Growing tomatoes on the balcony begins with choosing the right variety. It is necessary to take into account the size of the balcony and its comfort. Proper care plays an important role in the quality and quantity of the harvest.
Variety selection
Is it possible to grow tomatoes on your balcony? You can successfully grow tomatoes on the balcony if you choose the right type. Requirements to consider when choosing seeds.
- The ideal option is to choose low-growing seeds; the height of the bush will be approximately 60 cm.They are simple and easy to care for, since there is no need to install a support for tying, there is no need to pinch or cut off the side branches.
- It is better to choose varieties with early fruit formation boundaries.
- It is convenient to choose varieties of tomatoes for growing on the balcony that form hanging trusses.
- We must not forget such a criterion as resistance to diseases and pests.
To determine which tomato varieties are suitable for balcony growing, you need to learn more about the description of each proposed variety. If the balcony is spacious, then low-growing or tall-growing tomato varieties are suitable. Among tall species for balconies, it is popular Bull's heart, Angelica or White filling. Their ripening period is late, but the varieties are highly resistant to diseases.
Tall varieties of tomatoes for the balcony necessarily require additional vertical support. You must not miss the time when the side branches are cut off and should be formed into two or three stems. Such varieties are especially demanding of care, but the grown crop will give large and juicy fruits.
Regardless of the size of the loggia, it is best to sow dwarf varieties such as Malysh and Dubok. Their tomatoes are small in size but have excellent taste. Clusters of red round tomatoes hanging down look beautiful.
Oak is characterized by early fruit ripening; only 85 days pass from the moment the seeds are planted. The stem stretches up to 55 cm and bears a small number of leaves. The plant exhibits high resistance to many diseases. Bushes grown at home need to be artificially pollinated. The round fruits weigh about 70 g.
You can also grow special varieties designed for placement on the balcony, for example, Balcony Miracle. The self-pollinating variety has early fruit ripening and grows to a height of only 60 cm. The yield for home cultivation is high; about 2 kg of tomato can be harvested from one bush.
What other variety can I choose? Such low-growing varieties of tomatoes for the balcony as Pearl, Bonsai, Ballerinka, Minibel, Pinocchio, Caramel red or yellow feel great. They are also suitable for a window sill in a room. It is best for a novice vegetable grower to choose these types of tomatoes.
The height of the Bonsai stem is only 30 cm and accommodates 3-4 brushes. Despite its small growth, you can collect about 3.5 kg from one bush. Refers to mid-season varieties, fruit ripening occurs after 110 days. The weight of one red-scarlet tomato is about 28 g.
Indoor varieties are replenished by Minibel. The height of the strong bush is about 40 cm. The fruits begin to ripen after 82 days. Smooth, round red fruits weigh approximately 23 g. They can do without sufficient lighting and are unpretentious to the composition of the soil.
Potted Pinocchio culture begins to bear fruit after 90 days. It grows only up to 30 cm in height. Sometimes it is necessary to install a support, since the stem may break under the weight of the fruit. The reddish round fruits weigh about 20 g.
Among balcony tomatoes, these varieties are also popular.
The Balcony Duo tomato is distinguished by its ultra-short ripening period. Fruits begin to form after 76 days. The bushes are not very branched, so they will not take up much space; they grow up to 35 cm in height.Looks beautiful in a flower pot, the branches are strewn with small red tomatoes.
Tiny tim grows to a height of only 40 cm. The Tiny Tim variety tolerates cool weather well and does not need staking, as the stem is strong and powerful. During the ripening period, the plant is strewn with red tomatoes 2 cm in diameter. Fruits begin to form early. It is best to plant Tim in a flower pot.
Variety Tim prefers a sunny place, without drafts. The soil should be fertile and well drained. Regular watering is required.
The Mini Star hybrid is a very early variety of balcony tomatoes. The tomato harvest can begin after 80 days. The sweet red fruits have an oblong shape and weigh only 15-20 g. They are stored for a long time and do not crack.
