Growing tomatoes in a greenhouse: step-by-step instructions for novice gardeners and advice from experienced colleagues

What is not made from tomatoes! Juice, salads, pasta - the list of dishes is endless. Tomatoes also have excellent medicinal properties: they have a healing and rejuvenating effect. Tomatoes are widely used in cosmetology and folk medicine.

In order to grow a rich harvest from tomatoes, you need to have special knowledge and know some secrets. The choice of seeds, soil, natural conditions - all of this affects how the harvest will be. In this article we will talk about growing tomatoes in a greenhouse and share some secrets.

Why experienced gardeners love growing tomatoes in a greenhouse so much

Tomato is a thermophilic culture. Getting a good harvest won't be easy without a greenhouse. This is why experienced gardeners prefer to grow tomatoes in greenhouses. They create favorable conditions for vegetables - they protect from bad weather and pests.

Varieties and types of tomatoes for the greenhouse

Which tomatoes to plant? You need to know that all varieties of culture are divided into two types: determinant and indeterminate.

To the first include tomatoes that grow to a certain size. This species is great for small greenhouses. To the second include tomatoes, the growth of the main stem in which is not limited.

Consider the varieties of determinant tomatoes and determine which ones are best grown in a greenhouse:

1. "Spring of the North" and "Doll" - sweet and large tomatoes, pink variety. They have dense flesh, they tolerate transportation well. Not sensitive to diseasesadapt to adverse weather conditions.
2. "Openwork". It reaches a height of 60-90 cm. It has a slightly flattened shape. The fruit is fleshy, with a dense skin. It has a high yield and high taste, which is why the variety is so popular among gardeners. Among the disadvantages are the difficulties in caring for the plant and the high need for special fertilizers.
3. "Bourgeois". It tolerates a lack of moisture well, has a high tolerance to fungal diseases and insects. The disadvantages are fragility of branches and low yield.

In indeterminate varieties, the following should be distinguished:

1. "Abakan pink" - beautiful and sugar fruits. Of the advantages, it is especially worth highlighting early maturity.
2. "Watercolor" - vegetables of an elongated shape. Perfect for homemade products, unpretentious in nature. The mass of one tomato can reach 120 g.
3. "Balcony miracle" - has a deep red color. It is appreciated not only among gardeners, but also among lovers of beautiful decor in the garden.
4. "King Orange" - has a loose structure, ripens quickly in the greenhouse.
5. "Bull heart" - one of the most famous species. It has large red-pink fruits.

Read also: top 25 sweetest tomato varieties.

How to grow tomatoes in a greenhouse

As you know, growing is a laborious but enjoyable process. We will analyze in detail what needs to be done in order to harvest a good harvest of tomatoes in a greenhouse, even for novice gardeners.

Preparing the soil in the greenhouse

We advise you to change the soil in the greenhouse before planting a crop. - process it with a hot solution of copper sulfate. The beds should be prepared 5-7 days before planting. Height - about 30 cm, width - about 80 cm. Good loosening and drainage will help in the struggle for the harvest.

Passages 60-70 cm wide should be left between the beds.

Important! Remember to maintain a moderate soil moisture. If you use peat, you need to add humus, sawdust and sand to it.

Preparing for sowing seeds

Sowing dates are different depending on the regions of our country. If you have collected the seeds yourself, then before planting they must be pickled. Place them in small gauze bags, and then place them in a potassium permanganate solution for 15 minutes.

After the bags must be rinsed under running warm water. If you are using ready-made seed, it is best to soak it in water anyway.

Then place the seeds in a damp gauze for 20 hours. At this time, take plastic containers and pour boiling water over them. Make holes to allow excess moisture to escape.

Prepare a nutritious substrate. It is made from coarse sand, sawdust, turf, compost and peat. Place a drain on the bottom of each container.

How to grow seedlings

Seedling containers are placed in a warm and bright place. Remember that tomatoes are heat-loving plants, the air temperature should be at least 25 degrees. Cover each container with plastic wrap to help sprout faster. Remove it after the first shoots.

Within seven days thereafter, reduce the temperature to 16 degrees. It is necessary to harden the seeds so that in case of cold weather they do not freeze. Then the temperature is raised again to 20 degrees. You need to observe the regime until the second leaves appear. This usually happens a month after germination.

Turn the containers upside down each day to prevent the seedlings from pulling to one side. It is advisable to place containers not on a windowsill, but on a stand. When the seedlings are ready for planting, their size reaches 15-35 cm.

Pick and hardening

Picking (transplanting plants into separate pots) is necessary to make the root system of the future vegetable stronger. This must be done carefully so as not to damage the fragile stems. The plant is placed in a 0.5 cm depression and covered with earth. After it is watered with copious amounts of water.

Before planting in the ground, the plants must be hardened. If this is not done, the tomatoes may die. Seasoned seedlings have a stronger root system and thicker stems. In addition, sugar accumulates in the plant, a layer of epidermis forms on the stems and leaves. Consider how you can harden seedlings in a greenhouse.

The temperature regime and the level of humidity in it should be close to the conditions of open ground. To harden the plants, simply open the greenhouse during the day. To harden the root system of tomato bushes, abundant watering should be reduced. It is recommended to water the plant moderately with solutions of phosphorus and potassium fertilizers.

A week before planting in the ground, watering should be stopped altogether. This will help to develop the cold resistance of tomatoes, which in the future will not lead to their death when the temperature in the soil drops sharply.

Hardening of tomatoes begins one and a half to two weeks before planting in the ground. You should pay attention to the following nuances:

1. Temperature. It must be stable throughout the hardening period. The maximum permissible low temperature when hardening seedlings is 8 degrees.
2. Shine. Direct sunlight can cause leaf burns. Therefore, hardening begins in darkened areas. The plant should be accustomed to the sun gradually.
3. Draft can be dangerous for seedlings. It needs to be excluded.

Planting tomato seedlings in greenhouses

When transplanting into soil, it is better to transfer the plant along with an earthen clod. Try to plant the tomato as deep as possible in the ground. But if your seedling is higher than it should be, it is undesirable to deepen it. This is a common mistake gardeners make.

Tomatoes are planted in one line or staggered. It is better that there are no large distances between the bushes. The recommended width is 60 cm.

Follow-up care

After the seedlings are prepared, the most important stages begin. - tying, pinching, watering and feeding... Let's take a closer look at what each of them includes.

Tying and pinching tomatoes in the greenhouse

Tying - this is the attachment of branches and stems to the support. It is done with rags, ropes, plastic loops. In some cases, the plant should be tied up in several places at once.

Don't tie it too tight. The procedure is needed in order to prevent moisture from entering the stems and leaves. And so that the branches do not break. Plus, tying it up makes it easier to care for tomatoes and harvest.

Stealing (removal of lateral shoots on the tomato stem) is necessary to increase yields and avoid many problems. The shoots need nutrition, so if they are not removed in time, they will take some of the vitamins and moisture that the fruit needs.

Watering and feeding tomatoes

Greenhouse tomatoes don't like a lot of water. If you water them too much, vegetables can get sick. They should be watered twice a week before flowering. One bush accounts for 2-3 liters of water.

During flowering, the volume of water should be increased to 5 liters per bush. When the first fruits appear, they need to be watered 2 times a week. As soon as the first red fruits ripen, you can water the bushes once a week.

Heavy watering can cause the fruit to crack and root rot.

There are many ways to feed tomatoes. This can be done both with the help of folk remedies and with the help of professional fertilizers. To the first includes iodine solution, ash solution, yeast, chicken droppings.

Nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers, "Monophosphate", "Solution", "Calcium nitrate" are widely used. Their advantage is that they eliminate the need to mix chemicals and fertilizers on your own.

Harvesting and storage

You can pick both red and green tomatoes.If you pick vegetables with stalks, then you should put them with their noses down. It is best to store vegetables in a dry place, preferably in cardboard or plastic boxes.

Cover the tomatoes on top with a thick cloth or burlap. The shelf life of ripe red tomatoes is 4 days, pink ones - 5 days, brown ones - 7 days. Green tomatoes are stored at room temperature for three weeks, gradually ripening.

Potential pests and control

If tomatoes weren't plagued by disease, the growing process would be more enjoyable and less troublesome. However, no such medicine has yet been invented that would rid the culture of various diseases.

Diseases of greenhouse tomatoes and treatments

The most common diseases include:

1. Late blight (plant fungus). It usually occurs due to high humidity. Signs of late blight are brown spots on the leaves, dry and twisted leaves. As a treatment, gardeners are advised to use milk whey. Appropriate and the use of professional drugs - "Barrier", "Barrier".
2. Mosaic - appears mainly due to contaminated soil or poor quality seeds. Light and dark green spots are visible on the leaves that look like a mosaic pattern. If this disease is detected, it is best to remove the bush, otherwise the mosaic can quickly spread to other bushes.
3. White bloom - This is rot that affects different parts of the tomato. There is root, apical, gray and brown rot. It is easy to recognize it - white fluff cannot be confused with other lesions.Gray rot develops due to poor ventilation, root rot is a consequence of unfavorable soil. Brown and top rot appears due to poor-quality fertilizers. It is necessary to treat white bloom with garlic infusion or wood ash powder.
4. Macrosporiasis. It is also characterized by brown, elongated spots on the bush. Appears due to poor ventilation and high humidity. It develops most intensively at low temperatures. It is recommended to remove the entire affected bush.

What other problems may arise

In addition to diseases, a number of other reasons can affect the quality of the crop. Consider how to deal with the problems that arise in the growing process.

Why do tomatoes crack in a greenhouse

The main reason - violation of the plant watering schedule. Excessive fertilization with nitrogen-containing substances can also affect. Often cracks appear due to the fact that the delicate fruit reacts to changes in soil moisture in the greenhouse. Because of this, not only the appearance of the tomatoes deteriorates, but also their content.

Cracks can cause fungal infections or other infections. To avoid this, you should draw up a detailed watering schedule and do not deviate from it.

Important! Choose varieties that are least prone to fruit cracking. For example, "Beautiful Lady", "Podmoskovny", "Diva".

If fruits do not grow on the second and subsequent hands

Poor soil or poor quality fertilizers can cause this phenomenon. In this case, gardeners are advised to treat the bush with Fitosporin-M. The tool is used to strengthen the fruit and accelerate growth.

Another good way to fix the problem is to fertilize the soil with plain ash.

Conclusion

Now you know how to grow tomatoes in a greenhouse, even if your gardening level is just "for beginners". The most important thing in this process is compliance with all the necessary rules.

Carefully consider the choice of variety, planting seedlings, fertilizing the soil. Remember that tomatoes do not like a lot of water, follow the watering schedule. At the first symptoms of disease, treat the bush with folk remedies or professional drugs. Treat the plant with love, and then it will delight you with a rich harvest.