How to grow tomatoes at home in winter. Growing indoor tomatoes at home in an apartment

Tomatoes are a crop that, before planting in open ground, in a greenhouse or at home flower pot needs to be germinated. There are many options for receiving quality seedlings, and each of them has its supporters. So, for example, seeds can be planted:

dry or pre-soaked (pecked);
hardened or not;
With various options glaze;
feeding or without additives.

Let's consider one of these options, simple, affordable and giving 100% results.

Buying seeds

Currently this is not a problem. The main thing is to choose a variety that will take root well in your climatic conditions. It is also important to pay attention to the production date. It is optimal that the seeds were prepared in the previous harvest. Germination and other indicators are standardized by law.

Seed preparation

After you have selected quality seeds from the bag, you need to prepare them for planting. You can plant tomato seeds in dry form - this method has a lot of fans. Moreover, it is believed that hybrid varieties No need to soak. But most gardeners still prefer to pre-soak the seeds.

You need to do the following:

disinfect - keep for 24 hours at 0.8% acetic acid, treat with a 1% solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes, rinse;
start growth - rinse with hot (about 60°C) water for 30 minutes;
soak - place in warm (25°C) water for a day;
harden (this increases resistance to temperature changes) - leave in the refrigerator for 24 hours, or for two days.

Useful: there are special mixtures for disinfecting seeds, as well as compositions for watering seedlings, which include the necessary antiseptic impurities.

After this, we select the required number of the best sprouted (sprouted) seeds and plant them in the ground.

Priming

There are enough mixture options in stores for vegetable crops, there are also specific soils for seedlings of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants. You can also make your own soil mixture by mixing in equal proportions:

ordinary garden soil;
humus;
peat.

It is advisable to feed the soil with superphosphate, wood ash, water mineral fertilizers. The latter should be added in the following proportions:

potassium sulfate (contains sulfur, calcium, potassium, magnesium) 20 grams per 10 liters of water;
urea - 10 g/10 l;
superphosphate - 30 g/10 l.

Important: if you buy ready soil, it may already contain these fertilizers and fertilizers. Then you don't need to add anything.

Landing dates

The best seedlings of tomatoes are those that were planted 50–60 days before planting in open ground or in a greenhouse. Yes, for middle zone Russia:

early varieties should be sown in mid-to-late February;
greenhouse - in the first week of March;
usual - in the last week of March.

But, of course, you need to be guided by climatic conditions and the thermophilicity of the variety.

Planting seeds in the ground

You can use a variety of containers for tomato seedlings. Most often, seeds are sown in common containers, for example, plastic or even carton boxes, purchased and homemade boxes. Later the plants are planted and planted. But you can plant each seed in its own container, although this complicates care and slows down the development of the root system. The procedure is as follows:

Pour a layer of expanded clay into the box to prevent water from stagnating.
Add 5–6 cm of soil, compact it a little, water it a little, and loosen it.
We make grooves 1–1.5 cm wide and deep at a distance of about 5 cm from each other.
We spill the soil, and especially the furrows, with water or a nutrient mixture at a temperature of about 50°C.
We place the seeds at a distance of 3–4 cm from each other in the groove, lightly (!) pressing them into the ground.
We fill the grooves on top with loose soil and press it down lightly, but not too much.
Spray with water from a spray bottle. Everything should be slightly moistened; excessive watering is unacceptable.
We cover the top of the box with greenhouse film, glass or simply transparent polyethylene.
We place the container with future tomato seedlings in a place with sufficiently high illumination and a temperature of about 22–25°C.

What to do when shoots appear

After the seedlings appear (hatch), and this should happen in 3–10 days, the top covering of the box must be removed and the plants moved to a cooler room. The optimum temperature is 17–20°C during the day and 15°C at night. Insolation should be very high. Then the “loops” of the sprouts will very quickly unfold the first leaves - cotyledons, and later real leaves will appear.

Table of approximate dates for emergence of seedlings from sprouted seeds.

The strongest are the shoots that appear on days 6–7 at a temperature of 25°C. They must grow together. Those that lag far behind can be cut off immediately, if, of course, you have enough seedlings. Just don’t “uproot” them, as this will disrupt the root system of other plants.

How to water and feed

After sowing the seeds, the first watering will occur somewhere on the 10th day. By this time, mass shoots should appear and take shape. To start, 1 teaspoon of water per plant will be enough.

Further, until the first true leaves appear, watering is carried out approximately once every 5–6 days. The soil should be moist, but not wet. Otherwise, oxygen will not reach the roots, and this will slow down their development or even cause rotting. Before picking, about 2 days before, tomato seedlings can be fed with mineral fertilizers and watered.

Important: picking is carried out when the soil is slightly dry. So the last watering before it needs to be done about 1-2 days before.

Picking

When the first two true leaves appear on the tomato seedlings (the lowest ones are false and are called cotyledons), it is possible and necessary to pick - planting the plants in individual pots. For this:

We take the group with the earth out of the box.
We carefully disassemble the clod of earth, separating one plant.
We pinch the main taproot (this may not be done if the tomatoes grow in dry soil that will be rarely watered).
We transplant the plant into an individual container with a volume of about half a liter. There should be holes at the bottom of the pot for water drainage. We fill the container with soil about 2/3, make a hole in which we place the young tomato. At the same time, you need to take it away from the group with a lump of earth, since the roots already have lateral processes- hairs that can be damaged by knocking down the ground.
Sprinkle the stem of the plant with soil about 1/2 or 2/3 from the root to the cotyledon.
Gently press down the soil around the seedling.
Lightly water the plant.

Video - Tomato seedlings: from germination to picking

What to do with seedlings from picking to planting in the ground

Plants need to be watered regularly, but the first watering after picking can be done no earlier than the 4th day. At first, tomatoes are irrigated approximately once a week, but as the seedling grows, the frequency of watering increases. You need to pour enough water to saturate the entire earthen ball. The next watering is only after the soil has dried. Before planting in the ground, the tomato will require daily watering. The water temperature is about 22°C, it is advisable to let the water stand.
Plants need to be fed with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers. It is better for beginning gardeners to purchase ready-made mixtures, dilute them in water and water young tomato seedlings. If you want to prepare the solution yourself, then its composition per 10 liters of settled water should be as follows:

ammonium nitrate - 10 g;
superphosphate - 35 g;
potassium sulfate - 10 g.

The first feeding is carried out on the 12th day after picking. You can repeat feeding after 10–15 days.

Important: phosphorus and potassium are found in ordinary ash, so supporters of “clean” fertilizers can use a solution of 1 tablespoon of ash per liter of water.

Daylight hours for young tomato seedlings should be about 12 hours. It is advisable that the plants be oriented “to the sun” in the same way as they will be oriented on the site.
The ideal temperature for tomatoes is 22–24°C during the day and 14–16°C at night.
Hardening of seedlings is an important process, because in the natural environment it is impossible to achieve ideal conditions. So 10–12 days before planting in the ground, you need to gradually lower the temperature to 14–15°C. In 4–5 days the temperature can be set within 12–13°C. Ventilation, cloudy weather, changes in humidity - all this will accustom the plant to future real living conditions.

As a result, the tomato seedling should have 7 or more leaves, the trunk thickness should be about 7 mm, the height should be no more than 25 cm, and the root system should be well developed.

Let's summarize

Before planting tomatoes in the ground, they need to be germinated at home. To do this, prepare the seeds and soil, sow them, plant them after two leaves appear, feed them, water them, and maintain the correct temperature and light conditions. And then all the plants will certainly take root, and the gardeners will receive good harvest tomatoes.

Tomato plants (popularly tomato) are so familiar and present on the table of every family. Fragrant in fresh salads, fermented, pickled, salted, barreled, in first courses, second courses, in appetizers, pizzas and what traditional borscht is complete without tomato paste. And they came to us from the distant shores of South America. This factor should be taken into account when choosing a place to plant young plants in open ground. Because they love a lot of sun and sandier soil, so that there is no stagnation of water during irrigation or precipitation.

And the rest are more detailed nuances, growing tomatoes, you will learn from our article.

The best days according to the lunar calendar for planting tomatoes in 2018

For different regions Russia has different approximate planting dates for tomatoes. For example, residents of the middle zone can safely plant young plants already in early June, being confident that night frosts will not destroy them. You can plant them in greenhouses a couple of weeks earlier. And the southern regions begin planting young plants mainly at the end of April. On average, the growth stage from seeds to plants ready for planting occurs in 75-80 days. Therefore, you can start sowing seeds for the middle zone as early as early March.
The most suitable days for sowing seeds (for growing in heated greenhouses) in January 2018 are considered according to Lunar calendar January 1, 12, 13, 14, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29.
Avoid any work in the garden beds on the days of the new moon (January 16, 17, 18) and during the full moon. There will be two full moons in January on January 2nd and January 31st.

Already in February better conditions for germinating tomato seeds into seedlings. But there is still a possibility of developing diseases without receiving enough sun rays, which can lead to stretching of seedlings. And the quality and quantity of the harvest directly depends on this. Have a good day for sowing seeds are considered: 6, 7, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26 February, it is best to dive in February - 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26 it is strictly not recommended to sow (new moon) - February 15, 16, 17.
Full moon there won't be any in February 2018.

The best month for planting seedlings is March. Daylight hours are increasing, the days are becoming warmer. Suitable days for sowing: - 5, 6, 7, 15, 20, 21, 24, 25; It is best to dive according to the Lunar calendar - 1, 10, 11, 12, 15, 24, 25, 28, 29; the worst days in March are March 16, 17, 18 and two full moons - March 2 and March 31.

In April, if the days are warm, the seeds can be sown under film in the open ground, this speeds up the harvest time by about two weeks. Better days for sowing: 20, 21, 27, 28, 29 you can pick plants: 6, 7, 8, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 29 April we do nothing: new moon - 15, 16, 17 April and full moon - 30 April.

Conditions for growing tomato seedlings

Firstly, the air temperature for seven days should not drop to 14°C during the day and 10°C at night. And increase it daily to 24°C and 12°C at night. Tomato sprouts are very sensitive to the lack of light, so additional lighting is simply necessary during their growth period. A sunny day for plants is at least 12 hours.
Secondly, tomato seeds must be prepared for planting. They are soaked for 15-20 minutes in a weak pink solution of permanganic acid (1 g per 100 g of water). Then rinse and dry.

To avoid catching the seeds from the water for a long time, wrap them in gauze before soaking them.

The prepared soil is slightly compacted and moistened. Carefully place the seeds on the surface at a distance of at least two centimeters, and at least three centimeters between rows.

Tomato seedlings: growing at home.

A high-quality harvest can only be obtained from healthy seeds and, accordingly, strong seedlings tomato. But in order to grow them yourself, you need to try very hard. This is painstaking and demanding work. Which, with the right approach, will reward you with a good harvest.

Step 1. Preparatory work

Tomato seeds retain their good quality in convergence and yield for seven years, always look at the date of production of the seeds on the packaging.

Before planting, the soil can either be poured with boiling water or heated in the oven. This helps get rid of pathogenic bacteria that cause plant diseases.

Step 2. Sowing tomatoes for seedlings

First of all, decide on a place to install the containers. It should be warm, sunny and completely free of drafts.
It is more convenient to take containers that are wide and not deep at the bottom. It is advisable to steam the soil with boiling water and cool. And just before planting, moisten it thoroughly.

Seeds should be placed no deeper than two centimeters in depth. And try not to fragment them, so that later you will have to dive them less.
To enhance growth, you can apply the greenhouse effect. Simply cover the container with cling film (be sure to make a few holes for air circulation) and the approximate time for sprouts to emerge will be at least 10 days.

Step 3. Caring for tomato seedlings

Good seeds are 50% of the success of a good harvest. The rest depends on caring for the plants. A reasonable approach will save you from losing seedlings due to disease.
Use the greenhouse effect first. Place the containers in the sunniest window. The favorable temperature for good seedlings is considered to be 20-24 degrees. After germination it is lowered to 18 degrees. The soil should not dry out, but there is no need to flood it either. An ordinary spray bottle will be an excellent assistant in this matter. Water for irrigation should be room temperature. Condensation from the film is regularly removed to avoid rot. After the sprouts emerge, the oilcloth is removed from the containers.

Step 3. Picking (transplanting into large cups, pots)

You should start picking up grown seedlings after they have three leaves. Although there are two opinions about this procedure. Some gardeners are for it, others consider it stress for young plants. But this procedure must be carried out without fail:

Approximately on the tenth day from the sprouting of the sprouts, you can already pick the plants. But first thoroughly water the soil. You should not do this at the time of picking, otherwise the ground will be heavy, which will complicate the whole process. Using a special spatula (you can use a teaspoon), remove the sprout from the ground and deepen it into a separate container up to the cotyledon leaves. Seal and water the tomato.

Step 4. Preparation for planting for permanent residence (in a greenhouse, on a balcony, in a greenhouse)

When the stem of the sprouts is at least a centimeter in diameter and the first buds appear, you can begin to prepare it for transplanting to a permanent place of growth. Such plants already have fairly strong and strong roots. If the weather is already sunny and warm, then you can safely transplant them into the greenhouse, and if there is a possibility of night frosts, then it is better to cover the greenhouse with an additional layer protective material.
During the replanting process, pour 1 tablespoon of superphosphate into each prepared hole and fill it with water; after it has been absorbed, you can safely replant the plant.

Healthy tomato seedlings guarantee a bountiful tomato harvest. The mistakes that novice gardeners make at the stage of sowing seeds and growing seedlings will certainly affect the fruiting of an adult plant. There can be no trifles in this matter! Let's try to understand all the stages of growing tomato seedlings, starting with determining the timing of sowing and ending with planting the bushes in open ground (in boxes - if growing on the balcony is planned).

Approximately, tomato seeds should be sown 55-65 days before planting seedlings in open ground or a greenhouse. The seeds germinate quite quickly - 5-10 days after sowing. Therefore, the average period for keeping seedlings on the windowsill (from emergence) is 45-60 days.

It is important to determine the timing correctly so as not to overexpose the seedlings on the windowsill. This is fraught with inhibition of the growth of an adult bush and a decrease in yield.

Average sowing time for tomatoes:

in the southern regions of Russia and Ukraine - from the 20th of February to March 15 (landing in the OG - from April 15 to May 20);
in the central regions of Russia - from March 15 to April 1 (landing in the OG - from May 10 to the first days of June);
in the northern regions (Siberia, Ural) - from April 1 to 15 (landing in the OG - from May 25 to June 15).

To accurately answer the question of when to plant tomato seedlings, you need to know about the end date of spring frosts in your region. By counting 55-65 days back from this date, you can accurately determine the date of your desired planting.

If you plan to plant tomato seedlings not in open ground, but in a greenhouse or on glass balcony, then sowing work can begin 2-3 weeks earlier.

Conditions for growing tomato seedlings

When growing tomato seedlings on a windowsill, create conditions for the seedlings with:

a large amount of light - it is desirable that the windows face south and are not shaded by trees (if there is a lack of natural light, artificial additional lighting with lamps is required);
high humidity - spray tomato seedlings 1-2 times a day, use air humidifiers, etc.;
warm - during the day optimal temperature for tomato seedlings the temperature is 18-25°C, at night – 12-15°C.

Tomato seedlings: growing at home

Step 1. Preparatory work

Preparatory work may include:

seed disinfection;
soil preparation and disinfection.

Packaged seeds from well-known manufacturers do not require additional pre-sowing treatment. They have already undergone the necessary disinfection at the enterprise. It’s a completely different matter if the tomato seeds used were collected with your own hands or purchased in bulk at the market. Such material can be infected with pathogens of various bacterial, viral and fungal diseases.

To eliminate the infection, use one of the following disinfecting solutions:

1% solution of potassium permanganate (1 g per 100 ml of water). Wrap the seeds in gauze and soak in this solution for 15-20 minutes. It is not recommended to keep it longer - the germination of seeds is reduced. After processing, rinse the seeds with water.
0.5% soda solution (0.5 g per 100 ml of water). Soak tomato seeds in it for 24 hours. In addition to disinfection, soda solution promotes earlier fruiting.
Aloe juice solution (1:1). Ready-made aloe juice can be purchased at a pharmacy or squeezed from the leaves yourself (previously, they are kept in the refrigerator for 5-6 days). Soak the seeds in aloe juice diluted in water for 12-24 hours. Tomatoes from seeds that have undergone this treatment differ increased immunity, improved yield and fruit quality.
Fitosporin solution. When using liquid Fitosporin (in a bottle), prepare the solution as follows: dilute 1 drop of liquid in 100 ml of water. Prepare a solution of Fitosporin powder in the amount of 0.5 tsp. per 100 ml of water. Soak the seeds in the solution for 1-2 hours.

The soil can also be contaminated, especially if it is dug up from the garden. Soil purchased pre-packaged is safer. flower shops. But even here there may be unpleasant “surprises”, so the best way To protect yourself (and your seedlings!) from surprises is to till the soil yourself.

The most popular methods of disinfecting soil for seedlings:

calcination in the oven (10-15 minutes at 180-200°C);
heating in the microwave (1-2 minutes at power 850);
disinfection with boiling water (place soil in a pot with drainage holes and pour small portions of boiling water over it);
disinfection with potassium permanganate (spill the soil with a strong solution of potassium permanganate).

Disinfection of tomato seeds in potassium permanganate

All these methods can be combined with each other to obtain the most sterile and safe soil for seedlings.

You should not start planting tomatoes for seedlings immediately after preparing the soil! Moisten it and keep it at above-zero temperatures for 10-12 days. During this time, bacteria beneficial to plants will begin to multiply in the sterile soil. Only after this can sowing begin.

Step 2. Sowing tomatoes for seedlings

Fill containers (cassettes, peat pots, plastic cups, cottage cheese boxes, shallow boxes) with prepared moist soil and make grooves in it about 1 cm deep. The step between the grooves is 3-4 cm. Place the seeds in them at a distance of 1-2 cm, more is possible. The less often the seeds are sown, the longer it will be possible to keep the seedlings in a seedling container without replanting them. Sprinkle the grooves with soil.

Tomato seeds are sown in the ground to a depth of 1 cm

You can make it even simpler: place the seeds on the prepared soil and cover them with a centimeter layer of soil.

Cover the top with film or glass to provide the seedlings with a constant microclimate with a humidity of about 80-90%. In order for the seeds to germinate, their temperature should be 25-30°C. Therefore, place the seedling boxes near a radiator or other heat source.

Check the soil moisture every day. When dry, spray it generously with a spray bottle. If there is excessive humidity, open the film (glass) and wait for it to dry. Sometimes high humidity leads to the formation of mold on the soil surface. Then carefully remove the top infected layer and spill the soil with a solution of potassium permanganate or antifungal drug(Fundazol, Fitosporin).

The first tomato shoots appear after 3-4 days at a surface air temperature of 25-28°C, at 20-25°C - after 5-6 days, at 10-12°C - 12-15 or more days after sowing.

Cotyledon leaves of tomato seedlings emerging from the ground

More details about when to sow tomatoes for seedlings, how to choose tomato seeds and sow them correctly in the ground are shown in the video:

Step 3. Caring for tomato seedlings

Lighting

Growing tomato seedlings is impossible without good lighting! Therefore, after germination, place the pots with seedlings on the brightest windowsill. In February and early March, there will not be enough light for the seedlings in any case, so, if possible, use additional lighting with fluorescent lamps.

There is a version (author - Tugarova T.Yu.) that better development of tomato seedlings can be achieved if the seedlings are illuminated around the clock for the first 2-3 days after germination. After this, you can switch to the usual additional lighting mode - 16 hours a day (total daylight hours).

Humidity and watering

Young shoots should be kept at high, almost extreme humidity; drying is unacceptable. Therefore, do not rush to immediately remove the film (glass) from the seedling container. Open it a little every day so that the seedlings get used to the fresh air, but at the same time remain in the “greenhouse”. After 1-2 weeks, the cover can be completely removed.

Tomato seedlings growing under a film at home may not need watering for a long time. Look at the condition of the soil: do not create a swamp, but at the same time, do not allow the top layer to dry out (while the roots of the sprouts are still small and are in the top layer of soil, so drying it out will mean drying out of the roots). Tomato seedlings should be watered carefully, under the stem. To avoid damaging the sprouts, you can use a syringe (without a needle) or a pipette.

After removing the film, the frequency of watering tomato seedlings should be proportional to the amount of heat and light. With increasing temperatures and lengthening daylight hours, tomatoes begin to grow and quickly “drink” moisture from the soil. Accordingly, the soil dries out faster and watering is required more often.

It is important not to dry out young tomatoes. Often, inexperienced gardeners encounter the following problem: when they come home from work in the evening, they notice their seedlings are completely wilted, although they still looked quite normal in the morning. You need to check the seedlings in the morning, when there is no hot sun yet. If you notice that the sprouts are a little sluggish, water them immediately. Otherwise, at noon, the rays of the sun can dry out the still weak young seedlings.

Bays can also be dangerous. It’s bad that flooded and dried tomato seedlings can look the same: the stems lose turgor, the leaves wither. When you see these symptoms, pay attention to the soil. If it is wet, do not add water under any circumstances - you will ruin the seedlings. Place the seedling container in a place protected from direct sunlight, do not water until the soil dries out. In the future, adjust the amount of watering.

Cold window sills combined with damp soil are especially destructive for young tomato sprouts. Therefore, watering in the evening (February-April) is not recommended. At night, the temperature can drop significantly, the sprouts will freeze and begin to hurt.

Fresh air

As soon as it’s a warm, windless day, take the seedlings out into the fresh air: onto the balcony, outside, or just open the window. Even in March, on a sunny day, on open balcony Temperatures can reach up to 15-20°C! If such a day coincides with the emergence of seedlings, it is a great success! Take the sprouts out to bask in the sun. The fact is that tomato sprouts on the first day after germination are protected from UV rays, which prevents them from burning. Such sprouts will be heat-resistant, hardened from infancy and can be “walked” in the sun regularly.

If you did not have time to expose the seedlings to the sun on the first day, then you can no longer do this after 1-2 days - the innate hardening has disappeared. In this case, you will have to gradually accustom the sprouts to the sun. The first day – 5 minutes is enough. Then, every day you can increase the duration of your walks by another 5 minutes.

Tomato seedlings, which were placed every day on an open sunny balcony (in the courtyard), by the time they are planted for permanent residence, quickly catch up in growth with those seedlings that were sown a month earlier, but kept on a windowsill behind glass and without lighting.

Feeding

Tomato seedlings need feeding 2-3 weeks after the first shoots. In the future, fertilizers will have to be applied every week. It is best to use natural organic fertilizers, such as manure or grass. Good store-bought fertilizers include specialized guano-based fertilizers, humic fertilizers, vermicompost, etc. Use half the dose indicated for a specific fertilizer to fertilize seedlings.

Step 3. Picking (transplanting into large cups, pots)

The first true leaves of tomato sprouts appear on days 7-10. At this age, if the seeds were sown too crowded in one container, you can pick the seedlings into separate cups. Despite the fact that tomatoes tolerate transplantation well, this must be done carefully. Replant the sprouts with a clod of soil on the roots. Some gardeners advise pinching the central root of tomato seedlings when picking. However, we do not recommend doing this - the roots in any case, even with the most careful transplantation, are still damaged. There is no need to further injure the plant. Moreover, it can be harmful: pinching up to 1/3 of the root will delay the development of seedlings by 1 week.

When picking tomato seedlings, a lump of earth on the roots should remain

The first transplant is carried out in small cups of 200 ml.

After 2-3 weeks, the seedlings can be planted a second time - into larger pots. If the seeds were initially sown in individual containers (cups, cassettes), then this transplant will be the first. It is not recommended to use pots smaller than 0.5-1 liters. Professional gardeners prefer even larger volumes - 3-5 liters per plant. But, you must admit, not every window sill can withstand such seedling plantations, especially in a city apartment. Yes, this is not necessary: 1 liter of soil for 1 plant is enough!

Picking tomato sprouts into peat pots

You can learn how to grow tomato sprouts and plant seedlings by watching the video:

Step 4. Preparation for planting for permanent residence (in a greenhouse, on a balcony, in a greenhouse)

At the age of 1.5 months, tomato seedlings at home expel the first flower clusters. As soon as you notice them, know that after 10-15 days the seedlings need to be planted for permanent residence - in a greenhouse, on a balcony or in a greenhouse. You cannot delay replanting, otherwise it will lead to a decrease in yield.

If you decide to keep tomato seedlings on the windowsill for more than 45-60 days, then they should be provided with at least 1 liter of soil per plant. If you keep tomatoes in relatively small containers even 10 days longer than they should and allow them to bloom, they will stop their vegetative growth and will forever remain “undergrown.” Even in exhaust gas they will no longer be able to accelerate and will never turn into full-fledged plants. Accordingly, you won’t have to expect a full harvest from them either!

This problem can be partially solved by removing the first flower brush. The next cluster will appear only in a week, that is, it will be possible to delay planting seedlings for permanent residence for a week.

Before planting, good tomato seedlings should have thick stems, large leaves, a strong root system and developed buds.

Characteristics healthy seedlings tomato: powerful bush, large juicy leaves, thick stems, developed root system

Step 5. Planting tomato seedlings in the ground

The distance between tomatoes in a greenhouse or greenhouse should be 30-40 cm. If you decide to grow garden plantations on the balcony, then for each tomato bush you need to allocate 4-12 liters of land. 4-5 liters will be enough for low-growing “balcony” varieties: “Balcony Miracle”, “Dwarf”, “Hummingbird”, etc. Large garden varieties, suitable for OG (“Sashenka”, “Sunrise”, etc.), are grown in containers of 10-12 liters.

For tomatoes, fertile garden soil (chernozem) mixed with “Universal” or “For vegetables” peat soil in a 1:1 ratio is good.

It is best to plant tomato seedlings for permanent residence on a cool, windless and cloudy day. Plant the seedlings, deepening the central stem a couple of centimeters. After a few days, additional roots will begin to form along the buried stem. Overall, the root system will become more powerful and stronger.

After planting, water the tomato seedlings with warm water and wait for the harvest!

Planting tomato seedlings in a balcony box for permanent residence

And, finally, in order to better understand the intricacies of growing tomato seedlings and transplanting them for permanent residence in open ground, a greenhouse or on a balcony, we suggest watching a short video posted below:

Vegetable growing has recently become a year-round process. And we are not talking about heated greenhouses at all. personal plots. Now many people practice growing a mini-garden at home on a balcony or windowsill. Grow in a similar way You can have different crops, but we will consider the most common of them - tomatoes.

Why is it worth choosing tomatoes for experimental growing in winter? Firstly, it is not so difficult, we will tell you the nuances of the process, and you will see for yourself. Secondly, the plant has decorative look, therefore it will please the eye and will not let you forget about summer. Thirdly, tomatoes planted in September will delight you with a harvest on New Year's Eve, and it is so nice to serve fresh tomatoes to the table, surprising friends and relatives with their excellent taste. Therefore, we cast aside all doubts and create a mini-garden with tomatoes at home.

Home cultivation of tomatoes has its own specific features, from choosing a place to leaving. You won’t be able to grow vegetables of any kind on a window or balcony.

It is important not to forget that your garden will be in a limited space, so we will immediately exclude the large, tall varieties.
Tomato seeds are not suitable for greenhouses, because their root system develops well, but at home they may simply not have enough nutrition, and the plant on which you spent so much work may die, even though you were pleased with the fruits.
To give tomatoes excellent harvest and ripen well in winter, it is worth choosing varieties with medium-sized fruits. Ideal for home grown there will be cherry tomatoes - small, neat tomatoes with excellent taste, decorativeness of the fruit and the bush itself. Moreover, it is a fairly productive variety, despite its diminutive size.
In winter, daylight hours will be much shorter than in the summer months, therefore, it is advisable to consider additional lighting for your future vegetable garden and place vegetables on the windowsill on the south or southwest side. With a lack of light, the tomato stem will begin to stretch and develop poorly. If you are going to grow in the summer, then this issue will not confront you.

What you need

Growing tomatoes at home will require some preparation on your part. At the initial stage for planting you will need:

Seeds for tomato seedlings
Containers for growing
Prepared soil
A complex of fertilizers to grow an excellent harvest.

So, first decide on the seeds. We recommend taking Pinocchio cherry varieties for testing.
What are these tomatoes good for? They are easy to care for and have an excellent exterior, so they will look great on the windowsill. The height of the bushes reaches only 20-35 centimeters, so they will not need additional support. The plant is especially beautiful when it produces fruits, of which there can be quite a lot on the bush. Pinocchio has excellent yield. Each seedling is ready to give up to 1.5 kg of cherry tomatoes. Despite all the ease of care in winter, tomatoes are recommended to be illuminated for an additional couple of hours. This variety is very resistant to traditional vegetable diseases. Pinocchio is well tolerated high humidity, but does not tolerate moisture accumulation on the leaves, so watering with a spray bottle should be avoided.

Any container for growing cherry tomatoes is suitable. This could be a box, a flower pot or a cut plastic bottle. By the way, many people prefer the latter, because... in a transparent container it is easier to monitor soil moisture and regulate watering.

All tomatoes feel great and develop in fertile soil. They prefer loose and slightly acidic soil. Ready-made mixtures can be purchased at specialized stores or you can prepare them yourself. To do this, you should take soil from the garden, but not in the place where the tomatoes were planted, and dry it. We prepare the soil mixture at the rate of soil + humus + peat in equal parts, add a little ash, sand and a few grams of phosphorus fertilizers for the full development of the stem and root system.

Growing stages

Grow healthy tomatoes and even novice gardeners can get a good harvest from each bush. The main thing is to follow the rules of growing and.

Before placing Pinocchio seeds in the ground, they must be disinfected and germinate. Pre-sort planting material From the purchased bag, visually assessing its quality, remove damaged or rotten seeds. You need to make a weak solution of potassium permanganate (2 g per glass warm water) and soak the seeds in it for about 15-20 minutes. After this, the cloth is soaked, the future cherries are placed in it, covered and placed in a warm place for several days until the grains hatch.

Next, the process can go in two ways: the seeds are sown in containers with soil for growing seedlings, or 1-2 grains are immediately placed in prepared pots for further tomato growth. Both methods are correct and give the same result. In the first case, you can evaluate the germination of seeds, select the strongest plants, and then take care of them. In the second case, you immediately start growing without damaging the plants by replanting.

When growing seedlings, the grains are buried shallowly - approximately 1-2 cm, retreating from the holes by 3 cm; when planting in a separate container, the depth of the depth is the same. Then we cover the pot with transparent film and try to place it in a warm place. After sprouting, it is worth placing the container with tomatoes closer to the light source, i.e. transfer it to the windowsill, and don’t forget to remove the film. It is advisable that the room temperature does not fall below +16 degrees. During this period, do not water the tomatoes too much, waiting for them to dry out. upper layer land. Excess moisture should not be allowed.

When 1-2 true leaves appear, the seedlings are plucked, and after about 4-5 weeks the plants will become so strong that they can be transplanted into permanent containers for growth. You can successfully grow cherry tomatoes in a box, just provide each bush with more space for development. Therefore, it is worth planting tomatoes at a distance of 30-35 cm from each other. This way they will receive enough light, moisture and fertilizer. For other containers, the rule is one plant per pot. After transplanting, water with warm water.

At further care Watering is carried out no more than 2 times a week. It is recommended to water in the morning, abundantly moistening the entire layer of soil. In the box, try to pour not on the stem, but around it. It is important to know that you cannot spray the leaves of seedlings, because... the plant may become sick and die.

Tomatoes will respond well to feeding. The first time this can be done is at the time of disembarkation for permanent “place of residence” organic fertilizers. Then it is worth feeding the plants during the fruiting period once every 10-12 days, but with mineral fertilizers.

To grow tomatoes and get fruit, the bushes need to be shaken periodically when flowers appear. This way you will achieve better pollination. When fruits appear on the bushes, no matter how pleasing they are to your eye, regularly pick the ripe ones from the cluster, this will lead to a more abundant harvest.

It is also worth noting that after harvesting the Pinocchio variety will lose its decorative effect and gradually wither. Don’t be sad that your care for the plant was insufficient, it’s just that the bush has served its purpose, so replace it with a younger seedling.

Video “How to grow tomatoes on a windowsill”

In the recording, Oktyabrina Ganichkina talks about how you can grow good, healthy tomatoes on your windowsill, loggia or balcony.

Tomatoes are a favorite vegetable on our table, with excellent taste and nutritional qualities. The variety of varieties allows it to be widely used both fresh and processed. They prefer to add fruits of some varieties to salads, and others to pickles and marinades.

To get a good harvest of tomatoes from your garden, you need to know and follow the growing rules. First, in the fall, it is advisable to prepare nutritious soil. Then you need to carefully select and prepare the seeds, which should also be planted in the ground according to certain rules. And the seedlings must be properly monitored and cared for.

Tomato seeds can be planted directly into the beds. And in order to get fresh tomatoes on the table as early as possible, you should use the seedling method of growing tomatoes.

Depending on how you plan to grow tomatoes permanent place, sowing dates should be selected.

Seeds greenhouse varieties planted from February 15 to March 15.
Seedlings, the seeds of which were planted in the first two decades of March, are subsequently planted on open beds, for which it is necessary to build a shelter for the first time.
For plants that are planned to be planted in open ground without any shelter, seeds are planted from March 15 to March 31.

In other words, if the seedlings are intended for further cultivation Before receiving the harvest from the greenhouse, the seeds should be sown approximately one and a half to two months before transplanting. If the seedlings are intended to be transferred to open ground, then it is advisable to sow the seeds within two to two and a half months from the planned planting date.

Important! IN climatic zones Where there is a possibility of late frosts in the spring, it is better to wait to plant seedlings until the risk of exposure to this negative factor is minimal.

Step-by-step instructions for growing tomato seedlings at home

Table. How to grow tomato seedlings at home.

Steps, photo	Description of actions
	Prepare the soil and fill the sowing boxes with it.
	Immerse the seeds in a five percent salt solution for 10 minutes. Then, after thoroughly rinsing, leave in water until it swells. Or you can simply soak the seeds in water. To do this, they need to be wrapped in a damp cotton cloth or napkin and placed in a shallow plate. Cover the top with something to prevent moisture evaporation and keep for a day in a warm room.
	One of the methods. Sow the seeds in the grooves, the distance between which is about 5 cm. Pre-moisten the soil with a slightly warm solution in which the seeds were kept. The sowing depth should be 1 cm, and the distance between the seeds should be no more than 2 cm. Do not water after planting. You can cover the top with film to speed up the process of seed germination.
	Transfer the sprouts to separate pots.
	Tomatoes need large quantities Sveta. After the first shoots appear, special lamps should be installed above them.
	Tomato seedlings are watered in the morning. The water temperature should be +28°C. In sunny weather you need to do this every day. It is preferable to use soft water, for example melt water. If there is no sun, watering is done when the soil dries out. Seedlings need to start hardening two weeks before being transferred to the beds.
	To obtain a rich harvest, it is advisable to feed the seedlings with fertilizers. Fertilizing is carried out during watering.

Soil preparation. Planting seeds

Some points of our step by step instructions need clarification. Let's look at them in more detail.

It is best to use soil prepared in the fall for tomato seedlings. Vermicompost, sand and other additives are mixed into the soil, which includes peat, turf soil and humus. Proportions components are selected depending on the incoming ingredients. Tomatoes love soil that absorbs moisture well, allows air to pass through, is not acidic and is quite nutritious.

If the seeds are supposed to be sown in boxes, then later it is necessary to dive. In this case, the sowing boxes are filled two-thirds with soil. Before actually sowing, it is recommended to moisten the seed holes. Nutrients can be added to the water.

It is advisable to grow tomato seedlings at home without further planting. The fact is that when picking, the roots of plants are damaged. It takes about 7 days for tomatoes to take root in a new place and restore the root system. Therefore, the fruits from such plants can be obtained a week later.

If you do not plan to grow tomatoes on an industrial scale, then it is better to sow the seeds directly into separate plastic or peat pots. In this case, when transferred to open ground or a greenhouse, the plants will immediately begin to grow and develop rapidly.

You can grow tomato seedlings at home using special ones if you plan to plant them in a greenhouse in the future. Then you can do without picking or sowing directly into pots. Seedlings grown in this way are transferred directly to the greenhouse.

Sowing rules

How to care for seedlings

In the first two weeks after sowing the seeds, the night temperature in the room where the boxes are installed should not exceed +15°C. During the day it should not be more than +20°C.

After two weeks, hardening is carried out, during which the temperature is maintained at no more than +10°C at night, and no more than +15°C during the day.

The air in the room should be humidified to 65%.

When the plants have two true leaves, it is recommended to thin out the seedlings. For further growth, it is necessary to maintain strong plants with thick stems and bright leaves, removing all weak seedlings within 5 centimeters of them.