How can you grow tomatoes on a windowsill?

Not every citizen has a dacha or othera land suitable for growing vegetable crops. But if you want to replenish your diet with fresh, individually grown vegetables, then for these purposes you can use ordinary window sills. The easiest way is to grow cucumbers or tomatoes in such conditions.

Growing tomatoes on the windowsill is not a very complicated process, however, in order to get a good harvest, it is necessary to take into account certain features of this vegetable culture.

For example, you need to know that tomato is a plantSouth, which grows perfectly if it receives enough light and heat. Therefore, to grow tomatoes on the windowsill, you need to choose the windows facing the south side. In the event that it is impossible or tomatoes will be grown in the autumn-winter period, then plants need to organize additional lighting, using agro-lamps or ordinary fluorescent lamps.

Since tomatoes on the windowsill are most convenientgrow in pots, it is better to use low-growth varieties. For example, the grade "Little Florida" or "Dubok" is perfect. Of course, the fruits of these varieties are rather small, but this does not affect taste. If you want to grow tomatoes with large fruits (for example, "Bull's Heart") at home, you will need to use large containers with soil that can be installed on a heated loggia or balcony.

Before sowing seeds should be checked for germinationand germinate. To do this, dry seeds are soaked in a weak solution of potassium permanganate (pale pink color) and left for 10 minutes. At the same time, good, full-grown seeds will drown, and those that are not suitable for planting will surface. The selected seeds are removed from the solution and placed on a wet gauze, making sure that they do not dry out. After a while, the seeds will be pierced, and they can be planted in the ground.

To grow tomatoes on the windowsill andget a crop, you should properly prepare the soil. For this, in equal shares take the turf, sand, humus and peat. To grow a plant of dwarf varieties, you can use small pots, a volume of 3-5 liters. But for the cultivation of large-bodied varieties, more solid containers are needed, with a volume of 8-12 liters.

Seedlings are also more convenient to grow in disposableplastic cups, it is better to take transparent, because in such a container it is easier to control the degree of irrigation. The holes in the cups should not be done, they are simply filled with soil and watered with boiling water to disinfect the ground. After the soil has cooled to room temperature, one seed is planted in the cup. If the germination operation was not carried out, then it is worth to take three seeds for each glass, in case there is a non-emergence. Then the weakest sprouts can be removed.

Glasses with planted seeds coverpieces of food film and leave in a warm place until the appearance of the entrances. After the sprouts appear, the glasses should be transferred to the lighted window sill.

Sprinkling seedlings is only necessary afterthe upper part of the soil dries. It is more convenient to do this with a rubber pear, placing its spout between the cup wall and the ground. Too copious watering harms plants, as it can cause fungal diseases.

After about 3-4 weeks, seedlings are sufficientwill grow stronger so that it can be transplanted into pots. Before filling the prepared container with soil, a two-centimeter layer of expanded clay and sand is poured onto the bottom. Deepening of the plant into the ground during transplantation is allowed up to the cotyledon leaves.

Growing tomatoes on the windowsill, it should notforget about such an important operation as pasynkovanie. Shoots that appear in the axils of the leaves must be removed, since their growth weakens the plant and reduces yield.

The optimum temperature for growing tomatoes: 28 degrees in the daytime and at least 15 at night. But drafts can not be feared, they do not harm tomatoes. Watering tomatoes should be moderate, about three times a week (depending on the conditions), using warm, stand-by water. Top dressing with organic fertilizers can be done once in a decade. However, too zealous with the application of fertilizers is not worth it, since in this case the greens grow much, and the fruits are formed worse. As the plant grows, it will be necessary to carry out its garter to the wooden peg.

To tomatoes on the windowsill began to giveharvest, artificial pollination, as a rule, is not required. But for reinsurance, it is possible, during flowering, to tap lightly on the stem every two or three days to shake the flower brushes.

The tomato grown on the windowsill is capable of harvesting for about five years, but the maximum yield is possible only in the first two years, then the plant is desirable to replace.

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