Wonderful fresh and just as good in preservation - tomato "Gourmand black" and the basics of growing this variety

Black gourmet is a variety that has recently won the hearts of gardeners. If you are interested in a black-fruited vegetable, then it's time to carefully study the features of its cultivation, and in the coming season, treat your homemade delicious and ripe tomatoes.

From the article you will learn about the care of the variety, the preparation of seed material and the cultivation of seedlings of the Black Gourmet.

Description of the variety

Consider the main characteristics and features of the variety.

Distinctive features

In addition to color, the main distinguishing feature lies in the extraordinary taste of the tomato. Black tomatoes tend to have a deeper flavor and aroma. When fully ripe, a black gourmet can sometimes taste like real chocolate.

What else distinguishes Black Gourmet from other varieties? High productivity. Even in the most unfavorable season, your summer buckets will be filled with this tomato.

Fruit characteristics and yield

We present the characteristics and description of the variety. Fruits have a regular rounded shape, smooth to the touch, no roughness. By themselves, the bushes reach a height of about 60 cm. Many summer residents do not tie up such bushes at all.

There is no dense foliage, which means tomatoes can be planted on a compact piece of land. Neighboring bushes will not interfere with each other, and tomatoes will receive maximum sunlight to fully ripen.

Attention! Tomatoes of this variety have one interesting feature that allows you to determine that the fruit is ripe. If you look closely, there is a small spot next to the stem. If the fruit is unripe, then the spot is green, emerald, mint. If the tomato is ready, the stain is brown or even black. The approximate weight of a ripe tomato is 120 grams. Those that are smaller are well suited for salting for the winter.

The color of the tomato itself can range from rich, deep red to dark chocolate.

When can the first crop be harvested? Approximately 110-115 days after the first shoots appear. Such a ripening period allows the variety to be classified as mid-season. The yield of tomato is high: from 1 sq. m. collect from 5 to 7 kg of fruits. Black gourmet will delight you with delicious tomatoes until October.

The photo shows the fruits of the Black Gourmet variety.

How to grow seedlings

To grow healthy tomatoes and get a bountiful harvest, you need to pay special attention to preparing seeds and growing seedlings.

Seed preparation

If you buy processed seeds from the store, they do not require special preparation.

Second, the seeds were collected by you yourself. Check beforehand if they are germinating. To do this, dilute a teaspoon of salt in a glass of water, lower the seeds. Only those seeds will sprout that are at the bottom of the glass. Once the test is passed, treat the seeds with a 1% solution of potassium permanganate. The grains are wrapped in cheesecloth and immersed in the solution for no more than 20 minutes.

Capacity and soil

Peat pots, crates, plastic cups and containers are suitable for planting. The soil should be fertile and loose, moderately moist. Harvesting the soil should be done in the fall. So the maximum of nutrients will be preserved in the soil.

Sowing

The ideal time to plant seeds is mid-March.

Depressions are made in the soil no more than 2 cm. The seeds are sprinkled with soil on top. If you decide to plant seeds in one large container in rows, then the distance between them should be three to four steps, and the seeds are spaced at least 1.5 cm from each other.

The container must be wrapped in a plastic bag or film.

Growing and care

When growing seedlings, the ambient temperature is important. At the initial stage, the air should be warmed up to 25 degrees. Have the first sprouts appeared? Reduce the temperature by 5-6 degrees.

In order for the seedlings to grow strong, light must fall on future tomatoes for at least 12 hours a day. It is clear that this is not easy to achieve in natural conditions. If there is absolutely not enough light, use artificial lighting.

As for watering, the main thing here is not to overdo it. If the topsoil is slightly damp, postpone watering for the next day.

How to grow tomatoes

After planting in the ground, the plants will need proper care. This section contains basic rules and recommendations for growing Lakomka tomatoes in open and protected ground.

Landing

It is recommended to plant a black gourmet tomato in a greenhouse when the temperature reaches at least + 20 ° C.

During the period of growing seedlings, the stems have time to overgrow with several leaves. Before planting in the soil, the lower leaves should be carefully removed. On one square. m. of land should be about six to seven bushes of the plant.

So, how to plant a tomato correctly:

• we make a hole in fertile soil;
• water the depression with a solution of potassium permanganate (a 1% solution is also suitable);
• carefully take out the seedlings;
• without damaging the root system, we plant it in the ground;
• sprinkle with earth;
• slightly moisten the soil.

Important! If the seedlings were grown in peat pots, then we plant the bush in the ground along with the pot.

Care

Tomatoes need pinching. We repeat that the first time it is carried out before landing in the ground. Then the plant is stepchild about once every ten days. If one of the bushes has not taken root in you, the stepson can completely replace it.

Intensity glaze depends on the age of the plant. Once you have planted it in the ground, the first watering should be abundant, but then it is gradually reduced. The minimum is during the ripening period. Here it is better to allow temporary drying out of the soil than waterlogging. This will affect the taste of the tomatoes. Remember that when watering, do not allow water to get on the stem and leaves.

Loosening must be done after watering and rain. The bush is loosened carefully, retreating from the stem 5 cm. Weed regularly, otherwise it will not be possible to feast on large fruits.

The bush is tall, so about 20 days after planting in the ground, it is necessarytie up.

As for fertilizers, the variety has a positive attitude towards them, especially humic fertilizers. They can be used at any stage of fetal growth and maturation, but not more often than once every ten days.

