Let the tomatoes get abundant, rare and well-aimed watering

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Dry head and wet feet. The question is: who will endure such torture? Only one whose fruit is nine-tenths water. Here he is, Signor Tomato. Do what you want, and the right amount of moisture, no more and no less, provide him.

Tomatoes, quite demanding on soil and lighting, require watering according to all the rules of agrotechnical science. And if their requirements are fully met, they honestly respond to this with a significant increase in yield.

"Dry head" means that the humidity of the air should not exceed 50%. And "wet feet" - that soil moisture should not fall below 85%, but also not go off scale for 90%. On both sides of this gap, problems lie in wait for the tomato. Waterlogging the soil will make the fruit watery and the plant vulnerable to fungal diseases. It will also get sick from drying out, shedding buds and ovaries. Hence the answer to the question of how often you need to water tomatoes. ATaccuracy, following the common expression "rarely, but aptly".

"Rarely" is no more than once or twice a week. At the same time, it is quite plentiful, at the same time not flooding them. Signor Tomato will not like living "in the swamp" at all, because excessive watering is an increased relative humidity of the air, clearly not a "dry head". The growth and development of the plant will be significantly slowed down. The same will happen with frequent watering in small portions.

There are two exceptions: when the plant is still in the seedling stage immediately after planting, and when the fruits are massively tied. At this time, tomatoes love abundant watering, maintaining the soil in a state of high humidity. The rest of the time it can be quite moderate. And to maintain the humidity at the proper level, do not forget about mulching. Now about the "accurately". Water intended for irrigation of a plot with tomatoes should go under the root of the plants (but not with force, eroding the soil and exposing the root system) or along the furrows. At the same time, the soil is moistened without changing the humidity of the air. There should be no drops of water on the leaves, stems and fruits of tomatoes. Each of them in the bright sun turns into a lens that leaves behind a burn, wounds weaken the plant, and there it is not far from late blight … Therefore, sprinkling is not recommended in this case. As you can see, it is not enough to determine how much water you need, you also need to know how to water your tomatoes correctly.

By the way, they will tell you if something goes wrong. If the plant receives insufficient moisture, its leaves will darken. In hot weather, they generally wither. In general, it should be said that watering tomatoes, depending on the age of the plants, their growth, planting pattern, soil moisture capacity, the presence or absence of a layer of mulch, and the climatic situation, require unequal. Therefore, the volume of water will have to be determined experimentally.

Another important condition for success in tomato beds is the temperature of the water. The ideal option is + 24-25 degrees. And it’s also good if it’s rainy, because it’s soft. If this is not available, you can soften the available natural means at hand: compost or manure. For those who do not like to mess with unpleasantly smelling substances, it is enough to load the results of the last weeding into the water supplied for settling, i.e. weeds.

In order for tomatoes to grow, bloom and ripen normally, watering must ensure that water is absorbed into the soil before it evaporates. If the weather is cloudy, you can water the plants at any time. A clear sunny day is expected - you will have to do it in the early morning or move it to the evening, two hours before the sun sets. All of the above recommendations are given by gardeners, year after year receiving excellent tomato crops from their beds. Why don't you join them too?