Characteristics and description
Golden Heart is a domestic tomato variety obtained at the end of the 20th century. Even a beginner can handle its agricultural technology.
The type of bush is determinant. In the open air, plants gain no more than 1 m in height; in greenhouses they can grow over a meter. The variety is considered ultra-early ripening. The first tomatoes ripen 3 months after emergence. According to gardeners, sometimes fruiting may be late.
According to the description of seeds from agro, the variety has a number of advantages:
- cold-resistant;
- resistant to the most common diseases of nightshades;
- characterized by stable yield;
- characterized by excellent taste.
Fruiting is abundant - 5-7 kg of tomatoes per m². Each cluster contains an average of 6 fruits. Tomatoes are shaped like a yellow-orange heart, with an average weight of 120 g. Transportable. They have an excellent presentation. Meaty, dense. There are few spermatic sinuses. The skin is not thick, shiny. The seeds are suitable for sowing. The fruits are suitable for various types of processing and fresh consumption.
Some gardeners even grow this variety on the balcony.
In greenhouses, tomatoes of this variety ripen in the 3rd month after sowing.
Advantages and disadvantages
The main positive qualities of the Golden Heart tomato variety include the following:
- great tomato taste.
- commercial appearance.
- the presence of many useful microelements.
- versatility of application.
- high yield.
- resistance to nightshade diseases such as late blight, verticillium, alternaria, fusarium.
- resistance to cold weather and drought.
- saving space due to the compactness of the bushes.
This variety also has its drawbacks:
- Bushes are subject to pinching and shaping.
- It is demanding in terms of soil nutrition and care (the better the care for the Golden Heart tomato variety, the higher the yield and large fruits).
Sowing and growing seedlings
Sowing of seeds begins 55-65 days before the preliminary date of planting in a permanent place. The procedure is carried out in the usual way for tomatoes.
Soil for sowing can be used as regular store-bought soil marked “for seedlings” or coconut substrate. You can also prepare a nutritious soil mixture yourself using garden soil with the addition of humus, peat and river sand.
Before sowing, the soil is disinfected in any available way:
- freezing;
- steaming;
- treatment with drugs.
Seeds are treated using your choice of:
- weak solution of potassium permanganate,
- "Fitosporin".
For sowing, disinfected boxes, containers or separate pots, cassettes with drainage holes are used. The seed material is buried approximately 1 cm into the soil.
Tomatoes are transplanted into a larger container when the plants become crowded - they begin to stretch out and shade each other. If necessary, picking begins when the first pair of true leaves is formed. Plants with weak stems are recommended to be replanted several times.
Daylight hours for Golden Heart tomatoes should last at least 12 hours. If there is a lack of sunlight, additional lighting is recommended.
The first weeks after emergence, seedlings are kept at a temperature of 20 ºС. Subsequently, the temperature drops to 12-15 ºС. Watering is carried out once a week. No feeding is needed.
Application
Tomatoes of the Golden Heart variety contain a lot of carotene, which is why they are included in dietary nutrition. Tomatoes are yellow in color, so they do not cause an allergic reaction and can be consumed even by children. They are used to prepare baby purees and juices. The fruits have excellent taste, so they are recommended to be consumed fresh, added to salads and a variety of cuts. They also freeze well in pieces.
Tomatoes of the Golden Heart variety can be pickled, salted, canned and added to various assorted vegetables. They do not lose their taste when cooked, so they can be used when preparing hot dishes. They add not only taste but also beauty to the dish thanks to their rich orange color.
Overripe tomatoes can be processed and used to make juice, paste, or sauce.
Watch the video! Tomato Golden Heart
Landing in the ground
Plants are transplanted to a permanent place in central Russia when the likelihood of return frosts has passed - after May 20. In the southern regions, transplantation is possible in the first half of May.
The timing of planting plants in closed ground depends on the type of shelter:
- in the middle zone, it is recommended to plant seedlings in polycarbonate greenhouses in the first ten days of May;
- in the south - at the end of April;
- in cold regions - at the end of May.
