Tomatoes Grandma's secret or Grandma's knot: yield and features of growing the variety

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Yakov Pavlovich

Professor, Head of the Department of Vegetable Growing

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The tomato variety Babushkin Secret is a frost-resistant plant crop. It is considered to be a real find for lovers of large and juicy tomatoes. The resulting fruits are used for fresh salads and canned twists. Despite the many advantages, selection has its disadvantages, which you can become familiar with after a little familiarization with its characteristics.

Description and characteristics of culture

Tomatoes of this variety are distinguished by their sweetness and meatiness. Before planting, you should familiarize yourself with their characteristics.

Bushes

Tomato bushes are quite strong and durable. They are not prone to spreading. The approximate length is up to 200 cm. Grandmother's secret is distinguished by powerful stems and large bright green foliage. Tomatoes have a developed root system, it is located in the upper soil layers and sprouts on different sides of the planted seedlings.

Fruiting and productivity

Tomatoes of this variety are characterized by good yield. Up to 10 kg of large fruits are harvested on one bush, subject to proper plant care conditions. The variety bears fruit for a long time, lasting from 2 months. As a result, large fruits weighing up to 500 g appear on the bushes. The diameter reaches 10-15 cm. Tomatoes are distinguished by thin and delicate skin of raspberry and pink shades.

Immunity to diseases and pests

Grandma's secret is a fairly resistant variety to diseases and changes in weather conditions. However, for preventive purposes, it is recommended to treat with fungicides. The procedure is carried out before the growing season so that the drugs do not harm the fruits.

Diseases and pests

Tomato Red Riding Hood has good resistance to the following diseases:

• tomato mosaic virus;
• verticellosis;
• fusarium wilt.

As for late blight, this common disease for tomatoes practically does not threaten the variety, since the fruiting period of the plants is early. They manage to bear fruit before the late blight outbreak, and therefore gardeners are practically not faced with the need to take emergency measures to save the crop.

In the process of growing Red Riding Hood tomatoes, you may encounter a variety of pests and diseases. To cope with them, experienced gardeners recommend using a solution of potassium permanganate, copper sulfate or industrial insecticides.

• Potassium permanganate helps with soil acidification and in the fight against whiteflies.
• With sufficient ventilation and treatment with copper sulfate, the tomato will not suffer from fungus. He is practically not susceptible to this disease, but such prevention will not be superfluous.
• An infusion of green soap will drive away aphids.
• Ammonia is the best remedy for fighting slugs.

This variety of tomatoes does not cause any particular trouble for gardeners. Among the obvious advantages are high yield with a fairly compact size of the bush, resistance to diseases and short-term drought, ease of care and no need for tying and pinching.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

The main advantages of this variety include:

• long fruiting period;
• high level of productivity;
• delicate taste and aroma;
• good immunity to many seasonal diseases.

Of the minuses:

• there is a possibility of cracks appearing on the fruits due to irregular watering;
• Tomatoes have a short shelf life due to their juiciness and meatiness.

Important! Disadvantages also affected long-distance transportation. During transportation, the fruits lose juice and part of their taste characteristics.

Methods and features of cultivation

Grandmother's secret is planted in two ways: seeds and seedlings. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages.

See also: The best varieties of low-growing tomatoes for a polycarbonate greenhouse

Seeds

Planting begins in early March. Thus, by the end of April the first fruits will already ripen in the garden. If an early harvest is necessary, the seeds are planted in mid-February. To do this, the plant needs to be provided with good lighting, regular watering, and a stable temperature (15–20 degrees Celsius). When the seeds produce the first strong shoots with leaves, the tomatoes need to be replanted in larger pots or in a greenhouse.

Seedling method

The procedure is carried out in early spring. To plant seedlings, turf soil is required. To prevent diseases, it is mixed with humus or sand. Some gardeners advise using peat tablets in the process. Before planting, it is recommended to douse the soil with hot water. After this, the material is planted in the ground. The seedlings are left on the windowsill, as they need sunlight for productive growth. Pots of tomatoes are placed in a box and covered with cellophane film. After the first sprouts, it is removed and the box is moved to a cooler place. Closer to April, seedlings can be moved to open ground or a greenhouse.

Tomato Grandma's secret

photo by Alla Kondratieva

Description and characteristics of the tomato variety Babushkin Secret, reviews, photos

This is an indeterminate (unlimited growth), mid-season, productive tomato variety for greenhouses and film shelters.

This variety is a godsend for lovers of large-fruited tomatoes.

The bush is powerful, but not spreading, 1.5-1.7 meters high. Requires tying to the support and pinning. The best results were obtained when forming a plant with 1 or 2 stems.

The leaves of this tomato are large and dark green. The inflorescence is simple.

Basic qualities of fruits

photo author Ilya Korolev

The fruits are flat-round, large, sweet, fleshy, red-crimson in color at maturity, weighing 300-600 grams (up to 1 kg), fleshy, excellent taste. Tomatoes of this variety are perfect for both fresh consumption and harvesting. They make excellent tomato juice.

Landing in a permanent place

Tomatoes are moved to a permanent place 1-2 months after planting. To do this, use a greenhouse or vegetable garden.

In the open ground

Before planting in open soil, the plant will need to be pre-hardened. To do this, it is taken outside for several days. The seedlings are covered only at night, and in the morning they are exposed to sunlight again. After 2-3 days, the seedlings can be transferred to the garden plot. To do this, make beds at a distance of 600 m from each other, pour boiling water mixed with potassium permanganate over them. Planted bushes must be tied up immediately.

Important! It is best to replant at a time when frost is no longer expected in a particular region.

In the greenhouse

Pre-hardening before planting tomatoes in greenhouses is not necessary. Gardeners can immediately transplant the grown sprouts to the desired location. It is recommended to pre-treat the soil with a warm solution of potassium permanganate. The optimal distance between the beds is 500 m. After transplanting, the bushes are also tied up. Some gardeners place tea bags soaked in honey between the holes with seedlings. This principle helps prevent the development of fungal infections and bacterial infections.

How gardeners recommend treating the seedlings themselves before planting:

• zircon. The product is necessary for disinfection and growth activation;
• potassium permanganate. Helps strengthen the immune system and root system of shrubs.

Seedlings are soaked in solutions for several hours.

Growing tomatoes Grandma's secret

The universal tomato Grandma's Secret was developed in Russia at the beginning of the 21st century. At the end of 2007 it was included in the State Register. The variety is distinguished by high yield and pleasant taste of the fruit. Disperses seeds.

Growing tomatoes Grandma's secret

Brief information about the variety

• Fruits and bush : raspberry-colored tomatoes, average weight - up to 400 g. Bushes are indeterminate, up to 200 cm in height.
• Productivity : up to 20 kg per 1 m².
• Resistance : resists powdery mildew, gray and root rot, slugs and moths. Frost resistance is average - can tolerate frosts down to minus 7 ° C.

Tatyana Orlova (Vasilidchenko) (candidate of agricultural sciences):

The codling moth is a pest that damages exclusively fruit trees. There is an apple moth, there is a plum moth. But this pest does not touch tomatoes. There are also no tomato varieties that can withstand even -1 degree, let alone -7 degrees. This is a publicity stunt and nothing more. If this variety could withstand temperatures down to -7 degrees, then it could be sown directly into the ground or seedlings could be planted in beds already in early April.

• Distribution : all regions of the country.
• Application : for canning, pickling, salads and sauces.
• Planting : seedling method, plants are planted in the middle or end of May according to the 60x60 pattern.
• Soil : loose, with a lot of nutrients.
• Care : pinching, feeding and watering are necessary procedures. Mulching the ground - as desired or necessary.
• Ripening period : 60-80 days. Tomatoes are not intended for long-term storage.

Characteristics of the variety

The variety of tomatoes Grandma's Secret refers to plants with medium ripening periods. From the moment the first shoots appear until mass harvesting, only 2-2.5 months pass. It is grown both in open ground and in greenhouses.

Keeping quality and transportability are low, so this variety is not planted on an industrial scale.

Tomato bushes Grandmother's Secret belong to the indeterminate type, i.e. their growth is unlimited. They can reach 2 m in height. The stem is tall and powerful. Based on the description, the bushes are not standard, so the spreading green part of the plant is distributed evenly to the sides.

The leaves are located close to each other. They are oval in shape and dark green in color. The inflorescences belong to the intermediate type, the flowers have a rich yellow tint. The first clusters form above the 8th pair of leaves.

Fruit

Based on the description, the tomatoes of the Babushkin Secret variety are large. This is one of the reasons why gardeners plant this variety on the site. The characteristics of the fruit include:

• skin color raspberry;
• fruit diameter – from 10 to 12 cm;
• average weight – 400 g;
• oval, flattened shape;
• the tomatoes have barely noticeable ribbing;
• the skin is thin, but it does not allow the fruit to crack;
• number of seed chambers – 4-5;
• the seeds are small.

Productivity and fruiting

Based on the characteristics of the Babushkin Secret tomato variety, fruiting occurs in mid-July. It lasts until the first serious frost, namely until the end of October. If not all fruits ripen, they are picked green and stored in a cool room. Gradually they will get there on their own.

Yield indicators depend on the planting location. In greenhouses, up to 6 kg of tomatoes are harvested from a bush. In open ground this figure is lower - only 4-5 kg.

If a gardener carefully cares for the beds, adhering to all the rules of agricultural technology, then from 1 m² he will be able to harvest up to 20 kg of tomatoes.

Usage

The fruits are delicious fresh

The peculiarity of the variety lies in the versatility of the fruit. The harvested crop is used to prepare fresh salads, slices or sandwiches.

Given the presence of a large amount of dry matter in the fruit, tomatoes are used to create thick homemade paste or ketchup, for pickling and pickling.

Disease resistance

The tomato variety Babushkin Secret is resistant to most pests and diseases:

• powdery mildew;
• gray and root rot;
• tomato mosaic;
• slugs;
• codling moth.

Periodically, it is affected by late blight, which destroys most of the crop. To eliminate the signs of this disease, the bushes are sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate (100 g per 10 liters of water). The only thing the tomato does not resist is wireworm, which can be easily destroyed with hydrogen peroxide (2 bottles per 10 liters).

Growing regions

This variety gives a stable harvest both in open and protected ground, so it is grown in the Moscow region, Tyumen, Siberia, the Northern and Eastern Caucasus, and the Urals.

Advantages and disadvantages

If we consider the positive characteristics of this variety, we can highlight the following:

• high yield rates;
• large fruit size;
• pleasant taste;
• marketable condition;
• long fruiting period;
• versatility of use.

The culture has few disadvantages. The main ones are low resistance to late blight and the need to pinch the bush.

Growing seedlings

Tomatoes are grown using seedlings. If you plant the seeds immediately in a permanent place, the fruits will not have time to ripen until July-August. Sowing should be done at the end of March. To do this, use high-quality seed material, which is sold in specialized stores.

The seeds are pre-processed by the agricultural company. This allows them to be immersed in the soil without disinfection. To speed up the appearance of the first shoots, the seeds of the Grandmother's Secret tomato are placed for 2 hours in a solution of the growth stimulator "Epin" (2-3 drops per 1 liter of water).

For sowing seeds, use plastic cups with a volume of up to 200 ml. A nutrient substrate based on humus, garden soil and sand is poured inside. Place the prepared soil in a glass and make small depressions (1.5 cm) in it.

Place 2 seeds in each hole and sprinkle with the remaining soil. Spray with a small amount of water from a spray bottle and cover with plastic wrap. The crops are placed on the windowsill so that the sun illuminates them well.

After 5-7 days, when the first shoots appear, the shelter is removed so that the seedlings receive the required amount of air. Water it every week. The soil should not be dry or waterlogged. After 15-18 days, 2-3 pairs of true leaves will form on the seedlings. This means that they are suitable for picking.

Transplanting seedlings into the ground

Tomatoes need good care

Based on the characteristics of the variety, which does not tolerate night frosts well, transplantation into open ground or a greenhouse is carried out in the middle or end of May. During this time, the soil and air will warm up to the optimal temperature for tomatoes (10-15 ° C). The beds are inspected and all weeds and foreign objects are removed from them.

The planting pattern should be 60x60 cm. The depth of the hole is 20-25 cm. 1 tbsp is poured onto the bottom. l. superphosphate. This is necessary so that the plants can resist possible frosts and the moisture level inside the soil is regulated. Precise adherence to the rules of agricultural technology will help you.

1. Fertilizer is mixed with soil.
2. Place the seedlings vertically and cover them too.
3. Compact the soil around the seedlings to prevent voids from forming inside the root system.
4. Water the bushes with 3 liters of warm water.

Features of tomato care

To get a productive harvest, the Babushkin Secret tomato variety must be properly cared for. Its immunity and resistance to diseases depend on timely watering, treating the plant with fungicides and replanting.

