Detailed Explanation of Key Technical Points for Soilless Cultivation of Tomatoes

  If you can create the facility conditions for soilless cultivation, you can grow them. The following are the soilless cultivation techniques for tomatoes:
I. Facility conditions: Use an existing energy-saving solar greenhouse for soilless cultivation. Install a soilless cultivation system inside the greenhouse, including cultivation troughs, irrigation facilities, and cultivation substrate.
1. Cultivation troughs: Leave 80 cm on the north side of the greenhouse as a walkway, and leave 30 cm on the south side. Build cultivation troughs running north-south with bricks, with an inner diameter width of 48 cm, a trough frame height of 24 cm, bricks laid flat, and a trough spacing of 72 cm. Lay a 0.1 mm thick plastic film at the base of the trough, press the film edges firmly with the top layer of bricks, spread 3 cm of clean river sand on the film, lay a woven bag on the sand, and fill the bag with cultivation substrate.
2. Irrigation facilities: Use a tap water supply or build a reservoir with a water level difference of 1.5 m. Build an independent irrigation system for a single greenhouse. The main pipeline in the shed and the drip irrigation tape in the cultivation troughs can both use plastic pipes. Place 1-2 drip irrigation tapes in the trough and cover them with a narrow 0.1 mm thick plastic film.
3. Cultivation substrate: Organic substrates can use corn stalks, mushroom residue, sawdust, etc., and inorganic substrates can be sand or furnace slag, etc. A ratio of coal gangue, sawdust, and corn stalks of 1:2:2 can be used. 15 days before use, pile the substrate 25 cm thick, spray it wet, and cover with film to disinfect and sterilize. Then add 2 kg of special organic soilless cultivation fertilizer and 10 kg of disinfected chicken manure per sq m of substrate. After mixing evenly, it can be filled into the troughs. After each crop harvest, disinfect the substrate.
II. Soilless seedling raising: Select varieties with tolerance to low temperature, weak light, high yield, and strong disease resistance, soak the seeds, and promote germination. Once most seeds have sprouted, they can be sown. Use the artificial soilless plug seedling method. Prepare the substrate at a ratio of peat : vermiculite of 3:1. Add 5 kg of disinfected chicken manure and 0.5 kg of vermiculite compound fertilizer per sq m of substrate. After mixing evenly, fill it into 72-cell plastic trays, place one seed per cell, cover with 1 cm of vermiculite, and separate the trays from the soil below with plastic film. Before emergence, maintain the temperature at 25-30°C. After emergence, keep the temperature at 20-25°C during the day and 10-15°C at night. Keep the seedling trays moist. Once 3-4 true leaves have grown, the seedlings can be removed from the trays and transplanted, about 30 days.
III. Transplanting: Before transplanting, turn the substrate evenly and level it, then irrigate the cultivation troughs approximately to allow the substrate to fully absorb water. After the water seeps in, arrange 2 rows per trough in a staggered pattern, dig holes, and transplant, with the substrate slightly higher than the seedling block. The plant spacing is 30 cm, with 3000 plants per mu. After planting, water lightly.
IV. Cultivation management:
1. Fertilizer and water management: Start topdressing 20 days after transplanting, then topdress once every 10 days, applying 10-15 grams of special fertilizer per plant each time. After fruiting, topdress once every 7 days, applying 25 grams per plant each time. Fertilizer should be evenly scattered 5 cm away from the roots so it can seep into the substrate with the water. Carbon dioxide gas fertilizer can also be applied in the shed. Generally, water once every 5 days after transplanting.
2. Temperature and light management: After transplanting, keep the daytime temperature at 22-25°C and the nighttime temperature at 10-15°C. After fruit set, keep it at 25-28°C during the day and around 12°C at night. In severe winter, the shed temperature can briefly reach 30°C, but strong ventilation should not be used. After severe winter passes, resume normal temperature management.
3. Vine hanging and pruning: When there are 6-7 leaves, use polypropylene plastic twine to hang the vines. Fix the upper part of the twine to the wire on the shed frame and tie the lower part to the base of the stem. The stems and vines intertwine with the hanging twine and maintain upright growth. During pruning, keep only the main axis for growth and fruiting, and remove all side branches in the leaf axils. Remove side branches when they are 10-15 cm long.
4. Flower and fruit preservation and fruit thinning: From 7-9 in the morning, dip flowers in a 2,4-D solution at 10 to 15 parts per million to increase the fruit set rate. To ensure large fruit and good quality, keep 3-4 fruits per plant and promptly thin out the remaining flowers and fruits.
The above content is for reference only.