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Among tomatoes, ultra-early varieties and hybrids occupy a special place. It is they who provide the gardener with such a desired early harvest. How nice it is to pick ripe tomatoes while your neighbors’ ones are still just blooming. To make this possible, you need not only to grow the seedlings in time, but also to choose the right variety, or better yet, a hybrid.
Why hybrid? They have a number of undeniable advantages.
Why are hybrids good?
To obtain a hybrid tomato, breeders select parents with certain characteristics, which form the main characteristics of the bred tomato:
- Productivity - hybrids are usually 1.5-2 times more productive than varieties;
- Disease resistance - it increases due to the effect of heterosis;
- Evenness of fruits and friendly yield of the harvest;
- Good preservation and transportability.
If the first tomato hybrids differed in taste from their varieties for the worse, now breeders have learned to cope with this disadvantage - the taste of a modern hybrid tomato is no worse than a varietal one.
The range of hybrids is quite wide and allows the gardener to choose a tomato taking into account all his own requirements.To make it easier to make a choice, we will help the gardener and present him with one of the promising ultra-early hybrids Lark F1, giving him a full description and characteristics and showing him a photo.
Description and characteristics
The tomato hybrid Zhavoronok F1 was bred at the Transnistrian Research Institute of Agriculture and distributed by the seed company Aelita. It has not yet been included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements, but this does not prevent gardeners from growing it; their reviews of this tomato hybrid are mostly positive.
Hybrid features:
- the tomato hybrid Lark F1 belongs to the determinant type of tomato bush, having tied 3-4 bunches on the main stem, it stops its growth, later the harvest is formed on the stepsons;
- for a determinate variety, the height of the bush of the tomato hybrid Zhavoronok F1 is quite large - up to 90 cm; under not very favorable growing conditions it does not grow higher than 75 cm;
- the first flower cluster can form after 5 true leaves, the rest - every 2 leaves;
- The ripening time of the tomato hybrid Lark F1 makes it possible to classify it as an ultra-early ripening tomato, since the fruits begin to ripen already 80 days after germination - when ready-made seedlings are planted in the ground at the beginning of June, already at the beginning of the next month you can harvest more than a dozen delicious tomatoes;
- the brush of the Zhavoronok tomato is simple, it can bear up to 6 fruits;
- each tomato of the hybrid Lark F1 weighs from 110 to 120 g, they have a round shape and a rich, bright red color, there is no green spot on the stalk;
- Lark fruits have an excellent taste, since the sugar content of these tomatoes is up to 3.5%;
- they contain a lot of pulp, which has a dense consistency; hybrid tomatoes Lark F1 are excellent not only for preparing salads, but also for any preparations; They produce high quality tomato paste - the dry matter content in tomatoes reaches 6.5%. Thanks to its thick skin, the Zhavoronok F1 tomato is stored well and transported well.
- hybrid Lark F1 is distinguished by its ability to adapt to any growing conditions and set fruit even in unfavorable conditions;
- The yield of this tomato hybrid is high - up to 12 kg per 1 sq. m.
It has one positive quality that cannot be ignored, otherwise the description and characteristics of the tomato hybrid Lark F1 will be incomplete - excellent resistance to many diseases of nightshade crops, including such a dangerous disease as late blight.
In order for this tomato to fully produce the entire harvest declared by the manufacturer and not get sick, it needs to be properly cared for.
Basic agricultural techniques
The tomato hybrid Lark F1 can be grown using the seedless method only in the south. In long summer conditions under the hot southern sun, this heat-loving crop will yield its entire harvest; all the fruits will have time to ripen on the bushes. Where the climate is colder, growing seedlings is indispensable.
How to decide on sowing dates? Seedlings of ultra-early varieties, including the tomato hybrid Zhavoronok F1, are ready for planting at the age of 45-55 days. It grows quickly, by this time it manages to form up to 7 leaves, the flowers on the first cluster can bloom. To plant it in the first ten days of June, by which time the soil has already warmed up to 15 degrees and the return frosts have ended, you need to sow the seeds in early April.
