Good day, dear readers! Who does not dream of harvesting ripe and juicy red tomatoes? However, it happens that greenhouse tomatoes do not turn red at all, although the deadline has already come. To cope with the problem, you need to know how to feed the plants. That is what I will talk about in today's article.
Tomatoes do not turn red: what is the reason
Depending on the variety, an average of 50 days pass from the start of flowering to the ripening of tomatoes. During the first month, the fruits gain mass and density, after which they need about three more weeks until they fully ripen.
Regardless of whether you grow tomatoes in the garden, in a greenhouse, or even on a balcony, there are several reasons that prevent vegetables from ripening properly and acquiring a characteristic red hue:
- Lack of lighting. Tomatoes are very sensitive to this indicator, and with a lack of lighting, they will develop slowly. In open ground, a similar situation develops if cloudy weather persists for a long time.
- Illiterate and untimely feeding. Too much nitrogen often causes the problem. Plants begin to grow green mass to the detriment of the fruits, which grow very small and do not turn red for a long time.
- Temperature is another important indicator. For tomatoes, both too low and too high temperatures are harmful. Tomatoes turn red due to a special pigment called lycopene, which is produced in the temperature range from 15 to 35 degrees.
How to speed up the ripening of tomatoes?
The choice of an effective method will depend on the method of cultivation - in open beds or in greenhouse conditions.
If you are growing tomatoes outdoors, the following rules will help you:
- At night, the beds should be covered with a film, as the night dew is very cold and can provoke late blight disease.
- It is better to harvest brown tomatoes in advance and let them ripen elsewhere.
- To strengthen the immunity of plants, spray with an iodine-based solution.
- On bushes where tomatoes have already begun to ripen, get rid of the lower tier of leaves to the brushes on which the fruits grow.
All of the above rules apply to greenhouse plants. However, if you are growing tomatoes in a heated greenhouse, do not leave more than 12 bunches on your crops. In unheated greenhouses, it is worth leaving seven.
Effective top dressing for fast maturation
If the ripening dates have already come up, and there are still no ripe fruits on your bushes, you can help the plants with the right top dressing. The most important elements for ripening are phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and (to a lesser extent) nitrogen.
A good effect is shown by the alternation of organic and mineral supplements. This will have a beneficial effect not only on the ripening time, but also on the amount of the crop.
Below I will give a few dressing recipes that I have successfully used myself:
- Iodine supplement. It is good because iodine, in addition to nutritional properties, has a disinfectant effect, protecting plants from many common diseases. With iodine deficiency, the yield is noticeably reduced, and the fruits ripen incompletely. In order not to harm the plants, prepare the solution in the following ratio: a drop of iodine per three liters of water.
- Ash solutions are no less effective. Ash contains a lot of phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and other important elements. In addition, it protects tomatoes from pest invasions. To prepare a working solution, it is enough to dilute a glass of ash in five liters of clean water and let it brew for seven days. After that, you can start watering.
If you properly care for your plants and apply the necessary fertilizers in time, the result will not be long in coming: tomatoes will please you with an excellent harvest of red and ripe fruits.
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