Holes for planting are dug at a depth comparable to the size of the root system. Warm water is poured to the bottom with the addition of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers: 1 tbsp of superphosphate and potassium sulfate per bucket of liquid. You can use wood ash instead of chemical fertilizers.
Plants are placed at a distance:
- outdoors – 50 cm,
- in a greenhouse, greenhouse - 60 cm.
The planted seedlings are immediately tied to the stakes.
If there is no polycarbonate greenhouse, to obtain an earlier harvest, tomatoes of this variety can be grown under arches covered with film. But the soil temperature must be warmed up to at least 15 ºС in advance.
Tomato care
According to reviews from those who planted Golden Heart tomatoes, this variety requires the same care as other varieties.
Watering, mulching the soil, removing weeds
Water the plants at the root 1-2 times a week with 4 liters of water. Do not allow liquid to get on the green parts of the tomatoes.
To preserve moisture under the bushes, plants are often mulched using:
- straw;
- hay;
- sawdust.
Weeds are removed as necessary.
Bush formation
Experienced gardeners recommend forming tomatoes of this variety into 1-2 stems. Stepchildren must be removed regularly.
Seeds for sowing for the next season are taken from the second cluster. Choose medium-sized tomatoes.
Fertilizers and fertilizers
Each battery is diluted in water in a ratio of 1:10. According to the following scheme:
- Nitrogen . Urea or ammonia can be added as a source of nitrogen. Nitrogen fertilizers are used when tying the third cluster.
- Phosphorus . Phosphorus preparations are used once a month (for example, simple superphosphate).
- Potassium is added in the form of potassium sulfate. Potassium solutions are watered weekly.
In summer, to saturate tomatoes with microelements, you can feed them with chicken droppings or ash.
Tomatoes of this variety can ripen safely even when harvested green. To do this, they need to be placed in a dark place for several weeks.
Description of tomato Golden Heart
The Golden Heart variety belongs to the medium-sized determinate varieties, that is, having reached a certain height of the bush, it significantly slows down its growth or stops it altogether, beginning to form new branches.
The height of the plant is 60-80 cm. When grown in greenhouse conditions, the bushes can be 1.5 times greater in height - 100-120 cm. The thickness of the stems reaches 15 mm. The bush is usually formed into 3 stems, and the lateral ones can also grow quite wide.
The leaves of the plant are standard: five-lobed and strongly dissected. Most tomato leaves are small, but thinner varieties up to 9 cm in length are found. The color of the stems is light green, the leaves are dark green.
Flowers characteristic of tomatoes are inconspicuous and small. Their color is lemon yellow. The inflorescence and fruit of the Golden Heart form about a dozen ovaries, resulting in 6 to 8 fruits on each cluster.
The variety is classified as mid-season. Its ripening time is about 3 months from the moment of the first shoots. According to the description of the variety, this time is 90-95 days.
Description of fruits
The fruits of the Golden Heart tomato variety have a characteristic color and shape that exactly matches their description: they are truly heart-shaped and have a yellow-golden (occasionally orange) color. A photo of the fruit is shown below.
Fruits acquire a similar condition in a state of ripeness. Unripe representatives of the variety have a rich green color (not whitish).
There is a misconception that tomatoes that are not red in color when unripe can be a different color from green.
Important! If the unripe fruits of the Golden Heart variety turn out to be white, then either you were deceived with the variety, or the plant is sick and requires, at a minimum, more careful inspection.
The weight of the fruit reaches 150 g when grown in the garden and about 300 g for greenhouse cultivation.
Protection from diseases and pests
Tomatoes of this variety, according to reviews from gardeners, ripen quite early and do not fall into the main wave when most nightshade plants fall ill with late blight. To prevent plants from suffering from fungal diseases, experienced gardeners recommend removing the lower leaves of tomatoes.
