately before planting, it is enough to loosen it and level it.
The soil for tomatoes is prepared from soil, humus and compost, which are taken in equal proportions. You can add superphosphate or ash to the resulting mixture. The soil should remain loose and warm.
In spring, the soil is dug up several times. At this stage, minerals and humus are added again. Fertilizer is poured into the holes before planting. With proper soil preparation, the plant takes root faster.
In greenhouses, the soil loses its properties faster. After harvesting, its layer is removed to a depth of 0.4 m. Then a layer of broken branches and sawdust is formed. After this, a layer of peat is laid, after which fertile soil is poured.
Preparing seedlings
Preparing seedlings should begin 2 months before planting. Tomato seeds begin to germinate in mid-February - early March.
To ensure seed germination, the ambient temperature should be 12°C at night and 20°C during the day.Additionally, artificial lighting is provided using a fluorescent lamp.
Plants that have sprouted in large quantities within a week are selected for planting. Every 10 days the seedlings are fed with humus. For irrigation, melted or boiled water is used, which is sprayed from a spray bottle.
Planting in a greenhouse
After preparing the soil in the greenhouse, after a week and a half, you can begin planting tomatoes. In the greenhouse, beds of the following sizes are formed:
- between low plants - from 40 cm;
- between middle ones – up to 25 cm;
- between tall ones – up to 50 cm;
- between rows - up to 0.5 m.
The distance between rows is determined taking into account the size of the greenhouse. It is better to leave free space between the tomatoes so that their leaves do not interfere with each other as they grow.
A favorable microclimate should be formed in the greenhouse. Tomatoes prefer air temperatures between 20-25°C. The soil should reach a temperature of 14°C.
The order of planting tomatoes is as follows:
- Within 5 days, the soil is treated with boron solution.
- In 2 days, the leaves of the plants located at the roots are cut off.
- Holes measuring about 15 cm (for low-growing varieties) or 30 cm (for tall plants) are prepared.
- The tomatoes are removed from the containers along with a lump of earth and transplanted into the holes.
- The plant is covered with soil before the leaves begin to grow.
- The soil under the tomatoes is compacted and mulched with peat or humus.
Planting in a greenhouse
Unlike a greenhouse, a greenhouse has a simpler design. It provides heat by decomposing organic fertilizer (compost or manure). During the decay process, the soil in the greenhouse is heated and the required temperature is ensured.
The time for planting tomatoes in a greenhouse depends on the soil temperature. Additionally, the duration of the decomposition process of organic matter is taken into account. To do this, the air temperature should be set at 10-15° C.
Much depends on the season: how early spring came and how much time the air had to warm up. This usually happens by the beginning of May.
The process of planting tomatoes in a greenhouse includes a certain sequence of stages:
- A week before the start of work, the soil is prepared.
- Holes are made up to 30 cm in size.
- Tomatoes are planted in holes while maintaining the root system.
- The soil around the plants is compacted.
- Each seedling is watered.
Tomatoes are planted in a greenhouse maintaining the following distances:
- height – up to 40 cm;
- width – up to 90 cm;
- the distance between the walls of the greenhouse and the bed is 40 cm;
- distance between rows – 60 cm.
Typically a greenhouse contains one or two rows of tomatoes. As covering material a special film or woven material is used. Once a stable temperature has been established, there is no need for additional covering of the tomatoes.
Planting in open ground
Tomatoes can be planted in open areas in the Moscow region when the soil temperature reaches at least 14°C.Usually the soil warms up in the second half of May, but these dates may shift depending on the season.
A cloudy day is chosen for the work. In hot sunlight it will be more difficult for the plant to take root. If cloudiness is not expected, then the planted tomatoes need to be additionally protected from the sun.
The procedure for planting tomatoes in open ground is as follows:
- Holes are made in the soil to a depth of 12 cm.
- Compost, humus, and mineral fertilizers are added to the resulting depressions.
- The planting site is watered abundantly.
- The seedlings are taken out of the container, keeping a lump of earth on the roots, and placed in the holes.
- Tomatoes are sprinkled with soil up to the leaves.
If the seedlings have a height of up to 0.4 m, then the plant is placed directly. If the tomatoes are overgrown, they are laid at an angle of 45°. This will allow the plant to form additional roots and provide an influx of nutrients.
The distance between the holes depends on the variety of tomatoes:
- leave 35 cm between low-growing plants;
- Between medium and tall tomatoes, 50 cm is required.
Planting is done in rows or in a checkerboard pattern. There are no restrictions here.
To protect tomatoes from frost, you can cover them with film or covering material at night. This is done immediately after planting, when the plant is not yet strong. In the future, there will be no need for additional shelter.
Caring for tomatoes after planting
Once tomatoes are planted, they need to be given proper care. Immediately after placing the plants in the soil, they are watered. Loosening, fertilizing, removing shoots and gartering are carried out as the tomatoes grow.Timely watering of plants is mandatory.
Loosening and hilling
Loosening improves air exchange in the soil and improves moisture absorption. The procedure is carried out to a depth of several centimeters so as not to damage the roots of the tomato.
Hilling is carried out during flowering and fruiting. As a result, additional roots appear, providing an influx of nutrients. You can lay hay or peat on the surface of the soil, which will protect the tomatoes from overheating in the heat.
Removal of stepsons and garter
The side shoots or stepsons that form on the trunk of the tomato take away its life-giving forces.
Therefore, they need to be removed periodically. To do this, it is not recommended to use improvised tools; it is enough to break off the extra shoots.
Low-growing tomato varieties do not require garter. For taller plants, support is provided in the form of a special mesh or pegs. Tomatoes are tied under the first ovary so as not to damage it.
Watering and fertilizing
Tomatoes are watered immediately after planting. Then a break is taken for 7 days. This rule is broken if the weather is hot.
You need to water the tomatoes at the roots with warm water. It is best to leave watering in the evening. In this case, moisture should not get on the leaves of the tomatoes. The procedure is often carried out in conjunction with fertilizing. To do this, organic or mineral fertilizer (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) is diluted in water.
Conclusion
Tomatoes require special conditions, which must be taken into account when planting. In which month to carry out planting work largely depends on weather conditions. First produced planting tomatoes in a greenhouse and a greenhouse.Planting plants in open ground is allowed only when the air is sufficiently warmed. The further growth of tomatoes depends on their proper watering, pruning and feeding.
