The Latest Soilless Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial for Tomatoes
The tomato is one of our common fruit vegetables. It tastes sweet and sour, is good quality at a low price, and is deeply loved by people, and its planting area is growing year by year. However, traditional soil cultivation methods have lower yields and are also prone to the threat of pests and diseases. Nowadays, with the spread of soilless cultivation techniques, tomatoes can also be grown soillessly, and the tomatoes grown this way have high yields and good quality. Below, Qinnong Net explains the soilless cultivation techniques for tomatoes.
1. Facility conditions
Soilless cultivation differs from traditional growing methods in that it requires facilities to grow, mainly including cultivation troughs, irrigation facilities, and so on. Among these, the cultivation trough is the key point of soilless cultivation, as it is the growing place for the tomatoes. Generally, every 3-5 cultivation troughs need one water storage tank, so that the water in the cultivation troughs can be replenished at any time. The height of the water storage tank should be higher than the cultivation troughs to control the water level and make watering convenient.
2. Mixing the cultivation substrate
The important point of soilless cultivation techniques lies in the cultivation substrate, which determines the key to high and excellent yields of tomatoes. In order to provide a balanced supply of nutrients needed for tomato growth, the cultivation substrate is mainly organic matter. For example, after chopping corn stalks from crops and composting them with organic fertilizer, mix them with furnace slag, then add some special fertilizer for soilless tomato cultivation, and it is successfully mixed. Generally, corn stalks and organic fertilizer each account for about 40%, while furnace slag accounts for about 20%. After mixing, carry out high-temperature disinfection and sterilization treatment, and then it can be filled into the cultivation troughs.
3. Sowing and raising seedlings
Before sowing, first treat the seeds to improve the germination rate. First soak the seeds in extremely low-concentration baking soda for half an hour, which can eliminate bacteria on the seed surface and reduce the occurrence of pests and diseases. After soaking, take the seeds out and wash them clean, then place them in a plastic bag or wet towel and keep them in a greenhouse environment at 25-28, and once the seed surface begins to turn white, they can be sown. When sowing, it should be even and not too dense. After sowing, keep the temperature between 25-30 degrees, and after about a few days they will germinate and sprout.
4. Transplanting
After sprouting, when 3-4 true leaves have grown, they can be transplanted. Before transplanting, level the substrate in the cultivation troughs, then irrigate until the substrate has fully absorbed water. After doing these things, dig holes and transplant just as in traditional planting. Generally, make two rows per trough, with a row spacing of about 25-35cm, and transplant the seedlings vertically into the holes, with the soil mounded higher than the seedling root ball.
5. Cultivation management
After transplanting, maintain sufficient light and suitable temperature. The suitable temperature for tomatoes is 10-28 degrees, with 20-25 degrees during the day and 10-15 degrees at night. Twenty days after transplanting, begin fertilizing, applying no more than 15 grams of special fertilizer per plant, and apply fertilizer once more after fruiting. When fertilizing, scatter the fertilizer at the root zone, then water so that it naturally seeps down. In addition, during growth, also pay attention to vine hanging and pruning management.
The above is the soilless cultivation technique for tomatoes brought to you by Qinnong Net. Although soilless cultivation techniques have higher yields and quality, many issues need attention and they are more complex than soil planting.