Farmers' favorite among tomatoes: Bull's Heart tomato, characteristics and description of the variety

When asked which tomato variety the most popular and beloved, most gardeners and ordinary consumers will answer that this is Ox's heart. These tomatoes are distinguished by their large fruit size (diameter reaches 15 cm) and unique aroma.

The taste of these fruits is sweet, rich, the flesh is loose and not watery. Outwardly, they look like a heart - hence their name.

Subspecies of tomatoes Bull's heart

There are several subspecies of the Bull's Heart tomato variety:

1. Red. It is the most common. It has a delicate pinkish-red color. There are few seeds inside the fruit. The pulp is fleshy, aromatic, sweet, with a slight sourness. Mainly used for making salad.
2. Yellow (gold). The fruits of the Golden Ox Heart variety are cone-shaped. They are distinguished by their rich yellow-golden color and slightly pronounced ribbed surface. The peel of the fruit is thin, dense, glossy.
3. Orange. A distinctive feature of this subspecies is that fruits of different sizes grow on one bush. On the lower branches, the tomatoes are larger and have a flat shape, on the upper branches they are smaller and more rounded. In terms of taste characteristics, the vegetable is most similar to varieties of Mediterranean tomatoes and has an orange fruit color.
4. Black. Original tomatoes with a rare dark burgundy color. The pulp is fleshy, dark, has a sweet taste and fragrant aroma.
5. White. Unusual, almost completely white tomatoes.The light shade of the fruit is given by biologically active substances that are beneficial to health.
6. Pink. The subspecies has beautiful pale pink fruits; thanks to its mild taste without sourness, these tomatoes are well suited for stuffing and preparing salads and soups.

Characteristics and description of the variety

The bushes of all subspecies are long, with a strong stem, branched, dark green leaves of medium size. The bushes grow up to 100-120 cm in height, stop growing on their own, and do not need to be pinched. Usually 3-4 ovary shoots are formed on one bush. The fruits ripen late, requiring 3 to 3.5 months for full maturity.

These tomatoes can be grown both in a greenhouse and in open ground using seedlings.

Bull's Heart tomatoes are resistant to diseases and pests and retain their taste even after processing.

Productivity depends on growing conditions and care. In open ground, it is possible to collect up to 5 kg of tomatoes from each bush, and in a greenhouse, up to 12 kg of crop can be harvested from one plant.

The first fruits are large, the subsequent ones are smaller. They have an interesting shape, similar to a heart. One bush can produce fruits of different shapes, with a smooth or grooved surface. The fruit is large at the top and tapers downwards, the tip is sharp.

The skin is thin but durable and can be easily separated. The pulp is fleshy and contains few seeds. The number of chambers in one fruit is 3-5. The aroma of tomatoes is pronounced, classic, the color of the flesh is red, and the taste is sweetish with a piquant sour note. The fruit is not watery.

How to grow seedlings

Seedling is a young plant that is grown from seeds. They can be bought at a specialty store or taken from grown fruits.

Before planting the seed from which the seedlings will grow, preparatory measures are carried out. The seeds are kept in water for some time and disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate (10 g of potassium permanganate per liter of water): placed in the resulting solution, removed after half an hour.

After this, the grains are laid out on a moistened cloth, covered with a lid or film, and placed in a warm place, but not in direct sunlight. After 2-3 months, sprouts will appear from the seeds. They are planted in special soil intended for vegetable crops.

Note. Use plastic glasses or small wooden boxes as containers.

In the photo below you can see an example of growing seedlings in cups.

Before planting the sprouts in the soil, it should be heated to room temperature, divided into containers so that the layer in each of them is 3 cm, and watered with warm water. Next, using tweezers, you need to place the sprouted seeds in containers and sprinkle with a small amount of dry soil, cover with film and place in a warm place. When sprouts appear from the soil, the film can be removed.

Note. It is recommended to remove the film gradually, allowing the seedlings to get used to the ambient temperature. To do this, first remove the film for a short time, then close the containers again, and then remove the covering material completely.

After this, move the seedlings to a cooler but brighter place.

Attention! The Bull's Heart variety is late. The right time for sowing seeds is the beginning of spring (March 1). It is better to plant seedlings from late May to mid-June.

How to grow tomatoes

There are two ways to grow Ox Heart tomatoes: in a greenhouse and in open ground. Let's look at the features of each of them.

Outdoor cultivation

To grow a rich harvest in open ground, it is important to properly prepare the land in the fall. It is recommended to dig up the area and apply fertilizer: 0.5 buckets of compost, 2 tablespoons of potassium sulfate per 1 square meter. meter. In addition, we must not forget about the fertilizers that are placed in the hole when planting seedlings.

The drug “Hurricane” is suitable in composition and properties. Place 0.5 teaspoon of the drug in each well. Plants develop well in soil with a neutral or slightly acidic environment (6.5 pH).

The next feature: before planting seedlings, it is recommended to treat them with Fitosporin-M solution.

The bushes of this variety are tall, so install 2 m high supports for them in advance. They should be located from south to north. The distance between bushes in a row should be 0.5 m.

It is better to immerse the seedlings in the soil to the level of the first leaves so that new roots appear on the stem. The more powerful the root system, the more nutrients the plant will receive. Tomatoes should be planted in an area well-warmed by the sun.

It is not recommended to water young bushes often, as if there is excess moisture, the trunk will begin to deform and break. When there is a lack of liquid, the leaves become fluffy and rich green in color, and when there is an excess, they acquire a pale green tint.

Attention! For watering, use only warm water, as watering with cold water will cause the roots to rot and the fruits to fall off.

In order to obtain an excellent harvest in the open ground, it is recommended to fertilize the bushes twice a season. The first feeding should be done 20 days after planting the seedlings. The second - a month after the first. It is better to use liquid mixtures as fertilizer.

For example, the mixture could be as follows: for one bucket of water, 15 g of potassium fertilizer, 25 g of a nitrogen mixture and 40 g of preparations with the maximum percentage of phosphorus. Spray the resulting mixture onto 15 bushes.

For the second stage of fertilizer, 10 liters of the same mixture are prepared and sprayed onto 7 bushes.

To prevent the bushes from rotting, it is recommended once every 7 days during fruit growth. spray plants calcium nitrate.

To fertilize tomatoes between the rows, use a mixture of phosphorus and nitrogen preparations.

The photo shows what planting in open ground looks like.

Growing in a greenhouse

Farmers recommend grow tomatoes in the greenhouse, as it creates favorable conditions for the harvest.

Before planting seedlings, it is recommended to carry out cleaning: wash the walls of the greenhouse with soapy water, and pour boiling water or a solution of potassium permanganate onto the soil (this is necessary to destroy parasites).

Transplantation into a greenhouse can be carried out when the height of the seedlings reaches 20-25 cm. It is important that the design of the greenhouse requires a ventilation system and has good lighting. Growing the Oxheart tomato in a greenhouse should be carried out taking into account that there should be a distance of 1 m between the beds. There should be a distance of 4-5 cm above the ground and the first leaf.

The first time is fertilized 2-3 weeks after placing the seedlings in the greenhouse. Make a solution: 9 liters of water, 0.5 liters of manure, 1 tablespoon of nitrophoska. The second time (after another 10 days) dissolve one part of chicken manure in 15 parts of water. For the third time, dissolve one part of cow dung in 10 parts of water. Pour approximately 1 liter of solution onto the bush.

The photo shows what planting in a greenhouse looks like.

Features of care

To increase the yield of tomatoes, it is recommended to follow the care rules listed below.

Watering

Watering begin only after the seedlings take root in the soil. It is correct to water once a week, 5-7 liters per 1 square meter. meter. Gradually, as the plant grows, increase the amount of water to 12-15 liters per 1 square meter. meter. Water in the morning or evening, using settled water. It is necessary to water at the root so that moisture does not get on the leaves and stems.

Comfortable temperature for the growth of Ox heart is 20-22°C.

A week after planting the seedlings, a bush is formed into one stem and tied to the supports with special pieces of fabric.

To maintain moisture in the soil near the bush, it is recommended to place straw around the stem; the layer should be approximately 4-5 cm thick.

Loosening

To allow the roots to breathe, it is necessary to loosen the soil around the stems. Loosening should be done after each watering. In the first 2-3 weeks after planting, they loosen to a depth of 10-12 cm, then, in order not to damage the roots, to 5-8 cm. Thanks to loosening, the temperature and humidity conditions of the soil improve.

Note. When Bull's Heart tomatoes bloom, they need to be pollinated. This is usually done with a brush, gently brushing the pollen off the flowers. You can also simply tap the support pegs to which the tomatoes are tied. Pollination is best done in the morning or evening.

Stepsoning

A shoot is a shoot between the main stem of a plant and its leaf. To get a good harvest in a short time, you need to trim off excess stepsons so that nutrients are spent not on stem growth, but on fruit growth.

First, each bush is selected and the three best stems are left, and the rest are cut off. All subsequent stems are also removed when they grow 5-7 cm long.

In order for the fruits to be of high quality, you need to leave a maximum of 8 branches with fruits on the bush.

To prevent the stepsons from growing too quickly, you can leave a 1 cm long stump when cutting.

