How to Grow Early-Maturing Tomatoes? A Detailed Guide to the Key Cultivation Techniques
Tomatoes are grown in many parts of China, and there are quite a few varieties. Among them, early-maturing tomatoes come to market relatively early and offer higher economic returns, but they are harder to manage. So what are the key cultivation techniques for early-maturing tomatoes?
1. Variety selection
Tomatoes prefer warmth and tolerate neither cold nor heat, so early-maturing, low-temperature-tolerant, high-yield and highly resistant varieties should be chosen, such as Zaofeng and Qiangfeng.
2. Building the seedbed (hotbed)
Place easily heating livestock manure such as cow and horse manure mixed with human and animal urine and feces into the bed pit. After compacting, it should be about 20 cm lower than the seedbed. Cover with a thin layer of soil, then sow the seeds evenly, and cover with an appropriate amount of fine manure soil. Then water until the seedbed is moist and spray a disinfectant (usually 1% lime water). Then use bamboo poles to form arches and cover with plastic film.
3. Sowing at the right time
The seedling stage generally lasts about 60 days, and transplanting takes place in late February, so late December is suitable for sowing.
4. Seedbed management
Temperature management: Keep a daily record of the air temperature and the temperature inside the shed. The temperature inside the shed must be kept above 2°C (below 2°C causes freezing damage). In severe winter cold, the heat produced by the heat-generating materials in the bed cannot guarantee that the temperature inside the shed stays above 2°C, so straw curtains (about 10 cm thick) must be used as cover, along with heating measures such as electric lights, to ensure the tomato seedlings are not damaged by freezing.
Water management: Water at the appropriate time, keeping the seedbed moist only, to avoid excessive vegetative growth of the seedlings caused by higher temperatures, and also pay attention to removing weeds.
5. Field management
Land preparation and basal fertilizer application: The plot for transplanting tomatoes should have convenient drainage and irrigation, good ventilation, and slightly acidic soil with strong fertilizer and water retention.
Transplanting: The field transplanting density for early-maturing tomatoes is generally 22500-27000 plants/hm2. The cultivation spacing is 130cm×60cm, with a row spacing of 130cm and a plant spacing of 60cm, planted in staggered double rows as single plants, at a density of about 25500 plants/hm2.
Topdressing: Tomatoes are a vegetable that grows and fruits continuously and need large amounts of fertilizer. In addition to applying plenty of basal fertilizer, topdressing is also needed 5 to 6 times during the growing period. Apply a light liquid fertilizer once 5-6 days after transplanting to promote seedling growth, and thereafter adjust according to plant growth. Early fertilizer application to early-maturing varieties will not cause excessive vegetative growth. During the growing period, topdressing mainly relies on light liquid fertilizer (dilute manure water or urea water), and P and K fertilizers are added during the fruiting period.
Water: Keeping the soil appropriately dry in the early growth stage of tomatoes can promote deeper root development. During the flowering and fruiting period, the soil should remain moist. Soil that is too dry easily causes blossom-end rot, so irrigation should be done early to prevent drought. Before flowering, soil moisture should be kept above 70% of the field maximum water-holding capacity, and during the fruiting period it should be kept at 80%.
Staking and pruning: When tomato plants exceed 30 cm in height, set up supports and tie the vines. Use bamboo poles of about 2 m for each plant, bring together the bamboo poles of two adjacent plants in each furrow to form one frame, and connect the frames with horizontal bamboo poles, tying them tightly for reinforcement to prevent wind from knocking them over.
Pest and disease control: At the seedling stage, pay attention to trapping and killing cutworms and mole crickets, or spray insecticides such as deltamethrin on the seedling roots to prevent the stem base from being bitten or cut through. When ventilation and air permeability are poor, tomatoes are prone to gray mold or hollow heart fruit; during the growing period, spray 0.4% lime water every 7-10 days for control.