For the first time I read about the variety of tomatoes Valentina at one of the forums of domestic vegetable growers. I tried to grow it in my area, and I was very pleased with the result. I decided to share with you the features of this variety and the secrets of its cultivation.
Characteristics of Valentine's tomato
The plant forms bushes of medium height - up to 70 cm. An early ripe variety is ready for harvest in 100-105 days. The culture is intended for cultivation in any type of soil (open, closed).
The plant is highly resistant to fungal and bacterial infections, easily tolerates short-term drought. A hardy culture is unpretentious in care, the only thing it needs is tying the bushes to a support and pinching.
The bright red fruits of Valentina, reaching a mass of 80-100 g, have a juicy fleshy pulp and a dense skin. The yield from 1 bush is about 2 kg, and from 1 sq. m - up to 10-12 kg. Tomatoes keep well fresh and are suitable for transportation.
Growing seedlings
In regions with short and cool summers, it is best to grow this variety using the seedling method. I always do it like this:
- I buy a universal soil or prepare it myself. To do this, I mix turf, coarse sand, grassroots peat and humus in a ratio of 3: 1: 1: 1. Such a composition will be loose and quite nutritious at the same time.
- I disinfect the soil mixture with a 1% solution of potassium permanganate or bake it in the oven.
- I fill the containers for seedlings with soil and lightly moisten it.
- Pickled in a solution of potassium permanganate (1%), I put the seeds in small depressions (1-1.5 cm). I sprinkle them with a thin layer of soil and slightly compact it.
- I cover the containers with glass or film and leave them in a warm place at a temperature of 22-25 ° C.
Once a day, I remove the shelter from the containers for 10-15 minutes for ventilation. If necessary, moisten the soil with a spray gun. After the appearance of the first shoots, I transfer the seedlings to a cooler place (18-20 ° C). When 3-4 leaves are formed on the seedlings, I dive into separate pots (plastic cups).
A couple of weeks before planting in open ground, I begin hardening seedlings. Every day I take them out to the open balcony. For the first procedure, 20-30 minutes are enough. Gradually increasing the hardening time, I bring it up to 10-12 hours a day.
Landing in open ground
To transfer seedlings to open ground or a greenhouse, the soil must warm up well. This usually happens when warm weather sets in, and the thermometer consistently shows 20-22 ° C during the day, and not lower than 16 ° C at night.
The beds are best placed in open areas with good lighting. Before planting, you need to add humus or mineral fertilizers to the soil. For each square meter, it is enough to add a bucket of ripened compost.
It is better to dilute heavy soil with sand, grassroots peat, and add a little clay to sandy soil. In order to save precious time in the spring, I have been preparing the beds since the fall.
Care
I place the tomatoes planted in the ground (greenhouse) on the beds, leaving a distance between the bushes of 40-50 cm, and in the aisle - 60-70 cm. 2 weeks after planting, I feed the plants with organic matter or a mineral complex.
Most of all I like to use green infusion from weeds. Firstly, this organic fertilizer is absolutely safe, and secondly, it contains all the nutrients necessary for plants.
During the growing season, tomato bushes need moderate watering, loosening the soil and weeding. When the harvest begins, soil moisture must be reduced so that the fruits do not begin to burst.
My experience in growing tomatoes of the Valentina variety has shown that standard care is enough for an unpretentious plant to get a bountiful harvest. Even a novice summer resident will quite successfully cope with such a task.
If you have experience in cultivating this variety of tomato, please share it in the comments.
Read also: Convenient and nutritious. I tell you about the secrets of peat pots
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