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There are many varieties and hybrids of tomatoes. Breeders in different countries produce new ones every year. Most of them grow well in regions with warm climates. This is how it should be - the tomato is a southern crop and loves warmth. There are few tomatoes that are capable of producing fruit in the northern regions, and especially in open ground. Each such variety is simply worth its weight in gold. Among them is the old, but still not lost its significance, Moskvich tomato; its description and characteristics are given below. Tomato Muscovite in the photo.
Characteristics and description
The Moskvich tomato variety was included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements back in 1976. It was created at the Institute of General Genetics. N.I. Vavilov from crossing the Nevsky and Smena 373 varieties and is intended for cultivation in many regions, including the Arkhangelsk and Murmansk regions, the Komi and Karelia republics. The growing conditions there are truly extreme. And the Moskvich tomato not only withstands them well, growing in open ground, but also produces a good harvest of tomatoes, most of which turn red on the vine. And now more about the Moskvich tomato.
- The Moskvich variety is early ripening. In open ground, the first ripe tomatoes can be tasted already on the ninetieth day. In cool summers, this period is extended by 1.5 weeks.
- The Moskvich tomato is a determinate variety.It independently completes its growth when 3-4 clusters are formed on the main stem.
- The bush of the Moskvich variety is standard and strong. Its height does not exceed 40 cm. The leaves are dark green, slightly corrugated. The foliage is not strong.
- The recommended distance when planting is 40 cm between plants in a row, 60 cm between rows. If the bush is not planted, it grows greatly in width due to the stepsons.
- The Moskvich tomato variety does not need to be planted. But if you remove the stepsons under the lower flower cluster, the harvest will ripen earlier and the tomatoes will be larger, but their total number will decrease. With partial pinching, bushes can be planted more often - up to 8 pieces per square meter. m. Such planting will increase the yield of Moskvich tomato per unit area, but more seedlings will have to be grown. With normal planting, the yield is up to 1 kg per bush.
And now more about the tomatoes themselves, which are shown in the photo:
- their average weight is from 60 to 80 g, but with good care it can reach 100 g;
- The color of the fruit is bright red, the shape is round, sometimes slightly flattened;
- The fruit has a sweetish taste, sugar content up to 3%, dry matter up to 6%;
- the use of Moskvich tomatoes is universal, they are good fresh, keep their shape and do not crack when pickling and salting, they make a good tomato paste;
- in the north, it is better to pick the fruits brown and ripen them.
The description and characteristics of the Moskvich tomato variety will be incomplete without mentioning its high adaptability to any weather disasters and resistance to many nightshade diseases. Reviews from those who planted Moskvich tomatoes confirm this.
Good adaptive abilities and short stature allow you to grow these tomatoes on a windowsill or balcony.
Features of cultivation
The Moskvich tomato is grown in seedlings. It should be sown at the end of March or early April. At this time there is already enough light and the seedlings will not stretch.
Growing seedlings
Seeds from the store and those collected from your garden need preparation before sowing. Their surface may contain pathogens of various tomato diseases. To get rid of them, the seeds are disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate with a concentration of 1% or in a warm 2% solution of hydrogen peroxide. Soak the tomatoes in potassium permanganate for 20 minutes, and in peroxide it is enough to keep the seeds for 8 minutes. After disinfection, the seeds are washed in running water and soaked in a growth stimulator solution. They are kept in solution for no more than 18 hours.
To do this, you need to prepare a seed mixture of equal parts of purchased peat soil, sand and vermicompost. It is moistened and the seed containers are filled with it.
Seeds can be sown immediately in separate small containers. Then they are grown without picking, simply transferring them into larger cups after 3-4 weeks. Sow 2 seeds in each cup or cassette.After germination, the excess plant is not pulled out, but cut off so as not to injure the roots of the tomatoes.
The container is filled with the prepared mixture, grooves 1.5 cm deep are made in it. The distance between them is 2 cm. The same is between the seeds in the row. The sprinkled seeds can be covered with snow. Melt water is good for seeds. It increases their germination energy and at the same time hardens them.
Put a polyethylene bag on the container with the sown Moskvich tomato seeds and put it in a warm place. Plants do not require light yet. But it will be very necessary as soon as the first shoots appear. The container is placed on a bright, preferably southern, window sill. Reduce night and day temperatures to 12 and 17 degrees, respectively, for 3-4 days. This is necessary so that the seedlings do not stretch.
In the future, the temperature should be maintained during the day no lower than 20 degrees and no higher than 22 degrees and 3-4 degrees cooler at night.
Tomato seedlings of the Moskvich variety need to adhere to the irrigation regime. It should be watered only when the soil in the pots dries out.
The appearance of a pair of true leaves reminds us that it’s time to plant the Moskvich tomato seedlings. It is planted in separate, preferably opaque cups, trying to preserve the root system as much as possible.
After picking, Moskvich tomato seedlings are shaded from direct sunlight for several days.Subsequently, it is watered and fed a couple of times with complete soluble fertilizer in a concentration half as high as for feeding in open ground. One and a half month old Moskvich tomato seedlings are ready for transplanting.
Preparing the soil and planting seedlings
Moskvich tomatoes love fertile soil. Therefore, the beds are prepared in the fall, adding at least a bucket of humus or well-rotted compost to each square meter when digging. m. In the fall, superphosphate is added in amounts of up to 70 g per square meter. m beds. In the spring, during harrowing, add a tablespoon of potassium sulfate and 2 cups of ash.
As soon as the soil temperature rises above 15 degrees, young plants can be planted. For each Moskvich tomato, dig a hole, which is well shed with warm water.
After planting, the ground around the bushes is mulched, and the Moskvich tomato plants themselves are covered with non-woven material. This way they get along better.
Outdoor care
Water the plants with warm, settled water once a week before flowering and twice during flowering and fruiting. As soon as the Moskvich tomato crop is fully formed, watering should be reduced.
Moskvich tomatoes are fertilized once every 10-15 days. It depends on the fertility of the soil in which it grows. For this purpose, a complete soluble fertilizer containing the microelements necessary for tomatoes is suitable. As soon as the plants bloom, increase the rate of potassium application and fertilize with calcium nitrate to prevent blossom end rot.
After each watering, the soil is loosened. During the season, 2 hillings are carried out, always after watering or rain.
Tomatoes of the Moskvich variety yield their harvest together.To increase it, the fruits are harvested at blanche ripeness. The remaining tomatoes will grow faster.
More information about caring for tomatoes in open ground can be seen in the video:
