A new variety that managed to conquer the hearts of summer residents - the "Big Mom" ​​tomato and the secrets of growing large fruits

Tomato seeds Big Mom appeared on the shelves recently, but have already been highly appreciated by Russian summer residents. Compact bushes bear fruit abundantly even with minimal maintenance.

The advantages that the inhabitants of the northern regions with short, rainy summers will appreciate are the early ripening of tomatoes and high immunity to fungal infections. And large, brightly scarlet tasty fruits will impress even the most fastidious gourmets.

Description of the variety

The variety was entered into the State Register of the Russian Federation four years ago - in 2015. The originator was the Russian company "Gavrish", founded in 1993. The enterprise has 5 breeding centers in Moscow, Tula regions, Krasnodar Territory and the Kingdom of Jordan.

Big Mom is recommended for growing in all climatic zones in open ground and in film shelters.

Distinctive features

Determinate early grade. The height of the bush is 60 cm. The stem is strong, the leaves are medium-sized, wrinkled, light green, not pubescent, potato-shaped. They do not grow abundantly on the bush. The roots grow wide. The first inflorescence appears after the fifth pair of leaves, each with up to six ovaries.

The articulated sturdy stalk is capable of withstanding heavy fruits. From the appearance of the first shoots to the ripening of tomatoes, 85 days pass.

Fruit characteristics and yield

Tomatoes are rounded, slightly ribbed, with a small spout, shaped like a heart. The skin is bright red, dense, smooth, thin. Fleshy, juicy, sugar pulp has a small number of seeds. The taste of tomatoes is rich, sweet, with a pleasant tomato sourness. The weight of one fruit is 200-350 g.

The yield of the variety is up to 9 kg per 1 sq. m (6 bushes).

How to grow seedlings

Seeds for seedlings are sown 55-60 days before planting in the beds. For greenhouses - in mid-March, for open ground - in early April.

Seed preparation

A month before the start of agrotechnical work, seed preparation begins. Experienced farmers recommend seven stages of seed preparation.

Calibration

The seeds are poured out of the bag and carefully examined. Small, uneven, empty to the touch seeds are thrown away, and medium / large, even seeds are placed in a saline solution. To prepare it, dissolve a tablespoon of salt in a glass of water.

After 20 minutes, the seeds floating on the surface are caught and thrown away - the likelihood that they will sprout and give a crop is low. The seeds that have sunk to the bottom are washed with water and dried.

Warming up

The seed is placed in cotton bags, which are hung on the heating battery for 10-12 days. Fast way: seeds on a cotton cloth are placed on a central heating radiator. Warming up duration - 36-48 hours.

Disinfection

The heated seeds are disinfected with a 1% solution of potassium permanganate (1 g of potassium permanganate is added to 100 ml of water). The procedure is carried out for 15-20 minutes.

Bubbling

The grains are placed in warm (+ 26 ... + 30 ° C) water, an aquarium compressor is connected (or the water is intensively stirred every hour with a spoon).This saturates the seeds with oxygen, which improves germination and seedling growth. The duration of the procedure is 15-18 hours.

Soak

Seed material is poured with warm water (+ 21 ... + 26 ° C) or a solution of biostimulating drugs. With water - for 12 hours, and the drugs are used according to the instructions on the package.

Popular with farmers:

1. "Zircon".
2. "Epin".
3. "Immunocytophyte".

Council. Summer residents recommend "honey soaking". To do this, dissolve 10 g (teaspoon) of honey in a glass of cool water. The grains are laid out on a cloth or gauze, 3-5 teaspoons of the solution are poured and the cloth is wrapped in an envelope. Soaking is carried out for 3-12 hours, as the material dries, it is moistened with a solution.

Hardening

Having wrapped the seeds in cloth and polyethylene, they are placed in a cool place with a temperature of +2 to -3 ° C for 8 hours (refrigerator, balcony, summer veranda). After - for 8 hours in a room with room temperature. The change of temperature conditions is repeated 5-6 times.

Experienced gardeners do not recommend that beginners harden all planting material, because if the procedure is performed incorrectly, there is a high risk of spoiling the seeds.

Germination

The grains are wrapped in gauze or cotton cloth, placed on a flat dish (lid, saucer, Petri dish). The fabric is regularly moistened with warm water (+ 25 ... + 30 ° C) until embryos of 2-3 mm appear.

Capacity and soil

For Big Mom, choose a versatile potting soil that is available in abundance in stores.

It includes:

• humus;
• peat;
• river sand.

For self-production of soil mixtures take:

• one part of the land from the garden (from the site where cucumbers, zucchini, carrots, dill grew);
• two parts of non-acidic peat (pH 6.5);
• 0.5 parts of sand (river or washed);
• one part of humus or sifted mature compost;
• some wood ash (dolomite flour), sphagnum moss and fallen needles.

Plastic cups, cut bottles or cardboard packaging from dairy products, juices, special containers are suitable as containers for seedlings. Before use, they are washed with a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

Sowing

The soil is laid out in containers, shallow (1-2 cm) grooves are made, where the seeds are placed. Grains are added dropwise, the soil is watered with warm, settled water using a spoon, syringe or spray bottle. The containers are covered with plastic wrap and placed in a warm, bright place.

Growing and care

As soon as the seeds sprout, the film is removed.

From the author.This year I tried to plant tomatoes of this variety. Seedlings hatched on the third day after planting. They sprout amicably, quickly grow.

The sprouts are watered as the soil dries up, being careful not to wet the stem and leaves.

After a pair of true leaves appear on the plants, the seedlings dive into separate containers. Containers are chosen with a volume of at least 300 ml.

Important! When transplanting seedlings, the central root is shortened by 1–1.5 cm. This will allow the roots to develop in width.

Seedlings fertilized every 14 days, alternating mineral and complex fertilizing. The first complex feeding is applied 10 days after the pick.

Big Mom is a light-loving tomato, so after picking the plants should receive light for 12 hours. If the region has a short daylight hours, the seedlings are supplemented with fluorescent or LED lamps, which are placed strictly above the plantings.

At the age of 45 days, the seedlings begin to harden, taking them outside for 3-4 hours in the shade. Every day, they increase the time spent on the street by 1 hour and gradually accustom the plant to sunlight. A day or two before planting in the ground, the seedlings are left to spend the night in the open air.

How to grow tomatoes

Seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place at the age of 55-60 days. In cold regions - only in film shelters. The soil temperature should reach + 13 ... + 15 ° C, and the air temperature - + 12 ° C and at least + 5 ° C.Frosts will either destroy immature plants or slow down the development of tomatoes for 15-20 days.

Landing

The site for the future planting of tomatoes is selected in advance. It is important that plants of the Solanaceae family do not grow on it a year before, but cucumbers, zucchini, dill are good predecessors and neighbors for tomatoes of any kind.

The day before planting seedlings, the soil is disinfected with a strong solution of potassium permanganate or boiling water. For Big Mom, choose a planting pattern of 40 x 50 cm.

Care

Tomatoes are transplanted in a greenhouse in early to mid-May, in warm regions it is permissible at the end of April. By this time, from five to nine pairs of leaves have already grown on the seedlings, and the growth of plants reaches 20-25 cm. Tomatoes of this variety are recommended to be planted in open ground only in warm regions of the country - a month later than under shelter. In central Russia, when grown outside the greenhouse, it is advised to cover the tomatoes with agromaterial in the first 15-20 days.

A week after transshipment of bushes tie up... Watered as the soil dries up, strictly under the root, preventing moisture from entering the stem and leaves. Water for irrigation is pre-defended and heated in the sun. After each watering, the soil is loosened and weeds are removed. At the time of the formation of fruits, plants need abundant moisture in the soil, however, as soon as the green fruits begin to turn red, watering is reduced.

Fertilizers are applied every 10-12 days, alternating complex and mineral fertilizers. Before flowering, tomatoes are fed with nitrogen fertilizers, in the flowering phase - with potash. Foliar dressing will help to increase the yield: wood ash, solution boric acid... After fertilization, tomatoes abundantly watered.

Gradually, the lower leaves are cut off from the bush so that they do not take useful substances from the ovaries and do not contribute to the spread of infections, harmful insects.

Bushes form 2-3 stems. The photo below shows the diagram: main escape + 1-2 stepson. The rest of the branches are removed. Stealing spend once a week, removing no more than two stepsons at a time. As the bush develops, each branch is tied up so that heavy fruits do not break and do not fill the plant to the ground.

Council. Experienced summer residents advise removing a couple of unripe fruits from each inflorescence. In this case, those remaining on the branch will receive more nutrients and grow larger.

Features of cultivation and possible difficulties

As noted by farmers who have already tried to grow Big Mom tomatoes, there are no difficulties and peculiarities of growing this variety.

Diseases and pests

On the packaging, manufacturers indicate that tomatoes are highly resistant to fungal diseases and pests.

For the prevention and treatment of fungal diseases, plantings are treated with "Fitosporin".Brown olive spot (cladosporium) is treated with copper-containing preparations, for example, "Bordeaux mixture" or "Zaslon", top rot - by spraying with calcium nitrate.

Council. In regions with short, cool or rainy summers under a film, tomatoes are striking late blight... For the prevention of the disease, whey is used. Immediately after transplanting seedlings into the ground, the bushes are sprayed with serum (fat content no more than 1% - otherwise you can burn the leaves). The procedure is repeated every 10 days. For the prevention of apical rot, the soil is fertilized with eggshells and onion skins.

Tomatoes are attacked by harmful insects. From aphids and thrips use the drug "Bison", from the Colorado potato beetle - "Prestige", from the whitefly - "Confidor", from spider mites - "Apollo".

The nuances of growing in an open field and a greenhouse

Summer residents note that in regions with a cold, cool climate, tomatoes will not give a high yield when grown outdoors. Without shelter, they are grown only in the southern regions.

In greenhouse conditions, the bush is formed in 1 main and 1-2 stepson, in open beds in 1 main and 1 stepson.

In greenhouses, tomatoes are watered only in the morning. The shelters are ventilated, avoiding an increase in humidity of more than 80%. At a higher rate, the pollen in the inflorescences sticks together and the plants are not pollinated.

Harvesting and application of the crop

Tomatoes ripen together 85-90 days after germination. The weight of the fruit varies from the bottom to the top of the bush: the lower ones up to 400 g, the upper ones - 150-200 g.

They are consumed fresh: salads, sandwiches. The variety is suitable for making juices, purees, sauces and snacks. Small fruits can be preserved whole. The dense skin prevents the tomatoes from cracking, making them suitable for transport. Keeping quality is high; according to farmers' reviews, fruits are stored until late autumn.

Important! Plucked unripe, tomatoes reach in a few weeks in a dark, dry place.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Among the advantages of the variety are called:

• yield - up to 9 kg per square meter;
• the weight of one tomato is 300 g;
• the taste is sweet, with a pleasant tomato sourness;
• early ripening of fruits;
• the ability to endure long-term storage and transportation;
• immunity to diseases and pests;
• the ability to collect seed.

The disadvantages include the impossibility of growing outdoors in the northern regions of Russia.

Farmers reviews

Gardeners choose a tomato Big Mommy for unpretentious care, immunity to fungal diseases, taste and yield.

Elena, Novoaleksandrovsk, Stavropol Territory: “Last summer we tried to plant a new tomato variety Big Mom. We liked it. We planted bushes both under cover and in the garden. In the greenhouse, the fruits ripened a week earlier. The tomato showed its valuable qualities: early, large, well tolerated transportation. We will plant! "

Alexander, Volgograd region: “The variety has shown itself perfectly in the garden. A garter is required, the fruits are weighty. Loves watering. The outer row remained not always well-watered; the difference in the size of the tomatoes is visible. I always keep the stem without lower leaves, insects or infections did not bother me. I did prophylaxis with low-fat milk every week, especially after the rains. "

Ruslan, Tula: “I have my own agricultural firm, and a year ago, technologists suggested planting this variety as a test one. This year, the number of bushes has increased - tomatoes are stored well, they are quickly sold out - customers like the taste and appearance. The transportation is well tolerated, we are harvesting a little unripe - so storage can be extended for another two weeks. "

Conclusion

Varietal tomatoes Big Mom is a godsend for lovers of large-fruited tomatoes. The best harvest can be obtained in hot, moderately rainy summers in the open field, in the northern regions only under cover. Agricultural technology is the same as that of other varieties of tomatoes, but summer residents note that the tomato loves watering with warm water.

Low bushes are pinned, formed into 2-3 stems and must be tied to supports. The fruits ripen together on 85-90 days. Tomatoes are large, sweet taste with pleasant tomato acidity, juicy fleshy pulp. The use is universal: fresh added to salads, juices, sauces and snacks are closed for the winter. They do not deteriorate during transportation and long-term storage.