Proper planting of tomatoes in the greenhouse and their placement in the beds will help to obtain the maximum possible harvest. It is necessary to know at what distance to plant tomatoes in a greenhouse so that air can circulate freely and also provide access to light. Air is very important for tomatoes for normal pollination, and the light flux directly affects the quality of tomato ripening. Each variety requires its own parameters and planting patterns.
The method of arranging plants in rows in a polycarbonate greenhouse should provide the most favorable conditions for growing tomatoes. Not only are air and light flow necessary for bushes, but the ability to obtain useful substances from the soil is also important for their proper nutrition.
Basic planting patterns
When planting tomatoes in a greenhouse, the most compact arrangement should be provided, but at the same time, there should be sufficient distance between the bushes for normal cultivation. There are three main types of their placement:
- Regular. It is used if the greenhouse tomatoes planted have early fruit ripening. The distance between tomatoes in the greenhouse is 70 cm between beds, and between tomatoes in rows of 50 cm.
- Tape, two-line. This method involves planting two rows at a distance of 50 cm. In this case, tomatoes can be planted opposite each other or in a checkerboard pattern.
- Combined. This method is used when planting tomatoes of different varieties with different plant heights in one greenhouse. Determinate tomatoes at the same time, they are placed near the walls with a distance of 40 cm between them, and the best placement of indeterminate seedlings is considered along the main path, leaving a space of 60 cm between them.
In the most popular and used greenhouses, measuring 6 x 3 meters, in which the main passage is in the center between two beds, it is optimal to plant tomatoes in the following quantities:
- Up to two hundred dwarf bushes and low-growing plants can be planted if you place 2 in one hole, and if you plant 1 tomato in each hole, you get 100 plants per greenhouse.
- It will be possible to place no more than 40 bushes of medium size, making several rows along the entire length of the greenhouse.
- If greenhouse plants are very tall, then it is better to plant tomatoes in a checkerboard pattern. No more than 30 of them can be planted in a greenhouse of this size.
Very large varieties of tomatoes with spreading stems can accommodate no more than 25 plants.
Planting tomatoes in greenhouses
At what distance should tomatoes be planted in greenhouses, the main importance is what variety is chosen for cultivation and what size bushes these plants have. When using medium-sized plants, a row spacing of 70 cm should be left between them, and for low-growing plants - about 60 cm, between bushes with tall stems 50 cm, and for small ones, 40 cm is enough.
The distance left is also influenced by the forming methods and planting patterns used. If you plant tomatoes with a large main stem, you can leave 20-30 cm between the bushes. If such plants are planted in groups of 2. in one hole, then leave 35-40 cm between two holes.
Indeterminate bushes are placed at a distance of about 80 cm in a row, and the row spacing is spaced 1 meter apart. In the hole, tall plants are planted in dug holes of 30 cm, shorter bushes are buried 20 cm.
The height of the structures is selected in such a way that at least 50 cm remains above the tomatoes in the greenhouse. The width of the greenhouses should be 1 meter larger. This will create optimal conditions for bush growth and fruit ripening.
A planted tomato in a hole is equally distant from other plants. The height of the beds is 30-35 cm, and there is a gap of 40-45 cm between them. After the formation of the bushes begins, they are further deepened into the ground.To do this, new soil is added to the formed beds. This strengthens the main stem and prevents the bushes from falling to the side.
In greenhouse conditions, the best indicators of development and fruiting are shown by dwarf tomato varieties and standard tomatoes.
Greenhouses measuring 3 x 6 and the location of tomatoes in them
The most functional are structures that are easy to install - these are greenhouses with a size of 3 x 6 m. You can place bushes in them with a distance of 30 cm, and leave a row spacing of 50 cm. The optimal requirements at what distance is better to plant tomatoes in such greenhouses are:
- Organization of beds with a direction from the east side to the west.
- Laying in greenhouses with low-height beds in one row with a width of 35 to 40 cm, located under the walls of the greenhouse. In this case, a distance of 40 cm is left between plants.
- Formation of two rows in the central part. Tomatoes are planted on them in a checkerboard pattern. The distance for low-growing plants is 40 cm, and for tall plants it is 65 cm.
- At least 85 cm is left between the beds of tall bushes, and 50 cm for low-growing bushes.
To optimize the use of the greenhouse area of 3 x 8, the number of medium-sized bushes is up to 45 plants, and tall, with numerous stems and tomato trees, no more than 15 pcs.
To improve the preservation of the thermal regime in greenhouses, a multi-layer coating can be made. This is especially true on cool nights in May. Leave 5 cm between the layers of film. This method, in addition to maintaining the necessary thermal conditions inside the greenhouse, will also ensure a longer period of use of the coating.
After June 1, the top layers can be removed. To ensure ventilation of the air flow, vents must be provided. Loamy and sandy loam soils are chosen as soil. The time for planting seedlings in a greenhouse should begin when the temperature at a depth of 15 centimeters reaches +14 degrees. To maximize soil warming, cover it with black plastic film.
Planting tomato seedlings in heated greenhouses
Before planting tomatoes, the soil in the greenhouse is moistened and 12 cm deep depressions are made, inside which a deeper hole is dug into which the seedlings are placed and sprinkled with soil.
1.5-2 weeks after the seedlings have already taken root, the second, smaller hole is filled with soil. This method is usually used if the seedlings are overgrown.
In other cases, ordinary planting holes are used. First, water is poured into each hole, and only then the plant is placed in it.
A distance of 70 cm is left between seedlings of indeterminate tomato species, and the row spacing should be 40 cm. A main path is made in the center of the greenhouse. Its width is no more than 1 m. Planting in 2-3 rows in the form of a ribbon is called ribbon-cluster. Square-cluster planting is done by placing 1-4 plants at the intersection of two lines.
When planting tomatoes in a checkerboard pattern in a heated greenhouse, the bushes are removed from each other at a distance of 40 cm, and the rows are placed at a distance of 60 cm. If the bushes are short, then these figures are reduced to 50 and 40 cm, respectively.
Before planting, a soil preparation procedure is carried out. The top 10 centimeter layer is removed, and the rest is disinfected with a solution of copper sulfate. You need 1 tbsp. l. Dilute the drug in 10 liters of liquid.