Preparatory actions
How to grow tomatoes on the balcony, the work begins with planting seeds. When to plant seeds, everyone decides for themselves. Usually, tomatoes for seedlings begin to be planted in early March. In this case, the harvest is traditionally harvested in the summer. But you can grow your own tomatoes from seeds and in the winter on the window. To do this, the seeds are planted in October. At this time of year it is usually cold on the balcony, so care continues in the room.
If you properly treat tomato seeds and select the soil, the tomatoes will bear fruit, and care will not cause unnecessary trouble. You can describe step by step the process of preparing seeds and soil for further cultivation on the balcony and windowsill.
You can buy soil, or you can mix it yourself. A composition made from humus and turf is best; peat or sawdust can be added to improve the quality. Wood ash or superphosphate can be used as fertilizers.
After opening a pack of seeds, you need to make a selection.Only large and dense seeds are suitable for sowing. Selection can be done manually using tweezers. You can place the seeds in water with salt. Empty seeds, unsuitable for planting, will float to the surface.
Selected seeds must be disinfected. For this purpose, most vegetable growers use a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Being in such a solution for about 30 minutes, all pathogenic bacteria living on the shell of the grains are destroyed.
You can’t do without special preparations for planting tomatoes on the balcony. It is useful to soak the seeds in preparations that stimulate the growth and development of the plant. You can use Epin solution.
Some experienced gardeners germinate seeds before planting. They are placed between two wet cloths. As soon as the sprouts hatch, the seeds are ready for sowing.
You can choose a wooden or plastic box as the container where you plan to sow the seeds. If a suitable box was not found, you can use a plastic bottle. A 2 liter bottle will do. It is cut longitudinally and soil is placed in the resulting depression.
Pour soil into a selected container and make holes 1 cm deep. If the seeds are planted deeper, they will take a long time to germinate or will not sprout at all. The distance between the holes should be 3 cm. One sprouted seed or two or three unsprouted ones must be planted in each hole. After planting, the box is covered with film. As soon as most of the seedlings emerge, the film is removed.
Seedlings need to be watered regularly with settled water. A prerequisite for good growth is sufficient light supply. If it is not enough, then there is a need for additional lighting using a lamp.
Possible problems
If everything was done correctly, the seedlings will have a strong stem, dark green leaves and a large number of ovaries. Otherwise, the condition threatens a decrease in yield or death of the plant. Problems that may arise due to improper care:
- excessive watering can lead to rotting, fungal infection, and stretching of the stem;
- lack of light leads to thinning of the stem, pale leaves and decreased plant immunity;
- dry, hot air can cause yellowing of the leaves, making the plant look weak and lethargic;
- if you plant seeds too early, they may not have enough daylight to develop;
- an excess or deficiency of microelements in the soil leads to weakening of the stem and leaves, the ovaries will crumble;
- lack of space will cause the roots to intertwine and the tops will shade each other.
To correct the situation, you need to eliminate the unfavorable factor. Be sure to study the instructions for growing tomatoes and follow all the steps to care for them.
Final stage
The plant must be fed with organic or mineral nutrients. It is recommended to carry out the first fertilizing after the first pair of true leaves have unfurled. Before transplanting the seedlings to their final location, three feedings are needed. Additional nutritional elements strengthen the root system and contribute to the proper development of the plant.
Tomatoes are planted on a balcony with glass windows in early May. If the balcony is not glazed, then transplantation should be postponed until the beginning of June. You can grow tomatoes on the balcony in any container. Large flower pots, plastic buckets, spacious wooden boxes, and flowerpots are suitable.
If you don’t have such a container at hand, you can use an ordinary plastic bottle.
