Preparing the soil for tomatoes (growing in the open field)
Growing tomatoes outdoors requires special attention. Indeed, in this case, nutrient soil for plants cannot be bought in a store, because it is unrealistic to fill the entire area with it, and there is no point in that either. Experienced gardeners have long known how to properly prepare the soil for tomatoes in the open field so that the plants receive the necessary nutrients and delight them with a bountiful harvest.
Preparing a site for tomato beds includes the following activities:
- choice of location;
- tillage (digging, plowing);
- fertilization;
- breakdown of beds.
Choosing a place for tomatoes
A well-lit place on the site should be allocated under the tomato beds. It is better that the predecessors were onions, carrots or cucumbers. But if other representatives of the nightshade family grew on this place, you can use such a plot for tomatoes only after 3 years have passed since they were planted.
It was noticed that tomatoes feel great in the neighborhood of strawberries - the yield of both crops increases significantly, and the fruits and berries themselves grow larger.
Tillage
The land on the site is recommended to be processed two times:
- in the fall - after harvesting, plow the area to destroy weeds;
- in spring - dig up with a shovel or pitchfork before cultivating the beds, and fence.
Fertilization
In the process of preparing the soil for planting tomato fertilizers must also be applied in two steps:
- Autumn. During deep plowing, poor soil should be fertilized with organic matter (5 kg of humus per 1 sq. M.). Also, mineral fertilizers can be scattered over the site (50 g of superphosphate or 25 g of potassium salt per 1 sq.m.).
- In the spring. Before planting seedlings, add a tomato to the site bird droppings (1 kg per 1 sq. M.), Wood ash (the same amount) and ammonium sulfate (25 g per 1 sq. M.).
It is not recommended to fertilize the soil under the tomatoes with fresh manure, since in this case the plants will increase the green mass at the expense of the formation of ovaries.
If there is soil with high acidity on the site, it is necessary to additionally add lime at the rate of 500 to 800 g per 1 sq. m. area.
Breaking the beds
At the end of May, on the prepared site, it is necessary to make beds for tomato seedlings. To do this, form small trenches, directing them from north to south. The distance between the beds should be at least 1 m, and between rows - about 70 cm.
Make bumpers up to 5 cm high for each garden bed. For convenience, some gardeners divide the beds into sections with a width of 50 cm, using the same sides. In each section, you will need to plant 2 tomato bushes. This planting pattern prevents water from spreading when watering seedlings.
After the preparatory work is completed, you can start planting tomato seedlings in open ground.