Watering

Grandma's Secret loves intensive watering during the growing season. However, during other periods it is recommended to water tomatoes less often. In winter and spring, watering is carried out once a week. In summer - 2 times a week. For the procedure use 0.5-1 bucket. In very dry summer weather, the number of procedures will have to be increased. Conversely, if the summer is humid and rainy, there is no need to water the tomatoes often. This can lead to excessive wateriness and cracks in the fruit.

Weeding and loosening

You need to weed and loosen the soil around the bushes regularly. Tomatoes grow much better in loose, weed-free soil. It is recommended to carry out the procedure 2-3 days after abundant watering. While loosening the soil, it is better to support the lower leaves. Acceptable intervals between procedures are 10-15 days. In spring, you need to weed tomatoes more often than in summer.

See also Tomato variety Cosmonaut Volkov: yield and cultivation characteristics

Fertilizer

For a productive harvest, organic and mineral fertilizers are used. Organic fertilizers are applied 10-15 days after planting seedlings in open ground. They help the bushes take root in the soil, strengthen the root system and stimulate growth. After 2 weeks, organic matter is added again: this continues to be done until the first green fruits appear on the branches.

Important! Some time after the harvest, in early October, a mineral fertilizer containing a high content of sodium and potassium is used. It is necessary to strengthen the plant’s immunity before the coming cold weather.

Stepsoning

During the period of active growth, small shoots and leaves develop on the bushes. They are called stepchildren. In such conditions, they cannot fully develop and produce a harvest, so it is recommended to trim the sprouts in a timely manner, otherwise they can darken the tomatoes and take away their beneficial substances. Pruning is carried out regularly during the period of active growth of seedlings (from 1 time per week).

Protection from pests and diseases

Grandma's secret is a fairly resistant variety. But for the purpose of prevention, it is recommended to treat it with special solutions to strengthen the immune system. The procedure is carried out in February-March, before green fruits appear on the bushes. If rotten fragments appear on the leaves during the growing season, they are treated with fungicides or completely cut off.

Description of the tomato variety Red Riding Hood

Tomatoes of the Red Riding Hood variety (see photo) belong to the low-growing category. The height of the bushes most often does not exceed 45-50 cm. This variety belongs to the category of determinate varieties with early ripening.

The Red Riding Hood tomato is unpretentious to growing conditions and is suitable for open ground. It can also be grown in containers at home. When grown on balconies and window sills, the variety requires additional lighting and produces a harvest despite the usual seasonal timing.

Based on the description, the Red Riding Hood tomato belongs to the salad variety. The marketable yield of the crop is 1.8 kg per 1 m². Due to the Red Riding Hood variety being a standard variety, it does not require pruning, tying or pinching. This feature of the variety attracts busy and not very experienced gardeners.

There are many opinions on the issue of gartering a tomato of this variety. On the one hand, the varietal characteristics make it possible to do without it, but on the other hand, due to the large number of fruits, the bushes often fall to the ground. According to numerous reviews, one garter in the middle of the bush will be enough for Red Riding Hood tomatoes. This will support the fruits and give the tomato a spectacular appearance.

Despite its compact size, this variety has strong, powerful bushes, whose stems are thick and durable. The degree of foliage in the Red Riding Hood tomato is average.

Initially, the purpose of breeding this variety was suitability for cultivation in open ground conditions. Often, thanks to early ripening and pre-grown seedlings, it grows well in greenhouses and greenhouses, which makes it possible to harvest the first harvest in May.

Red Riding Hood tomatoes, photos and reviews of which can be seen below, have a short ripening period. The appearance of the first shoots and the harvest of the first tomatoes are separated by only 80-90 days. This variety can withstand short-term lack of moisture and insufficient amounts of light and heat relatively easily.

Harvesting and application

Harvest in mid to late August. The resulting fruits are used in many areas:

• Conservation and winter preparations. For the procedure, the tomatoes are washed and cut into small pieces. To preserve whole fruits, you will have to prepare a container with a wide neck.
• Use fresh. Grandma's secret is a salad variety. Its juicy and tender pulp is used to prepare salads, appetizers, sauces and hot dishes.
• Sale. Some gardeners sell the harvested fruits within their locality. Due to intolerance to transportation, tomatoes are not recommended to be transported over long distances. However, you can sell at home or at the local market.

The grown crop is also used for obtaining seeds and subsequent planting.

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The Red Riding Hood's Knot tomato attracts with the beauty and brightness of its fruits and the abundance of harvests on powerful bushes. The highlight is the elegant original shape. The variety is suitable for industrial cultivation and is cultivated in open and protected beds.