How to grow cherry tomatoes? Tips for growing cherry tomatoes

There are some differences between cherry tomatoes and tomatoes. Many people like to eat cherry tomatoes. Here is how to grow cherry tomatoes:

1. Selection of cherry tomato varieties

1. Shengyun: This variety is a medium-early maturing variety introduced by Lihe Agricultural Co., Ltd., which is resistant to high temperatures and storage and transportation. It matures medium early, does not stop growing, has medium green leaves and medium internodes, is highly disease-resistant, has high yield, can be harvested in bunches, with 2-24 fruits per bunch, and a single fruit weighing 20 grams. The fruit is bulb-shaped, rain-resistant, heat-resistant, has strong fruit-setting ability, tough skin and resistance to cracking, good storage and transportation, and has a slightly green shoulder color. It has a moderately sweet and sour taste, and the sugar content can reach above 8.5.

2. Love: The plant is semi-dead, heat-resistant, wilt-resistant, moisture-resistant, good flesh, hard fruit, and durable in storage and transportation. The fruit is oblong, weighing 13 grams, with a bright red color, a sugar content of 8.5, good taste and flavor.

3. Mary: The plant is tall, with darker leaves, and is resistant to late blight and leaf scar disease. Each bunch can have up to 30 fruits; when double-stem pruning is carried out, a good harvest is expected when each plant produces about 350 fruits. The fruit is long and oval, with a uniform and bright red color, weighing about 30 grams, with a sugar content of about 8.5, easy to harvest, not prone to cracking, and hard and durable in storage and transportation.

4. Yasu No. 6: This variety is semi-dead, with a plant height of about 170 cm, bright red fruit, 13-15 grams in weight, long oval fruit, and beautiful shape. This variety is highly heat-resistant, resistant to wilt, tomato mosaic disease, etc., with a sugar content of 10-11, hard fruit, not easy to crack, resistant to storage and transportation, and high yield.

2. Cherry tomato planting period

Cherry tomatoes have strong adaptability. Through different sowing periods and cultivation facilities, they can be produced in four seasons and supplied all year round. Cherry tomatoes can be planted in the field from August to February of the following year.

3. Sowing and cultivating small tomatoes

Seeds should be disinfected before sowing: If you are preventing and treating tomato early blight, soak the seeds in warm water for 3-4 hours, then immerse them in 40% formalin 100 times solution, remove them after 20 minutes and seal them for 2-3 hours, and finally rinse them with clean water. To prevent and treat tomato virus diseases, soak them in clean water for 3-4 hours, then transfer them to 10% trisodium phosphate or 2% sodium hydroxide aqueous solution, soak them for 20 minutes, remove them, and rinse them with clean water several times until the pH is neutral. When sowing, first drench the seedbed with water, mix the seeds with fine sand or crushed soil, evenly spread them on the seedbed, and cover them with 0.5 cm thick loose soil. Thinning should be carried out when the seedlings grow 2-3 true leaves, and transplanting can be carried out when 5-6 true leaves are grown.

4. Land preparation, ridge making and transplanting of cherry tomatoes

Choose a field that has not been planted with Solanaceae plants before and has convenient drainage and irrigation. After the land is plowed and harrowed, dig furrows according to the row spacing, apply base fertilizer and make high ridges. The ridges should be oriented north-south. The ridge width should be 1.4-1.7 meters (including the furrows), the plant spacing should be 45-55 cm, and the number of plants planted per mu should be between 1,600 and 2,000. Select strong seedlings for planting and irrigate immediately after planting.

5. Field management of cherry tomatoes

1. Reasonable fertilization and irrigation: the root system of small tomatoes is well developed and they grow vigorously. The fertilizer is mainly organic fertilizer, combined with compound fertilizer, and potassium fertilizer is appropriately added.

2. After planting and returning the seedlings, the vines should be tied up in time. Early-maturing self-capping varieties should be planted on low trellises with a height of less than 1 meter. For high-rise varieties, the height should be more than 1.5 meters. Generally, the herringbone trellises and vertical trellises are used, and the trellis poles should be strong and firm to prevent lodging. The vines should be tied to the trellises from the top of the first ear of fruit, and then tied every 2-3 leaves. Pay attention to the tightness of the vines. When the plant is growing vigorously, tie it tightly; when the growth is weak, tie it loosely.

3. Pruning and pruning can be divided into two methods according to the growth of cherry tomatoes: single-stem pruning and double-stem pruning. For single-stem pruning, only the main trunk is left, and all side buds are removed. For double-stem pruning, only one side branch born from the axils below the first inflorescence is left in addition to the main trunk, and all other side buds are removed. Bud removal should be done as early as possible, preferably on a sunny day. Keep the wound dry to avoid bacterial infection. If it is done on a rainy day, spray medicine immediately after the operation to prevent disease.

6. Harvesting cherry tomatoes

Tomatoes should be harvested immediately when they reach commercial maturity according to the characteristics of different varieties. Over-ripe harvesting is not conducive to storage and transportation.