How to grow seedlings
First of all, we prepare the seeds of the tomato hybrid Lark F1 for sowing. Of course, they can be sown without preparation. But then there will be no certainty that pathogens of various tomato diseases did not enter the soil along with them. Unawakened seeds take longer to germinate, and without the boost of energy that biostimulants give them, the sprouts will be weaker. Therefore, we follow all the rules:
- We select for sowing only the largest regularly shaped tomato seeds Lark F1, they should not be damaged;
- pickle them in a solution of Fitosporin for 2 hours, in the usual 1% potassium permanganate - 20 minutes, in 2% hydrogen peroxide heated to a temperature of about 40 degrees - 5 minutes; in the last two cases, we wash the treated seeds;
- soak in any growth stimulator - in Zircon, Immunocytophyte, Epin - according to the instructions for the drug, in an ash solution prepared from 1 tbsp. spoons of ash and a glass of water - for 12 hours, in melt water - from 6 to 18 hours.
Whether to germinate Lark F1 tomato seeds or not is a decision that every gardener makes independently. It must be remembered that such seeds have certain advantages:
- germinated seeds germinate faster.
- they can be sown immediately in separate pots and tomatoes can be grown without picking.
This will not only allow the seedlings to grow faster, since each transplant slows down the development of Lark F1 tomatoes for a week. In unpicked plants, the central root grows to a greater depth after planting, making them less sensitive to lack of moisture.
If you decide to germinate, place the swollen seeds on moistened cotton pads and cover with film or put on a plastic bag.They need to be kept warm until they peck, opening them for ventilation from time to time so that they do not suffocate without access to air.
We sow the sprouted seeds into loose, breathable soil to a depth of about 1 cm.
Under what conditions should you keep tomato seedlings Lark F1:
- In the first week, maximum illumination and temperature are not higher than 16 degrees during the day and 14 at night. Watering at this time is only needed if the soil is very dry.
- After the stem has become stronger, but not stretched, and the roots have grown, they need warmth - about 25 degrees during the day and at least 18 at night. Lighting should remain maximum.
- We water the seedlings only when the soil in the pots dries out, but without allowing them to wither. The water should be at room temperature or slightly warmer.
- Nutrition for hybrid tomatoes Lark F1 consists of two feedings of soluble mineral fertilizer with a full range of macro- and microfertilizers, but in low concentration. The first feeding is in the phase of 2 true leaves, the second is 2 weeks after the first.
- Only hardened tomato seedlings Lark F1 need to be planted in the ground, so we begin to take them outside 2 weeks before moving them to the garden bed, gradually accustoming them to street conditions.
Care after disembarkation
Tomato hybrid seedlings Zhavoronok F1 are planted with a distance between rows of 60-70 cm and between plants - from 30 to 40 cm.
Plants not only lack food area.Thickened planting is a sure way to cause diseases.
What do Lark F1 tomatoes need in open ground:
- Well-lit garden bed.
- Mulching the soil after planting seedlings.
- Watering with warm water in the morning. It should be weekly before fruiting and 2 times a week after. The weather can make its own adjustments. In extreme heat we water more often, in rains we don’t water at all.
- Fertilize 3-4 times per season with fertilizer intended for tomatoes. Dilution and watering rates are indicated on the packaging. If the weather is rainy, Lark F1 tomato plants are fed more often, but with less fertilizer. Rain quickly washes nutrients into the lower soil layers.
- Formation. Low-growing determinate varieties are formed into 1 stem only for the purpose of obtaining an early harvest. For the rest, you can only cut off the stepsons growing below the first flower cluster, and in the hot summer you can do without any formation at all. Usually the tomato Lark F1 is not formed.
More information about growing tomatoes in open ground can be seen in the video:
Conclusion
If you want to get a harvest of delicious tomatoes early, the Lark F1 tomato is an excellent choice. This unpretentious hybrid does not require much care and will give the gardener an excellent harvest.
