Fresh vegetables and herbs are always tasty and healthy. Everyone will enjoy a sweet tomato or aromatic parsley on their dining table. Vegetables will always be in abundance if you have a summer cottage or a country house, but what about city dwellers? In this case, a balcony can help you.
This additional area can be converted into a small vegetable garden. But you can't get a good harvest by glazing and insulation alone, it is also important to know how to grow plants correctly. The article will discuss how to grow tomatoes on the balcony and which varieties to choose.
Content
The main thing is to choose the right variety.
Growing tomatoes on the balcony is rather difficult businessand the very first question you have to decide is the right variety. The fact is that the balcony creates its own microclimate. When choosing varieties of tomatoes (as well as cucumbers or other vegetables and herbs), it is important to select those that can easily tolerate dry indoor air and less natural light.
The tomatoes on the balcony that you have in mind to grow should be with small fruits... In this case, the bush itself will not require large spaces due to its miniature size. According to many experts, these varieties include:
- "Kid";
- "Dubok";
- "Rusich";
- "Cherry";
- "Balcony miracle" and some others.
If you decide to start growing tomatoes on a spacious loggia, then there will be much more space for a garden. In this case, the plants can be planted in spacious boxes or flowerpots. For such a garden, larger tomatoes are chosen. For example, in a balcony, varieties such as "Bull Heart" and "White filling" grow well and bear fruit.
But do not dwell only on the listed varieties. Very often, tomatoes (like other vegetables such as cucumber) grow differently in different places. Here the created balcony microclimate is important... Some balconies and loggias face the sunnier side, others remain in the shade for most of the day, somewhere there is more humidity, somewhere less - all this significantly affects the growth of plants. Therefore, you need to select tomato varieties experimentally. Plant several tomatoes at once and see which one gives the best harvest, next time you will plant it exclusively.
Soil and sowing
Answering the question - how to grow tomatoes on the balcony, one cannot but touch upon the topic of soil. In such a confined space, it will be difficult for a plant to "get" to the trace elements and minerals necessary for its normal growth. That is why the soil must be properly prepared before planting.
What soil options are available:
Taking land in the nearest park is not the best way. Yes, you will receive the soil absolutely free of charge, but its quality will not be up to par. In this case, growing balcony tomatoes will not be effective;- Buy ready-made soil. Today, many stores sell ready-made soil designed for growing specific plants, there is an option for both tomato and cucumber. Choosing such a soil, you guarantee good soil for your garden, but it is worth remembering the purchase costs;
- Prepare the soil yourself. For good growth of tomatoes, you need to mix humus and sod soil in equal amounts. If the looseness is not at a sufficient level, then sawdust or peat can be added.
But the soil itself will not provide all the substances necessary for plant growth. In the process of increasing the green mass of the bush, the amount of trace elements and minerals in the soil will decrease, which means that they need to be added there. For fertilization, you can use wood ash, superphosphate, saltpeter and potassium sulfate.
If you figured out the soil, then it is worth talking about sowing. Seeds can be planted in the soil both dry and germinated. In the first case, 2-3 seeds are placed in each container. You can plant it in small plastic cups, from where we will transplant older sprouts into boxes or pots for further growth.
But the most effective way is to use germinated material. To do this, the seeds are soaked in warm water (temperature no more than 50 degrees) and placed in a damp cloth. In order to prevent the appearance of an infection, potassium permanganate can be added when soaking in water. The seeds wrapped in a damp cloth are placed in a warm place, and after a couple of days sprouts will appear. After that, the seed (one seed at a time) is planted in a growth container.
Young sprouts need constant warmth... Therefore, after planting, the container is covered with glass or plastic wrap. As soon as 1-2 leaves appear on the shoots, the plants are transferred closer to the light. Also, do not forget to constantly moisten the soil with water at room temperature.
Some secrets of a good harvest
Growing tomatoes, cucumbers and other vegetables on a balcony or loggia requires knowledge of some subtleties and nuances. Let us give a number of expert adviceto help you get a rich and healthy tomato crop:
Always remember that tomatoes are heat-loving plants. If you grow them on a non-glazed balcony, then at night it is better to bring containers with plants into the room. After the sun comes out and the air warms up enough, you can return your garden to its place. This procedure is performed at night temperatures below 13 degrees;- Do not get too carried away with watering and fertilizing (especially nitrogen and organic fertilizers), then you will get a powerful green bush, but you will see few fruits themselves. Do not fertilize more than once every 10 days. You need to water the balcony tomatoes as needed (if the soil has become dry), as a rule, it is enough to do this every three days. At the same time, it is very useful to spray;
- It is necessary to choose the right container for growing. Tomatoes (as well as cucumbers) are a fairly large plant, and a good amount of soil is needed for normal root growth. Experts recommend using containers of 5 liters or more;
- Depending on the variety chosen, the plant produces branches of different lengths. If they are too large, they can break. Therefore, as necessary, the branches are tied up, especially if a lot of fruits grow on them;
- Do not forget to loosen the soil. For normal plant growth, it is necessary that fresh air flows to the roots. In addition, loosening helps prevent mold and other infections. After such a procedure, you will definitely notice that the soil level decreases, it needs to be replenished;
- Tomatoes, like some cucumber varieties, are self-pollinating. This feature greatly facilitates the work of the gardener. But even here one cannot do without the help of people. There is no wind on the closed balcony, which means that the pollen from the flowers does not crumble. To help the plant during flowering, gently tap the stem and brushes of the bush so that the plant can self-pollinate;
- Another secret of rapid growth and the beginning of fruiting is the breakage of small roots. Take an adult bush at the very base and pull it up slightly (as if pulling it out of the soil).As a result of this manipulation, small roots will break off, and the plants will become more "powerful" and give a good harvest.
Do not forget about airing. Your vegetable garden will grow in a confined space... This circumstance can cause the appearance of mold and other plant diseases. To avoid this and get healthy and harvestable tomatoes, air the balcony daily.
Conclusion
You can get a good harvest of vegetables and herbs on your balcony. For example, tomatoes grow and bear fruit well in such conditions. Of course, this statement will be true if you follow some rules. First, choose the right variety. Plants should be small and it is easy to tolerate dry air and lack of natural light.
Second, prepare a suitable substrate. It is better to buy a ready-made mixture, which will already have all the components necessary for the normal growth of the plant. And of course, don't forget about watering and feeding. If everything is done correctly, then even in a city apartment, you can eat healthy tomatoes grown by your own hands.
