We have already shared with you our secrets of growing tomato seedlings — we told you about the agrotechnics of sowing seeds to obtain high-quality and healthy young plants, and about the subsequent correct picking of seedlings. But that concern gardeners are just beginning. We still have a very important task ahead of us — planting grown tomato seedlings in greenhouses and open ground.
This point is no less important than the initial care and subsequent proper care. We believe that transplanting tomatoes into the ground is the most important event in the life of plants. Of course, you need to do this in due time, correctly and with maximum care and love.
Soil preparation
We prepare the soil in advance on our experimental fields: we add bioperegalny, washed river sand, and neutralized peat to the existing root loam. The soil needs to be cultivated deeply, creating the lightest possible air-permeable mixture. Take care of this, because no one has canceled the rule: the tastier and better the soil, the more abundant the harvest!
Tomatoes like organic, but they can’t stand fresh manure, so biofertilizers should be very well ripened. We advise you to observe crop rotation. On your plots, if possible, plant tomatoes after pumpkin crops. Onions, cabbage, and peas are also considered good precursors.
Landing
Guided by the weather, we measure the temperature of the soil. Tomatoes are heat-loving plants, you can plant them at a time when the ground warms up above +15°C. at lower temperatures, they will slow down growth, and pampered seedlings may die.
A week before planting, cut off, leaving “stumps”, cotyledon leaves and 1-2 lower real leaves, if they are weak. Before transplanting plants in pots, pour copiously: well “drunk”, they are easier to tolerate the transplant stress. Dig a landing hole, add a handful of biohumus to it, and pour it over. Carefully remove the plant from the seedling pot and plant in the soil, sinking to the cotyledon leaves. Cover with soil and seal. After planting, well pour all the soil on the bed. If necessary, put the necessary supports to the plants and tie them up.
If the seedlings have outgrown
Often seedlings outgrow; this is especially noticeable in indeterminate plants (with unlimited growth). In such cases, we dig grooves, place the seedling root clump slightly obliquely and shallowly. Put the tomato stalk in the groove, first removing the leaves from the buried part, and sprinkle with soil.
There is another way to plant overgrown plants. We dig a wider hole, but not a deep one. In the center, put the root ball, and around the spiral stack the stem with the previously removed leaves and cover with soil. At first, such overgrown tomatoes will slow down growth somewhat, but then, having formed an additional root system, they will catch up with other plants.
Dear gardeners! We have no time to relax: summer is coming. All the best, success and good luck!