Pest treatment

Like other garden crops, tomatoes are spoiled by parasites and pests. Here are some of them:

• late blight – a fungus that attacks the stem, leaves and fruits of tomatoes. Brown spots appear on leaves and fruits. To prevent disease, spray the plant with a garlic solution, and for prevention - with a solution of table salt. Bordeaux mixture helps well, but it cannot be used often - no more than 5 times per season. Solutions of foundationazole and phytosporin also help well;
• macrosporiosis - another type of fungus. When affected by this disease, leaves and stems begin to die. Black spots appear on the fruit near the stalk. They should be treated with a copper-soap solution, which is prepared by mixing 20 g of copper sulfate and 200 g of soap with 10 liters of water. The affected parts of the bush are cut off and burned;
• fusarium wilt usually affects young plants in greenhouses. The leaves in the vein area become lighter, and the entire leaf gradually turns yellow. As the disease develops, the plant poisons itself with toxins. The disease can occur when the temperature in the greenhouse is not maintained. Spraying with foundationazole or phytosporin helps.

Disadvantages of the variety

Besides pest control, there are other challenges to growing this variety. Difficulties are caused by large fruits, which break the trunks and bend the plant to the ground, so it is necessary to carefully tie it to the support. Due to the branching of the bushes, the tomatoes “suffocate”; you must not forget to ventilate the greenhouse.

Other disadvantages of the variety:

1. The Ox Heart variety ripens late, so it is not suitable for all climatic conditions.
2. It is necessary to carefully monitor the feeding of plants, since a lack of nutrients can significantly reduce the yield.
3. Fresh tomatoes do not last long (2-3 weeks).

Advantages of the variety

The described disadvantages are insignificant and pale in comparison with the obvious advantages of these fruits:

• incredible taste, fleshy pulp;
• a bountiful harvest;
• the fruits ripen successfully when removed without losing their taste;
• they do not use purchased seeds, but those grown independently, since this variety is not a hybrid;
• high seed germination;
• beneficial properties of fruits.

The fruits contain elements beneficial to the human body, namely:

• vitamins B and K, which increase immunity and have a positive effect on the cardiovascular system and metabolism;
• pectin, which cleanses human organs of harmful substances, reduces cholesterol levels and the risk of cancer;
• mineral salts that are essential in the vital processes of the whole organism, for example, calcium, silicon, magnesium, manganese, iodine, iron and others;
• fiber necessary for the proper functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.

A separate advantage is the use of Ox's heart fruits in cooking: these include salads, sauces, adjika, canning, and other recipes for which the housewives' imagination is enough. A review of the reviews shows how much we love this variety. Let's list some of them.

Reviews from gardeners

Oksana, Tambov: «I love this variety of tomatoes! I love it because it ripens quickly and is very tasty. There are never any problems with care. The seedlings grow quickly, few leaves are formed, and you don’t have to pick them off often. There are many fruits and they are very large.Most often I plant the pink variety Ox's Heart, but I also love the red one. This year I tried to grow orange. I really liked it too, the taste is sweet, without sourness, it is recommended for people with high stomach acidity«.

Svetlana, Penza: «All gardeners know this variety. It stands out for its giant and very tasty red heart-shaped fruits. The tomato is tall and requires shaping and staking. I’ll tell you about seeds from the company “Aelita”. Firstly, I like the Bull’s Heart from “Aelita” the most; the tomatoes are larger, even in size and shape and sweeter than, for example, from “Gavrish” or “SeDeK”. The average size of tomatoes is from 260-320 g, when formed into one stem you can reach up to 400 g, but such tomatoes often crack and bend branches under their weight. For me, the ideal size of Ox heart is 300 grams, just enough to make a salad for one person.»

Lyudmila, Kirov: «Previously, my mother was involved in gardening in our family, but the time has come for me to comprehend this art. When buying tomato seeds, only one name came to mind - Bull's Heart, probably because everyone knows it. I took information on planting and care from books or asked my mother. I planted my tomatoes on March 1st and planted them out on May 1st. From all 10 seeds, 10 bushes sprouted, plus when pinching, I planted cut shoots, for a total of 20 bushes. The first tomato turned red in July. The bushes grew tall, with strong stems, the sticks had to be replaced with higher ones - 1.5 m. 3-9 large fruits were formed on the bushes. They didn’t get sick with late blight, but I kept an eye on it and sprayed it.The soil in our garden is poor, sandy, there was no manure or compost, we fed it with Agricola, Ideal and ash, and loosened it. Maybe it was a hot summer, a lot depends on the seeds. The tomatoes are very tasty, sugary, tender, not suitable for pickles, but excellent in a salad. I recommend this variety to everyone!».

Conclusion

If you follow the rules for planting, caring for and growing Ox Heart tomatoes, and treat the process with love and attention, you will definitely get a wonderful harvest. Tomatoes will saturate the body with useful elements and allow you to prepare many delicious dishes and preparations for the winter. The process of planting and caring for it will bring no less pleasure to gardening lovers, and the fruits will be a reward for their work.

There are several basic principles for obtaining excellent results. First of all, prepare the seeds correctly, not forgetting about disinfection, and carefully grow the seedlings, observing the thermal regime. Then carefully prepare the soil and fertilize it with nutrients, carefully cultivate the greenhouse or select soil. Do not forget to pollinate and prune stepsons, monitor soil fertilization, loosening, watering and prevent diseases.