Red cherry tomatoes attract gardeners with their small size, making them ideal for canning and drying vegetables. They are eaten fresh, added to salads, and used to garnish various dishes. This variety boasts high yields and is easy to care for, making it an ideal choice for planting in open garden beds.
Description of the bush and fruits
The culture was created thanks to the coordinated work of Russian breeders and quickly gained popularity both in Russia and abroad.
Distinguishing characteristics:
- The bushes reach a height of up to 2 m, with characteristic green stems and leaves.
- Ripe tomatoes are bright red in color and can weigh up to 20 g. Their shape is usually perfectly round.
- A single cluster can contain up to 20-40 fruits. As they ripen, they become sweet, and the flesh becomes juicy and aromatic.
Tomatoes are ideal for eating fresh, canning, and pickling, including making tomato jelly. They are often used in salads, sliced, and as a decorative element in dishes.
Main characteristics
Red cherry tomatoes are an early-ripening variety. With proper care and agricultural recommendations, the harvest can be completed within 95-100 days of germination, allowing you to enjoy ripe tomatoes in early July.
With proper care, each bush can yield 1 to 2 kg of fruit. They transport well, remaining intact and undamaged, and can be stored for up to 30-35 days.
Resistance to diseases and pests
To protect crops from diseases and fungal infections, it is necessary to follow a number of agricultural practices. Important preventative measures include:
- loosening the soil around the roots;
- weed removal;
- maintaining a regular watering schedule;
- ensuring high-quality lighting throughout the entire plantation;
- use of step irrigation;
- early removal of affected plants;
- treatment of plantings with fungicides and insecticides.
Following these simple but effective recommendations will help keep your plants healthy and ensure a good harvest.
Growing and care
Planting a cultivar doesn't require much effort. Just follow these guidelines:
- Prepare the nutrient substrate. Purchase a ready-made soil mixture designed for vegetable seedlings.
- Fill the containers with soil, then sow the seeds. You can plant the seeds in individual containers or sow them in rows in a single larger container and then transplant them.
- Provide the plant with sufficient light and fertilizer, if necessary. Products such as Atlet or Krepysh are suitable for this purpose.
- Around mid-April, transplant the seedlings into a greenhouse or under plastic covers. Two weeks later, plant them outdoors. The plants usually adapt quickly. When transplanting, maintain the optimal spacing of 40 x 60 cm.
Caring for red cherry tomatoes is easy if you follow a few simple rules:
- Install vertical supports at least 2 m high and tie the stems to them as they grow. This is necessary to support the fruit and prevent the shoots from breaking under their weight. Regularly remove rapidly growing lateral branches, but leave the leaves alone.
- Provide the crop with good lighting, which promotes accelerated pollination and protects against fungal infections, while maintaining normal humidity levels.
- Tomatoes don't tolerate dry soil. Water only with warm water. Insufficient moisture can cause black cracks on the fruit, while excess moisture can result in waterlogged fruits. Monitor the weather and adjust watering accordingly.
- Mulch your garden beds to retain soil moisture, prevent vegetables from coming into contact with the soil, and protect them from rot and fungal infections. Mulch effectively controls weeds, making crop maintenance easier.
This variety responds well to phosphorus, potassium, and micronutrients, which are readily available in ready-made mineral fertilizers at specialty stores. Feed the plant weekly, but be careful with nitrogen, as too much can lead to excessive foliage and reduced yields.
The cultivar is ideal for growing at home:
- Plants should receive adequate sunlight, but direct sunlight can cause burns, so it is best to avoid it.
- If tomatoes are growing in a pot on a windowsill, provide them with light by placing a lamp 20-25 cm away from the bushes, with the lamp turned on in the morning and evening.
- Maintain a temperature between 18 and 28°C. In hot weather, flowering will continue, but there will be fewer ovaries.
- If the air humidity is low, do not forget about regular watering and ventilation of the room.
Pros and cons
The Red Cherry tomato is a semi-determinate variety and quickly gained popularity due to its many advantages. Among them are:
There are practically no disadvantages to this variety.
Reviews
The Red Cherry tomato combines the best qualities. This cultivar adapts to a variety of conditions, produces delicious fruit, and requires little care. These characteristics make it an indispensable variety for gardens and greenhouses, and popular among those who value ease of cultivation.