Step-by-step instructions on how to transplant seedlings from a common container into separate large pots or flowerpots include the following steps:
- soil is poured into the prepared container;
- seedlings are removed from the old place along with an earthen lump that is enveloped by roots;
- after planting in a new place, the sprouts are watered and left for a week to adapt and take root;
- if it’s cold on the balcony at night, then the plant is brought indoors;
- a comfortable temperature is considered to be 19 degrees;
- It is worth protecting the seedlings from direct sunlight for the first days; for this purpose, the balcony is shaded;
- tall varieties need tying up the stem;
- indeterminate varieties (varieties that have unlimited growth and can grow throughout the entire growing season) require pinching; if this procedure is not carried out, the plant will grow and the yield will decrease;
- When pulling the stem strongly, it is recommended to pinch the top.
Be sure to cut off diseased and yellow leaves; they take away excess strength from the plant and also contribute to the spread of infection.
Plant care
To grow tomatoes on the balcony, you need to get as close as possible to natural conditions. Planted tomatoes need to be properly and carefully cared for. Don’t forget to water and feed each bush. How to properly care for tomatoes, and what conditions need to be created for their good development?
Tomatoes respond to changes in temperature levels. When it gets colder, they stop developing and stop bearing fruit. A favorable temperature setting for the loggia is considered to be 20 degrees.
High humidity can lead to fungal infection and rot.It is important to ventilate the loggia daily; if it is warm outside, then leave the window open all day.
The soil should be watered as the top layer dries. It is better to leave the water for at least 12 hours. The amount of watering is increased during the formation of ovaries and fruits. During their ripening, it is better not to over-moisten the soil.
During the formation of ovaries, it is useful to treat a tomato on the balcony with a special Ovary solution, which stimulates this process.
Even though tomatoes are self-pollinating plants, pollination must be assisted during flowering. Therefore, it is recommended to open windows so that pollinating insects can freely fly to the plants. You can pollinate the plant yourself. For this purpose, you need to shake the stem with the bud twice a day or brush it with a brush.
You need to know other rules on how to grow tomatoes on the balcony. In order for the root system to develop well and receive a sufficient amount of oxygen, the soil needs to be loosened. After watering, when the water has been absorbed a little, shallow (5-7 cm) loosening is carried out.
Experienced vegetable growers carry out a mulching procedure, which reduces the need for loosening and frequent watering. A layer of peat, sawdust or straw is suitable as mulch.
How to grow a good harvest is impossible without fertilizing the soil. It is better to choose universal fertilizers. Suitable, for example, Kemira, Mortar. Mullein or bird droppings are suitable organic fertilizers. These components are poured into a bucket of water and infused for three days. The prepared solution is diluted with water and watered at the root of the plant.
A closed room on a balcony often causes the spread of diseases. Due to waterlogging of the soil, fungus appears.To prevent disease, you need to ventilate the room and provide good access to light. Another common disease that often affects balcony tomatoes, are late blight, black leg, root or blossom end rot.
Insect pests may also appear. Infestations of spider mites and whiteflies are often observed. Wood ash or an infusion based on onion peels will help get rid of them. In the case of a massive pest invasion, purchased chemicals will help.
Non-standard fit
You can grow tomatoes in plastic bottles on the balcony.
You need to take a plastic water or juice container with a volume of 1.5 liters. Then you need to cut off the third part, where the bottom is. Most of the bottle with the neck will be needed for planting the seedling.
The cover is removed, and two holes are made along the edges of the cut, into which a thick rope is then threaded. With its help, the improvised pot will be hung on a hook.
Planting tomato seedlings in plastic containers begins two months after sowing the seeds. A sprout with an earthen lump is taken out of a separate container and placed top down so that it fits through the neck of the bottle. This way, the root system will remain inside the container, and the stem will grow downward. The container is filled with soil, after which the bushes are watered. It is recommended to place a container under the suspended structure where excess water will drain after watering.
You can also grow tomatoes on the balcony in 5 liter plastic bottles. To do this, cut off the top part with the neck, place drainage on the bottom and cover it with earth.
