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When planning to plant tomatoes, every gardener dreams of growing large, productive, disease-resistant and, most importantly, tasty. Beef tomatoes meet all these requirements.
What tomatoes belong to the beef group
This group of tomatoes is very diverse. They differ in color, size, vigor and ripening times. But they have one thing in common: all tomatoes of the beef group have many seed chambers, therefore, the amount of pulp significantly exceeds the total mass of juice and seeds. Most of the tomatoes in this group have few of them. No wonder, translated from English, the name of the group - beef means meat. All of them have an excellent taste, which is dominated by sweetness. They contain more dry substances, vitamins and everything useful, for which these vegetables are valued: lycopene, beta-carotene, and anthocyanins in dark-colored tomatoes.
As a rule, steak tomatoes are poorly stored and are even worse transported due to their thin skin. But when eaten, this disadvantage turns into a virtue - the skin in salads is not felt at all. It is unlikely that you will be able to enjoy the beef group tomatoes bought in the store, since it is difficult to transport and store them. These tomatoes need to be grown in your own garden.
Why beef tomatoes are good
These tomatoes have many virtues. Among them:
- great taste;
- high content of vitamins and nutrients;
- a wide variety of varieties and hybrids;
- high productivity;
- large fruits, there are champions up to 2 kg in weight;
- suitability for many culinary delights;
- good resistance to the main diseases of tomatoes.
In order not to get lost in a wide variety of varieties and hybrids, we will help with the choice and recommend one of the best tomatoes of this group - Beefsteak, give it a full description and characteristics. The reviews of most gardeners about the Beefsteak tomato are positive, and the photo below gives a complete picture of its fruits.
Description and characteristics
The variety was created by the Seed Company Poisk. Its seeds are also sold by other companies: Aelita, Sibsad.
The Beefsteak tomato variety was introduced into the State Register of Breeding Achievements in 2009 and is recommended for cultivation in all climatic zones.
Features of the variety:
- Tomato Beefsteak is an indeterminate variety, that is, it does not restrict its growth;
- a tomato of the Beefsteak variety can be grown both in a greenhouse, where it grows up to 2 m, and in open ground, but here its height will be slightly less;
- the tomato bush is powerful, it can grow up to 1 m wide, so you need to plant the plants sparsely to provide them with the nutritional area necessary for the formation of large fruits;
- in terms of ripening, the Beefsteak tomato is a mid-early one, but, according to gardeners, it often behaves like a mid-season variety; the period from planting seedlings to the first ripe tomatoes - from 80 to 85 days;
- tomato Beefsteak requires formation and garter, and not only the bush itself, but also each brush;
- It gives the best results in regions with cool summers when formed into 1 stem with the removal of all stepsons; in the south, you can lead in 2 stems, there all the fruits will have time to ripen;
- the tomato brush Beefsteak is simple, there are up to five fruits in it, but they will be the largest if you leave no more than 2 or 3 tomatoes in each brush, and remove the rest of the ovaries;
- the fruits of the tomato Beefsteak are bright red, have a flat-round shape, often with noticeable ribs;
- the average weight of one tomato is about 300 g, but with proper care it can be much more;
- the skin of the tomato Beefsteak is thin, the seed chambers are up to 6, there are few seeds. Because of the thin skin, Beefsteak tomatoes are stored for no more than a week, and they are completely unsuitable for transportation.
- the fruits of the Beefsteak tomato variety are intended for fresh consumption, they make a delicious juice, they are suitable for preparing various dishes, primarily for pizza and sandwiches, you can make excellent preparations for the winter from them, you just have to cut them into pieces;
- the yield of tomato Beefsteak is not bad - up to 8 kg per sq. m.
Finishing the description and characteristics of the Beefsteak tomato variety, it must be said that it has a high resistance to many diseases of tomatoes. It is practically not affected by Alternaria, Cladosporium and Tobacco Mosaic Virus.
Agrotechnics
The future large harvest is laid at the stage of growing seedlings. It is then that the ability to tie a sufficient number of flower brushes is formed, and the Beefsteak, with proper care, can have up to 7 of them.
Therefore, everything must be done to seedlings did not stretch, grew up stocky and strong.
Growing seedlings
How to grow quality seedlings? There are several components of success:
- correctly selected and treated soil. It should not only be loose and breathable, the optimal content of nutrients is the main condition for successful growth and proper development of plants. To ensure the health of seedlings, the soil is steamed or frozen, destroying all pathogens;
- seeds processed according to all the rules. They need to be calibrated - only a large seed can give a healthy plant, pickle to destroy all possible pathogens, wake up with growth stimulants, germinate in order to select only viable seeds;
- correct sowing: the depth of immersion of the tomato seed in moist soil is about 2 cm;
- greenhouse conditions before germination. In order not to lose moisture, a container with seeds is placed in a plastic bag, a constant temperature of about 25 degrees ensures that it is kept in a warm place;
- spartan conditions after germination. A temperature of about 16 degrees during the day and a couple of degrees at night is what is needed for the roots to grow, and the stem does not stretch, the maximum amount of light will contribute to this;
- comfortable conditions for further growth: a temperature of about 22 degrees during the day and a little colder at night, enough light, regular moderate watering with cold water, liquid fertilizing with solutions of mineral fertilizers of low concentration from 2 to 3 times during the growing season. Often, when growing seedlings, the desired air temperature is maintained, but they forget that the roots of tomatoes need warmth. A cold sill is a common cause of poor seedling development. It needs to be insulated from drafts with polystyrene or penofol;
- a sufficient distance between the plants, the pots cannot be placed close to each other, the struggle for light will lead to the inevitable stretching of the seedlings.
Criteria for seedling readiness for planting:
- age from 50 to 60 days;
- at least 7 true leaves;
- the presence of the first flower brush.
If by this time the soil in the greenhouse is warm, it is time to move the seedlings to a permanent place of residence.
Growing features
Tomatoes from the beef group have certain requirements for keeping conditions. If you do not follow them, you can not count on a good harvest of large fruits.
Planting rate for tomato Beefsteak - 3 plants per sq. m. Even before planting, you need to provide everything for the garter of the plant - pegs or trellises.
For a tomato of this variety, soil fertility is very important. In order to form a large yield of large fruits, the plant takes out a lot of nutrients from the soil. In the first phase of development, the green mass is growing, so the need for nitrogen is high.With its lack, plants develop slowly and a large yield cannot be obtained from them. But with an excess of nitrogen, it may not be obtained at all. Not only does the rapid growth of shoots inhibit the setting of flower buds and the formation of a crop, plants overfed with nitrogen have weak immunity and become defenseless against pathogens of fungal diseases. Late blight begins to rage, from which it is very difficult to save plants.
Mulching plants with fresh sawdust will also help to reduce the nitrogen content in the soil during overfeeding. They pull excess nitrogen out of the ground for their decomposition. After 1.5 or 2 weeks, the sawdust must be removed from the greenhouse.
At the stage of budding and fruit setting, potassium should prevail in dressings. At the same time, it is necessary to feed the plants with calcium nitrate - prevention of apical rot. After 2 weeks, feeding is repeated.
The soil should be constantly under 10 cm layer of mulch made of organic materials.It gives many advantages for the development of plants: stable temperature and moisture of the soil, preservation of its loose structure, an obstacle to growth weeds.
Proper watering is very important. If there is not enough moisture, plants are stressed, their development is delayed. With an excess of moisture, the content of dry substances and sugars in fruits decreases, which badly affects the taste of the fruits. High humidity in the greenhouse contributes to the development of late blight.
If you follow these simple rules, you can hope for the maximum yield of tasty and large fruits.
More information about the characteristics of the tomato variety Beefsteak can be viewed in the video:
