Where is the cherry tomato produced, and when is it planted?

Cherry tomatoes are also called small tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, or cherry tomatoes; they are a food that can be eaten both as a vegetable and as a fruit. Cherry tomatoes have a very high vitamin content, one to two times higher than ordinary tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes are grown in many places in our country and have very strong adaptability to the environment. So where is the cherry tomato produced? When is it generally planted?

1. Where is the cherry tomato produced?

Cherry tomato is one of the members of the tomato family. Its place of origin is the Andean region of the Americas, and there are still large numbers of wild species distributed in Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, and other places. The tomato genus is divided into two complex population groups, ordinary tomato and Peruvian tomato; ordinary tomato is the cultivated species, Peruvian tomato is the wild species, and cherry tomato is the ancestor of the tomato cultivated today. In our country, the main producing areas of cherry tomato are mainly Hainan, Guangdong, Fujian, and other places, and northern cities have very large sales.

2. When is cherry tomato generally planted?

1. Spring planting: in December, raise seedlings in a greenhouse using hotline heating plus small tunnels, transplant to the field after mulching with plastic film in late March, and harvest from late May to late July. Choose early-maturing, high-yielding varieties such as Sijihong and Shengnyu.

2. Autumn planting: sow and raise seedlings in late June, using nutritious pots for seedling raising; transplant in late July, and harvest from late September to before the first frost. The Sijihong variety can be selected.

3. Key points for growing cherry tomatoes

1. Sowing and raising seedlings

First water the prepared seedling bed. After the water has seeped down for 2-3 hours, sow the seeds evenly, then cover with 0.5-1 cm of nutrient soil. The sowing rate is 3-5 grams per sq m of seedling bed, and 8-10 sq m of seedling bed is needed per mu of planting area. After sowing, cover with plastic film to keep warm and moist, and remove the film immediately after seedlings emerge. The management of cherry tomatoes from sowing to cotyledon emergence is mainly to create environmental conditions suitable for seed germination and seedling emergence, so as to achieve uniform, complete, and strong seedlings as early as possible.

1. Transplant seedlings at the right time.

When cherry tomato seedlings have 1 leaf and 1 heart, transplant them into nutritious pots at noon on a sunny day. The nutrient soil should be mainly fully decomposed organic fertilizer, with an appropriate increase in the amount of phosphate fertilizer and a suitable application of nitrate nitrogen fertilizer. To ensure sufficient nutritional area, it is best to use 9 cm × 9 cm nutritious pots to protect the root system. During the cherry tomato seedling stage, the principle of seedling bed management is to have appropriate temperature, humidity, and sufficient sunlight. This is achieved by covering for warmth, removing the film for light, watering and fertilizing, and expanding the spacing between nutritious pots.

2. Flower dipping to ensure fruit set

When the temperature is low in early spring, pollination is poor and flowers are prone to dropping. You can use 2,4-D to smear the calyx and flower stalk of newly opened flowers (mark with red advertising color), or dip the entire inflorescence of relatively neatly opened flowers once in a 2,4-D solution.

3. Harvest at the right time

Because cherry tomatoes have high sugar content, only when harvested when fully ripe can they truly reflect their inherent flavor and quality. Therefore, they should be harvested when properly ripe. When harvesting, keep the sepals and a section of the fruit stalk.