To protect plants from diseases, preventive spraying can be carried out:
- 10 drops of iodine are diluted in a bucket of water;
- prepare a strong solution of potassium permanganate;
- 2 tbsp. soda is dissolved in a bucket of water.
Treatment is carried out once a week, alternating each method. Of the special industrial preparations you can use:
- "Fitosporin"
- "Gamair"
- "Alerin."
If the plants show signs of disease, it is recommended to remove all diseased leaves and burn them. Apply biological fungicides to healthy leaves, spraying them on each side. Solutions are prepared according to instructions. Treatment is carried out every 7-15 days, depending on the type of fungicide.
The following pests can damage tomato plantings:
- aphid;
- Colorado beetle;
- whitewing;
- mole crickets;
- ticks.
When pests appear in the beds, use folk remedies or appropriate insecticides and acaricides.
From theory to practice
The advantages of the variety also include its ability to withstand abnormal weather conditions. During dry periods or during sudden cold snaps, the crop retains its characteristics. Nevertheless, among the disadvantages of tomatoes, one stands out: the need to form a bush. Therefore, you should carefully consider some of the features of planting and caring for Golden Heart tomatoes, which are presented in the following sections.
Sowing seeds
Most sowing work (for seedlings) is carried out in the third ten days of March (on the 20th). In regions where weather conditions are more severe than in the southern regions, this time is calculated differently. Planting of Golden Heart tomato seeds is planned 2 months before the intended transplantation of seedlings into open ground. If the subsequent cultivation of the vegetable plant is carried out in a greenhouse, then the timing will shift to the end of February or the beginning of March.
Main features of sowing:
- the soil substrate should consist of peat and garden soil, taken in equal parts;
- planting is carried out in a separate peat or plastic cup (others practice mass planting in a container);
- Up to 2 seeds are unloaded into each separate container;
- the soil is generously sprayed with water.
Picking of ascended seedlings is carried out in the phase of 1-2 true leaves.
To create a greenhouse effect, farmers recommend covering crops with film or glass. At the same time, it is necessary to ventilate the substrate every day to prevent the appearance of fungal microflora. During diving, weak seedlings are necessarily removed.
Caring for transplanted seedlings involves familiar procedures:
- maintaining the temperature within +20…+22˚С;
- daily watering with warm water, avoiding waterlogging;
- extending daylight hours up to 12 hours with the help of phytolamps.
Only the basic rules are indicated here. However, each case requires an individual approach. For example, the humidity in a room can be high or very low, which is influenced by various reasons. Therefore, the frequency and volume of watering may vary. In addition, lighting should also be moderate.
Seedlings are carefully and regularly inspected for diseases and waterlogging of the substrate.
Planting seedlings
The instructions show a diagram of how to properly transplant seedlings into open ground. The best time for this will be the end of May or the beginning of June, depending on the climatic conditions of the region. The weather should return to normal, with 8-10˚C allowed at night. Farmers are advised to transfer tomatoes under film or into a greenhouse in mid-May.
To get a good harvest during planting you need:
- follow the planting pattern 50x40 cm, and for a greenhouse - 50x70 cm;
- form a hole up to 20 cm deep;
- compact the root circle of the seedling tightly;
- water generously (5 l/1 piece).
At the time of transfer to open ground, the age of seedlings is usually 60-65 days (in the phase of 5-7 true leaves). Such specimens are distinguished by their endurance and immunity.
In other cases, water is introduced into a dug funnel. As soon as the liquid is absorbed into the soil, the seedling is unloaded into the hole and covered with earth.
To provide the crop with a sufficient amount of useful and nutritional elements, the following is added to the site or directly into the hole:
- compost;
- peat;
- humus.
It is practiced to use a mixture of the proposed fertilizers.
A week before transplanting the seedlings, the seedlings are hardened off. Every day, containers of tomatoes are taken out onto the street, veranda or balcony. The time they spend in the air gradually increases from 1 hour to a day. This procedure helps the plant to acclimatize and go through the process of development in a new place faster.
