Latest Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial for Cherry Tomatoes
Cherry tomato, also known as small tomato, is an annual herbaceous plant of the Solanum genus in the Solanaceae family. The plant can grow up to 2 m at its tallest. It can be cultivated year-round in China. In the north it grows only one season per year, while the climate in South China is suitable for growth. From July and August each year all the way to February of the following year, you can eat open-field cultivated cherry tomatoes with pure flavor. Now let us take a look at the cultivation techniques for cherry tomatoes!
Cherry Tomato Growth Habits
The suitable temperature for the growth and development of cherry tomatoes is 23-28°C, with a night temperature of 15-18°C, an average temperature between 18-21°C, a daily maximum temperature between 20-24°C, and an average of 5 hours of sunshine per day. The soil moisture requirement is 60-80%, and slightly acidic soil with deep, loose and fertile layers and a pH of 6-6.5 is suitable. The fertilizer demand is relatively large, and sufficient nutrients should be ensured at each stage, but the fertilizer demand differs somewhat at each growth stage. In the early stage, the focus is on nitrogen fertilizer; in the later stage, the focus is on potassium fertilizer; the demand for phosphate fertilizer runs through the entire growth period, but the demand for potassium fertilizer must be ensured throughout the entire growth period.
Cherry Tomato Sowing and Seedling Raising
1. Seedbed preparation: The seedbed for cherry tomatoes should be sheltered from wind and facing the sun, with good drainage. Each mu of field requires 6-7 sq m of seedling bed and 35-40 sq m of transplanting bed. For the subsoil of the seedbed soil, apply 1500 kg of decomposed human manure and urine per mu, and spread 8 cm of nutrient soil on top. The nutrient soil is made of half fully decomposed organic fertilizer and half fertile soil that has not grown Solanaceae crops. Mix and sieve 7-10 days before sowing, mix in 5 kg of superphosphate, spray carbendazim to disinfect the soil, and pile it up for later use.
2. Sowing time: Cherry tomatoes have strong adaptability. Through different sowing periods and different facility cultivation, four-season production and year-round supply can be achieved. Usually in the north, spring sowing is from April to June or autumn sowing is from August to September; in the south, spring sowing is from February to June or autumn sowing is from August to October; field planting can be done from August to February of the following year.
3. Germination promotion and sowing: Use 20 grams of seed per mu for cherry tomatoes. Soak in 1000 times diluted potassium permanganate solution for 10 minutes, then rinse with clean water and soak in warm water for 6 hours. Wash the seeds, shake off the water, keep moist with wet gauze, and germinate at about 25°C. Sow after the radicle emerges. Because the seeds are expensive, in order to ensure a high survival rate of adult plants, the seeds are required to be placed and sown individually, and covered with 0.5 cm of nutrient soil. Maintain a relatively high temperature before emergence; after emergence, to prevent excessive growth, attention should be paid to ventilation.
4. Post-sowing management: At the two-leaf-one-heart stage of cherry tomato seedlings, select healthy disease-free seedlings and carry out false planting on a sunny evening with fertilizer, pesticide, and soil. The false planting seedbed is the same as the seedling bed. After false planting, water to settle the roots. At the same time, copper ammonium complex or Luheng No. 2 can be used to control damping-off and early blight, spraying once every 7-10 days, for 2-3 consecutive applications.
Cherry Tomato Planting Management
1. Reasonable fertilization: Cherry tomatoes have well-developed roots and vigorous growth. Fertilizer should be mainly organic fertilizer, combined with compound fertilizer. Apply 2500 kg of decomposed compost and barn manure per mu, or 2000 kg of human and livestock manure, or 100 kg of rapeseed cake, 30 kg of compound fertilizer, and 50 kg of superphosphate as base fertilizer. Regulate growth through water management. Before harvesting fruit, for every 2-3 clusters of fruit harvested, according to the strength of growth, apply liquid fertilizer 2-3 times, but appropriately increase potassium fertilizer.
2. Reasonable irrigation: Cherry tomatoes are a vegetable crop that flowers and fruits continuously. After entering the flowering period, watering should follow the principle of seeing wet and seeing dry (meaning water thoroughly once, then wait until the soil is almost dry before watering the second time; the effect is to prevent root rot caused by excessive watering and pests and diseases caused by moisture). Do not water too much, and do not let it dry out, otherwise it will cause flower and fruit drop and physiological fruit cracking.
3. Pruning and trimming: For determinate varieties of cherry tomatoes, try to promote their growth, always keeping 2 strong side branches on the upper part to grow upward, and pay attention to the balance between leaf number and fruit number. If growth is too weak, some flower buds can be removed. For indeterminate growth type, early maturity is not the goal, and double-stem pruning can be used. Because seeds are relatively expensive, single-stem pruning is mostly used in production. In order to improve quality, enhance light, promote ventilation, and prevent diseases, old leaves below the fruit cluster that has been harvested can be removed.
4. Pest and disease control: For cotton leafworm and cotton bollworm on cherry tomatoes, trichlorfon or dichlorvos 600-800 times solution can be sprayed. For aphids, 10% imidacloprid 1000 times solution can be sprayed. Common diseases include damping-off, early blight, bacterial wilt, and viral disease. In the early stage of disease, 64% oxadixyl wettable powder 500 times solution or 70% zineb wettable powder 400-500 times solution, or 50% thiophanate-methyl 500-600 times solution can be sprayed for control.
5. Harvesting and packaging: Because cherry tomatoes have high sugar content, harvesting when fully ripe can truly reflect their inherent flavor and quality. When harvesting, take care to retain the calyx and pick by hand from the abscission layer of the fruit stalk. However, yellow fruit can be harvested at 80% ripeness, and the flavor is instead good, because its flesh is prone to deterioration after full ripening. Hard paper boxes are suitable for packaging to avoid crushing. Usually 500 grams is a small package, and 5000 grams is a large hard paper box or hard plastic box. The box has ventilation holes to prevent water droplets, so as not to affect transportation and storage time.
Key Points of Cherry Tomato Cultivation
1. Variety: Choose mid-to-late maturing varieties among indeterminate growth types, and plant Taiwan Ruby (that is, New Cherry Tomato). This variety has a long production period, high yield, and strong heat and moisture tolerance.
2. Seedling raising: Because cherry tomato seeds are relatively small, more attention should be paid to sowing amount and temperature and humidity management. Germination occurs at about 27°C. After germination, the soil temperature should be lowered to 20°C. Pay attention to ventilation. When the first true leaf grows but has not yet grown as large as the cotyledons, it should be moved to a seedling pot to promote flower bud differentiation.
3. Field planting: Choose soil with deep layers, convenient drainage, and fertile soil fertility, and preferably a plot that has not grown previous crops. After land preparation and fertilization, make 30 cm high beds, planting double rows per bed, with a plant spacing of 30-45 cm, which is convenient for pruning. To reduce pests and diseases, control weed growth, prevent fruit rot, keep fruit clean, and improve commodity value, when planting, seedlings with buds on the first inflorescence are generally used as the standard for planting.
4. Vine tying: After field planting and seedling recovery, cherry tomatoes should be trellised and tied in time. For early-maturing self-topping varieties, insert low trellises with a height below 1 m. For tall-trellis varieties, the trellis height is above 1.5 m. Generally, A-shaped trellises and vertical trellises are inserted, and the trellis poles should be sturdy and firm to prevent lodging. Tie the vine from the upper part of the first fruit cluster, tying the stem to the trellis, and then tie once every 2-3 leaves. Pay attention to tightness when tying vines: tie tighter when the plant is growing vigorously, and tie looser when growth is weak.
5. Leaf removal: During cherry tomato cultivation, in order to improve quality, enhance light, promote ventilation, and prevent diseases, old leaves below the fruit cluster that has been harvested can be removed.
6. Fruit setting: Cherry tomato cultivation usually uses an electric vibrator for pollination. When some varieties are cultivated in seasons with poor pollination, the vibrator effect is poor, so spraying 4-CPA is used to prevent flower and fruit drop.
7. Shoot thinning: According to the growth of cherry tomatoes, it can be divided into two methods: single-stem pruning and double-stem pruning. Single-stem pruning keeps only the main stem and removes all side buds. Double-stem pruning, in addition to the main stem, keeps only one side branch growing from the leaf axil below the first inflorescence, and all other side buds are removed. Note that bud removal should be done early, preferably on a sunny day. Keep the wound dry to avoid pathogen infection. If done on a rainy day, spray pesticide immediately after the operation to prevent disease.