Features of cultivation and possible difficulties

According to the reviews of novice and experienced gardeners, there are no particular difficulties in growing tomatoes.

What is important to pay attention to:

1. Watering should be moderate. Excessive moisture will lead to rotting tomatoes, sour taste and fruit disease.
2. You can not plant seedlings in the groundif the air temperature fluctuates frequently.
3. A week before planting seedlings in the ground, harden the seedlings... This is done simply: we take out the container with seedlings to the balcony. The first hardening procedure lasts no more than five minutes. Further, you can increase the duration up to several hours. Hardening can only be carried out during the daytime.
4. Watch closely for the shade of leaves from nearby plants. The black gourmet does not like this, so its own leaves are quite rare.

Diseases and pests

Late blight Is one of the most common diseases.All work will go down the drain if the plant overcomes this fungal disease. The main reason is temperature fluctuations, improper watering and frequent weather changes. These are just ideal conditions for the development of late blight.

The first symptom of late blight is blackened leaves. If this happened, it means that the fruit itself will soon turn black. Don't try to heal the bush. It must be removed and discarded immediately. Otherwise, the infection will spread to neighboring bushes.

Can the disease be prevented? You can: whey is the enemy of fungal bacteria. Spraying is performed once a week. In addition, specialized stores offer summer residents ready-made products to fight the disease. For example, "Fitoftorin".

Brown spot is another fungal disease. Most often greenhouse tomatoes are susceptible to it. The disease begins in the lower leaves. Therefore, inspect them regularly. The front side of the leaf is covered with yellow spots, and the back is covered with a whitish bloom. The leaves should be removed as soon as possible. For the treatment of the disease, copper-containing preparations are used.

Lack of moisture and low air temperature cause diseases such as powdery mildew. It is dangerous because it can quickly destroy the entire crop. It is impossible not to notice the manifestation of the disease. The leaves turn white, the stem is also covered with a white bloom. The fruits themselves are not susceptible to bloom. The diseased plant is removed.

Spraying with special agents is used as a preventive measure. Topaz is one of the best and most recommended.

The nuances of growing in an open field and a greenhouse

Where is it better to plant the Lakomka variety: in a greenhouse or in the open field? The bushes are suitable for both indoor and protected ground.

If you decide to opt for a greenhouse, be prepared for the following:

1. Greenhouse tomatoes are more susceptible to fungal diseases.
2. The greenhouse must be moved to another site every two years. Take care of the area in advance.
3. It is necessary to constantly monitor the temperature inside the greenhouse and the level of moisture in the air.

If you are more accustomed to planting plants in open ground, consider the following nuances:

1. If there is frequent fog in your area, the plant has an increased chance of powdery mildew.
2. If you have not waited for a sustained high temperature and planted the tomatoes prematurely, there is a high probability that they will freeze.
3. Tall fruit trees are not the best neighbors for outdoor tomatoes.
4. Tomatoes should not be planted after other plants from the nightshade family.

Harvesting and application of the crop

The harvesting rules are simple. It is better to wait until the whole branch is evenly ripe. Cut by a branch, tomatoes will last longer. If you observe that the fruits ripen too slowly, it is time to pick off the leaves. They prevent tomatoes from fully ripening.

Note! Do not pick tomatoes in rain or wet weather. The most favorable weather for harvesting is dry and cloudy.

If the weather forecast warns of frost, pick off the tomatoes and leave them to ripen in a warm, dry place.

Black gourmet is perfect for summer salads. Sweet black tomatoes are often eaten with honey or sugar.

Fruits are also good for winter harvesting. Pickled tomatoes will be stored for a long time without losing their elastic appearance. It is undesirable to salt the Black Gourmet together with cucumbers.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Key benefits:

• high productivity;
• the possibility of planting on a compact plot of land;
• do not crack;
• the fruits are unpretentious;
• suitable for salads and preservation.

There is only one drawback: if the climate is cold, the harvest will be poor.

Farmers reviews

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the reviews of summer residents who have already managed to feast on a black tomato.

Andrey Vishnevsky, Kazan: “For the first time I have grown a Black Gourmet on my small plot. Pets are delighted! Even children chewed on both cheeks.What I especially liked is that the fruits do not crack, do not lose their shape as they ripen. No diseases have damaged my bush. Grown in the open field. I planted it out at the end of May. "

Olga Kopretskaya, Perm: “I love to try something new. On the advice of a neighbor, I planted the Black Gourmet in the greenhouse. The harvest was simply colossal! True, one bush was still spoiled by excessive watering. I advise you to pay close attention to the level of moisture, then your harvest will be sweet, tasty and generous. "

Kristina Yatmanova, Kostroma: “These are the best dark tomatoes. If you haven't tried them yet, correct the situation as soon as possible. Salads with the addition of these tomatoes acquire an incredible taste. They say that the bushes have few leaves. It was the other way around with mine. The leaves grew densely, I regularly got rid of them. Got a good harvest. I advise everyone. "

Conclusion

Black gourmet is an unpretentious tomato that will fill your summer baskets with fruits to the very top. You are required to closely monitor the moisture level, to minimize temperature drops. In order to prevent tomato diseases, preventive spraying is necessary once a week and carefully monitor the condition of the leaves.

If you can't eat the entire crop, pickle the tomatoes for the winter. In the winter cold, you will enjoy the sweet taste of tomatoes.