Correct watering of tomatoes
Tomatoes are more demanding for soil moisture than for air humidity. That plants normally develop, humidity of air should be no more than 50%, and here soil moisture should be at the level of 85-90%. To check the soil moisture, take the ground at a depth of 5-10 cm and squeeze into a ball. It should be easy to form and just as easily disintegrate with a slight pressure.
When excess moisture tomatoes become less sugary and more watery, too, excessive watering makes them more vulnerable to fungal diseases, contributes to cracking and dropping fruits. A drying of the earth can lead to the disease of vertex rot, the fall of buds and ovaries, the cracking of fruits. Proper watering of tomatoes will help to avoid all these troubles.
How often to water tomatoes? Proper watering of tomatoes should be rare, butabundant. If you water the tomatoes often, but in small doses, this will have a negative effect on the growth and development of plants, especially immediately after the planting.
Over-watering increases the relativeair humidity up to 80-100% (recall, the recommended figure is not more than 50%) and lowers the soil temperature. As a result, the plant will grow more slowly, the flowers may fall, the ovaries will be worse formed. It turns out that Tomatoes should be watered 1-2 times a week quite abundantly, but without pouring them.
Please note that the correct watering of tomatoes will depend on the period of plant development. Immediately after planting, tomato seedlings needin a high soil moisture, the same applies to the period of mass setting of fruits. And in the period before the tying and during the mass ripening of the fruits, the soil moisture should be moderate.
But just to keep the optimal watering frequency is not enough, you also need to water the tomatoes properly. Tomatoes are watered only under the root or along the furrows, making sure that the water does not fall on the leaves, stem and fruits. Such irrigation allows to moisten the soil, andthe humidity does not increase. Remains of water droplets on plants can lead to burns of leaves and contribute to the development of late blight, so watering with sprinkling for tomatoes is not recommended. When watering, do not overdo it so as not to blur the soil and not to expose the roots of plants.
How to determine if you are watering tomatoes? With a lack of moisture, tomato leaves begin to darken, and in hot weather - wilt. The optimum amount of water needed forwatering tomatoes, it will have to be determined experimentally, as it will depend on the soil's ability to retain moisture (moisture capacity), weather conditions, planting patterns, growth and age of plants, and whether a mulching layer is present. Usually it is 3-5 liters of water per plant.
Tomatoes are watered only with standing water, preheated in a container. The water temperature must be at leastsoil temperature, preferably 24-25 degrees. It is ideal to water the tomatoes with rainwater, because it is softer than tap water, but if this is not possible, when settling the water, you can add a little compost, manure or weeded weeds to soften it.
In sunny weather Tomatoes are best watered early in the morning or in the afternoon, a couple of hours before sunset, so that water can absorb and absorb the roots of plants. In cloudy weather You can water tomatoes at any time of the day, without fear that the water will evaporate before it absorbs into the soil.
It is not enough just to pour tomatoes: you also need to contribute to maintaining the optimum moisture content. For this it is necessary to apply mulching, using for this purpose a special film or layer of organic residues about 5 cm thick (weeded weeds, compost, straw). But to loosen the soil after watering is not necessary.
Now you know, how to properly water tomatoes. We hope that this will help you to get a wonderful harvest and not only to enjoy delicious fruits, but also to prepare them for the winter.
