If on your site you want to grow a high-yielding a variety with excellent taste and exotic appearance, then the tomato honey drop is the best fit for this. The description and characteristics of this variety are presented in this review.
Description and characteristics of the tomato variety Honey drop
The Honey Drop variety owes its origin to Russian breeders. Refers to medium early varieties. Recommended to grow in areas with long sunny summers. A variety of cherry tomatoes, grown in greenhouses and in the open field.
The ripening period is 110-115 days. The bushes are tall, growing 170-200 cm in a greenhouse, 120-150 cm in an open bed. Bushes should be formed into 2 stems. The stems are weak and require tying and pinching. The leaves are similar to those of a potato. The fruits are not large, grow in clusters of 14-20 pieces, deep yellow color. They are shaped like a pear. Each fruit weighs 15-25 grams. They have a sweet taste with a honey flavor.
Advantages and disadvantages
These advantages of the variety are:
- pleasant taste qualities;
- high yield;
- universality cultivation (greenhouses, open beds);
- diversity use;
- possibility collecting seeds.
The disadvantages of this variety include:
- need for tying up;
- necessarily removal of stepsons;
- inclination to cracking ripe.
Seed preparation
Properly grown seedlings are the key to a good harvest. Sowing seeds is necessary in early March. Using seed is better than 2 years of aging. Before planting, seeds must be soaked for 20 minutes in 1% manganese solution for disinfection.
This procedure is necessary to increase immunity to disease. After processing, the seeds must be rinsed with running water. Seeds ready for planting are sown in containers.
Soil preparation
Tomato Honey Drop prefers fertile soil. For planting, you need to mix the garden soil in equal proportions with sand, peat and add a little ash to normalize acidity. The soil must be watered with a hot solution of strong manganese for disinfection.
Growing seedlings and care
The prepared soil is poured into oblong boxes, well leveled. Seeds are sown by pressing every 2 cm to a depth of 1 cm. Sprinkle with a thin layer of soil, moisten with a spray bottle and cover with glass. They are taken out into a dark room with a temperature of 23-25 degrees. The glass is periodically removed to saturate the seeds with oxygen.
After 5-7 days, after the emergence of seedlings, the glass is removed and the seedlings are transferred to a well-lit room. The first two days, the seedlings need additional lighting. It is carried out using fluorescent lamps. In the future, daylight hours should be at least 14-16 hours. Water the seedlings with warm water from a spray bottle. Top dressing must be applied twice - after the emergence of seedlings and after diving. For fertilization, you can use an ash solution:
- water - 1 liter;
- ash — 1 tablespoon.
After 2 leaves appear on the seedlings, it must be transplanted into pots with a volume of 1 liter. Before diving, moisten the soil in the boxes well.
When diving seedlings, you need to carefully pinch the central root. At the same time, an additional amount of lateral roots grows, which makes the plant stronger.
After transplanting, water and fertilize abundantly. If there are 3-4 leaves on the seedlings, it is planted in open ground. Two weeks before transplanting, the seedlings must be hardened. This is done as follows:
- The first two days indoors with seedlings open the window for 2-3 hours;
- Take out seedlings outside for 3-4 hours;
- everyday lengthen the time finding seedlings in the open air;
- Leave before disembarking outdoors at night.
Transplant to open beds
Saplings are planted in greenhouses in early April. Greenhouses need to be well heated. Seedlings are planted every 65 cm in a row. The greenhouse must be ventilated periodically. In case of a lack of lighting for plants, additional lighting must be organized. Watering once a week. After watering, be sure to loosen the soil.
Experienced gardeners are advised to grow this variety in the open field. It has been noticed that due to high humidity and denser planting of bushes, tomatoes in the greenhouse get sick more often. Seedlings are planted on open beds in the last days of May. We choose the garden in an open area, well lit by the sun. Plant seedlings with a 60 cm gap between plants. After transplanting, the seedlings need to be tied up. The bushes form two stems. It is recommended to remove the processes once a week so that they do not interfere with the formation of the ovaries. Watering should be moderate but abundant. Watering should be done as the soil dries. Water for irrigation should be settled and warm. After watering, it is imperative to loosen the soil so that there is no stagnation of moisture.
An excess of moisture in the soil leads to fungal diseases!
Top dressing must be done three times. The first is performed one week after transplantation. Fertilized bird droppings or mullein can be used as fertilizer. During the flowering period, it is better to apply fertilizers containing a large amount of nitrogen to the soil. When forming golden fruits, tomatoes need fertilizing with fertilizers containing magnesium sulfate.
Diseases and pests
A honey drop is immune to diseases such as:
- late blight;
- rot is gray;
- the leg is black;
However, adjacent to other varieties, it can become infected with these diseases. For prevention, treatment with phytosporin is recommended... As a preventive measure against pests, it is necessary to spray the bushes with a solution of hydrogen peroxide. Treatment with a solution of laundry soap helps well from aphids.
Harvesting tomato
The honey drop matures 100 days after planting. Tomatoes of this sorite are used for canning, they can be dried, used in fresh salads. Its sweet taste makes it suitable for making jam. Well suited for people who are allergic to red fruits with high acidity.
Tomato Honey Drop is distinguished not only by its exotic look, but also by its high yield and excellent taste. Even the most fastidious farmer will be satisfied by growing this variety on his site.