A Detailed Guide to Cherry Tomato Cultivation Techniques and Management Methods
Cherry tomatoes are warm-season vegetables, and the temperature they need for growth and development is higher than that of ordinary tomatoes. The optimum temperature for seed germination is 25-30°C, the optimum temperature for growth is 20-25°C, and the optimum temperature for growth during the fruiting stage is 15-25°C. They like light; insufficient light causes serious flower and fruit drop. They need little water in the early stage and more in the later stage. They have strong adaptability to soil and perform best on sandy loam. They like potassium fertilizer, and to prevent the occurrence of blossom-end rot, calcium fertilizer should be applied appropriately. The yield of cherry tomatoes is relatively low, 600-1500 kg per mu, but the selling price is relatively high. The main varieties include Shengnyu, Lingqiu, Cherry Red and others.
Cultivation Time
The cultivation season for cherry tomatoes is similar to that of ordinary tomatoes. For open-field cultivation, spring sowing can be done by raising seedlings under protection in February, transplanting after the last frost in late April, and entering the harvest period in mid-to-late June. For autumn sowing, seedlings can be raised in July, transplanted in August, and harvested starting in October. Protected cultivation can be appropriately advanced or delayed.
Seedbed Preparation
The seedling bed should be chosen in a plot where solanaceous vegetables have not been grown. Choose fertile garden soil and mix in 40-50% decomposed organic fertilizer. For each cubic meter of nutrient soil, mix in 1 kg of superphosphate and 5-10 kg of plant ash. After mixing, sieve it and spread it on the dry seedling bed. For early spring seedling raising, the seedbed should be set up inside a greenhouse; if the temperature is too low, electric heating wires should be laid. For summer seedling raising, the seedbed should be set up in a cool, ventilated place. There is a lot of rain in summer, so the seedling bed needs rain-shelter facilities, and drainage ditches should be provided at the ends of the bed.
Seed Treatment Before Sowing Tomatoes
To achieve high yield and increased income when growing tomatoes, the seeds must be treated before sowing. Most diseases of cherry tomatoes are spread by seed-borne bacteria, so seeds must be disinfected before sowing. To prevent the occurrence of viral disease, trisodium phosphate is mostly used for disinfection in production. The method is as follows: first moisten the seeds with clean water, wrap them well in gauze, and soak them in a 10% trisodium phosphate solution for 15-20 minutes. Take out the seed packet, wrap it well in a warm towel, and place it at 28°C to promote germination. During germination, rinse the seeds once a day. After about 3-4 days, when 1/2 of the seeds have sprouted, they can be sown.
Seedling Management
For early spring seedling raising, attention should be paid to keeping warm. Before emergence, the soil temperature of the seedbed should be controlled at 25-30°C. For summer seedling raising, rain should be prevented and the temperature lowered. After most seeds have emerged, the temperature should be lowered in time, controlled at 20°C during the day and 12-15°C at night. When the seedlings grow two true leaves, they should be pricked out.
Pricking Out
As the temperature gradually rises in early spring, the pricking-out bed generally does not need electric heating wires. In early spring, pricking out should be done on a sunny morning using the dark-water planting method: first open a furrow, then water, and after the water seeps down, place the seedlings and cover with soil. After covering, no muddy water should be visible on the surface. The plant spacing is 10×10 cm. In summer, pricking out is done in the evening or on cloudy days, using the same method as in early spring. The plant spacing is 10×10 cm. After planting, irrigate, shade the bed, and remove the covering after the seedlings recover. The temperature of the pricking-out bed before recovery is 25-28°C during the day and 15-18°C at night; after recovery, 20-25°C during the day and 13-15°C at night. Do not water in early spring; water the pricking-out bed frequently in summer. Transplant when the seedlings grow to 8 true leaves.
Transplanting
First prepare the soil. Combined with deep plowing, apply 5000 kg of decomposed organic fertilizer per mu, 20 kg of N-P-K compound fertilizer, and 20 kg of superphosphate. After leveling the land, make flat beds 150 cm wide (if mulching with plastic film in early spring, make small raised beds 10 cm high with a bed surface width of 50-60 cm). For flat beds, transplant 3 rows per bed; for small raised beds, transplant 1 row per bed. The plant spacing is 20-30 cm, and 4500-6000 plants are transplanted per mu. For plastic mulching, first prepare the bed and lay the film, then make transplanting holes according to the plant spacing and transplant, with the transplanting depth such that the cotyledons are 1 cm above the ground.
Field Management
1. Watering. If sufficient water is applied at transplanting, no further watering is needed until the first truss flowers and sets fruit. If little water was applied at transplanting, a small amount of water can be run into furrows opened in the bed, carried out on a sunny morning. After the first truss sets fruit, water heavily for the first time. During the fruiting period, water demand is high, so water once every 5-6 days, keeping the soil alternately dry and moist. Reduce watering during the harvest period to prevent fruit cracking.
2. Topdressing. After the first truss sets fruit, apply 10 kg of nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium compound fertilizer per mu along with watering. When the first truss begins to color, apply 10 kg of compound fertilizer per mu to promote fruit development. Thereafter, apply fertilizer once every time two trusses appear, with 10 kg of compound fertilizer per mu each time.
3. Temperature management. The temperature for protected cultivation is higher than that for ordinary tomatoes. At night it should be above 10°C, during the day 20-25°C, and the maximum should not exceed 35°C.
4. Pruning. Cherry tomato plants are tall and have poor upright growth. When the plants grow to 50 cm, insert supports to prevent lodging. The side branches have strong growth ability, so double-stem pruning is generally used: first keep 2 strong branches and remove the others. Generally, do not pinch the growing tip. When the lower old leaves turn yellow, remove them promptly to reduce nutrient consumption.
5. Flower thinning and fruit retention. When the temperature is low in early spring, pollination is poor and flowers easily drop. 2,4-D can be applied to the calyx and pedicel of newly opened flowers (only one application is needed). Each truss of cherry tomatoes has many flowers and fruits, so select and retain 20-30 well-set fruits and remove the rest.
Harvesting
Harvest when fully ripe, keeping the calyx and a section of the fruit stalk when picking.
Pest and Disease Control
Common diseases include early blight, late blight, viral disease, gray mold and others. Control methods: carry out a 3-4 year rotation with non-solanaceous crops. In the early stage of disease, use 70% mancozeb 500-fold solution or 75% chlorothalonil 600-fold solution, spraying once every 7-10 days for 4-5 consecutive sprays. The main insect pest is aphids, which can be controlled with 20% fenvalerate emulsifiable concentrate 800-1000-fold solution or 50% pirimicarb 2000-3000-fold solution.