Depending on the region, growing crops has its own characteristics. The best varieties of tomatoes for Transbaikalia will allow you to grow a stable harvest. Choosing a specific variety can be quite difficult, so before purchasing planting material you need to study all the advantages and disadvantages of the selected tomatoes.
Varieties for the Trans-Baikal Territory
Tomatoes for the Trans-Baikal region must be frost-resistant, since spring in these regions is cold and windy. The crop is often grown in a greenhouse, but it is also easy to find varieties for planting outside.
Tomato varieties for the Trans-Baikal Territory:
- Abakan pink is a large-fruited pink variety. The weight of the fruit reaches up to 350 g, the shape of the fruit is heart-shaped. The pulp is sweet and juicy. Suitable for making lecho and sauces, for whole pickling, but the fruits have thin skin and crack in the jar.
- Bull's heart - a tomato that belongs to the large-fruited pink varieties. The weight of a ripe tomato reaches up to 650 g. A green spot remains near the stalk. Suitable for fresh consumption and preparing vegetable dietary salads.
- Ox heart - the fruits are sweet and fleshy, large. Weight exceeds 400 g. The skin is red, but pink-fruited vegetables are also found.
- Lopatinskie - are characterized by the fact that even when grown in unfavorable weather conditions they give a good harvest. The shape of the vegetables is round, the skin is smooth, without ribbing. The shade of the pulp and peel is red.
- Bicolor - distinguished by double coloring of the fruit. Tomatoes are red-yellow. The vegetables are large, weighing up to 550 g. The fruits contain a large amount of sugar, which makes them sweet.
- Velvet season - tomatoes, which belong to the early varieties. The bushes are low, up to 75 cm. Ripe vegetables are large in size, up to 450 g, oval in shape. The skin and pulp are scarlet in color. Ripe vegetables taste sweet due to their high sugar content. Suitable for growing in a greenhouse.
- Barnaul canning - well suited for cultivation in open ground. The fruits are small, elongated, weighing up to 55 g. Vegetables ripen 75–90 days after the sprouts appear. The yield is not bad, up to 6 kg of fruits are collected from the bush. The bushes are low-growing, which is especially important if the area is small.
- Dimensionless - this unusual name is due to the fact that the fruits of this variety grow very large, the average weight of one tomato is 1 kg.The fruits are red-crimson in color, the skin is smooth, there are no ribs. They are used primarily for preparing salads and tomato juices. The tomatoes taste sweet and juicy. The best variety for planting in the Trans-Baikal region.
- Ballerina - elongated finger-shaped tomatoes. The weight of the fruit is 125 g. The skin is dense and ribbed. Suitable for whole salting. The variety is a mid-early variety; vegetables begin to ripen 70–80 days after planting.
- Pride of Siberia - the maximum height of the bush is 1.5 m. The plant is slightly leafy, with dark green leaves. Ripe fruits are large, weighing about 500–600 g. The maximum weight is 950 g. The tomatoes are pink in color, the flesh is fleshy and sweet, suitable for making tomato sauces and lecho. Cultivation is preferable in a greenhouse.
- Lady fingers are medium-sized tomatoes with an elongated shape. The skin is scarlet, dense. There are no signs of ribbing. The pulp is not too juicy. Tomatoes are intended for pickling whole. The skin does not crack during canning.
Tomatoes from the Transbaikal region will grow well and produce a stable harvest if you make an effort to care for them throughout the entire fruiting period.
When to plant tomato seedlings?
In Transbaikalia, the sowing of tomatoes for seedlings will coincide in time with the planting of the crop in the central regions. Planting dates depend on the meteorological forecast. In early spring, tomato seedlings begin to be planted in February. And if spring is predicted to be late, planting is postponed to mid-spring. March is considered the optimal time. From planting the seeds in the soil to transplanting the seedlings into the beds, approximately 60 days should pass.
Depending on the period of fruit ripening, the most favorable period is selected:
- Early ripening varieties are planted in April; if the seedlings are intended for the greenhouse, then in the second ten days of March.
- Low-growing varieties are planted from mid-April until the end of the month.
- The planting dates for tall varieties for greenhouses and greenhouses begin on the 20th of March.
- Late large-fruited tomatoes are planted in late February - early March.
In most cases, the start and end date of planting is indicated by the manufacturer on the seed package. Some gardeners prefer to rely on the lunar calendar when cultivating seeds. But favorable days of the lunar calendar do not always coincide with climatic conditions, so you should still pay attention to the weather, and not to the phases of the moon.
Features of growing tomatoes for seedlings
Growing tomato varieties for Transbaikalia is no different from other regions. The only difference may be the timing of planting, but not much. Preparations for planting begin in March. Particular attention should be paid to planting material. It is at this stage that the foundations of the future harvest are laid. First, the seeds are disinfected. Potassium permanganate or iodine are suitable for this.
Dilute a small amount of the selected substance in warm water and add seeds there. Leave them like this for 20 minutes. Then drain the water and dry the planting material to a free-flowing state.
After this, it is recommended to germinate the planting material. There is nothing difficult about growing after this procedure. And the number of sprouted sprouts after germination doubles. Proceed as follows:
- Take gauze or natural fabric and soak it in water.
- Place the seeds on one end of the gauze and cover with the other.
- Place the package in a saucer and put it in a warm place, for example, on a radiator.
- The gauze needs to be sprayed periodically to keep it constantly moist.
- After 2-3 days, the first shoots appear, after which plant the seeds in the soil for seedlings.
The timing of planting depends not only on weather conditions, but also on the date of planting the seeds for seedlings. You should not plant tomatoes too early; you need to choose the time so that by the time they are planted in a permanent place, the bushes do not have time to stretch out.
Rules for planting seeds for seedlings:
- The soil mixture can be purchased at the store or brought from the site, but first it must be warmed to room temperature.
- Pour drainage (small pebbles, crushed eggshells) into the bottom of the box, then fill it with soil.
- Make furrows 1–2 cm deep and sow the seeds.
- Pour water over them, cover with cling film, and remove from open sunlight.
- Periodically remove the film, ventilate the soil so that mold does not form on it, and water it.
- When sprouts appear, move the box to the south window.
- After a pair of full-fledged leaves appear, the seedlings dive; if this is not possible, then you need to thin out the seedlings if the bushes are too close to each other.
The seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place when it is already quite warm.
Tomato care
For a good harvest, tomato care can be minimal. The main condition for growing tomatoes is watering. Unlike most crops, tomatoes do not need to be watered even during intense, prolonged heat. One watering per week will be sufficient during drought. If the weather has been rainy for a long time, then the beds are not watered until the soil dries out.You can’t overwater the bushes because the rich moisture causes the taste of the fruit to deteriorate. They become watery.
Once a week, preferably before watering, weed the beds and remove weeds. This is important in the first months after planting the seedlings, until the bushes have grown and the fruiting period begins.
Fertilizing is a prerequisite for successfully growing tomatoes. The application of fertilizers to the soil begins from the moment of planting, when the soil is mixed with manure or compost. Subsequent fertilizing is applied as needed. Plants most acutely feel the need for organic and mineral fertilizers during the period of leaf growth and fruit formation. Their regularity and quantity depend on the condition of the plants.
