We grow our own large tomatoes with sweet, juicy, grainy pulp: the “Buffalo Heart” tomato

Breeding activities are actively moving forward, expanding the diversity of tomato crops and surprising farmers with the latest varieties with interesting properties. Our detailed review of the innovative tomato Buffalo Heart contains characteristics and descriptions of the variety, yield indicators, and photographs of ripe tomatoes.

The variety is distinguished by simple agricultural technology and incredible resistance to diseases of the nightshade family. And reviews from those who planted Buffalo Heart will allow you to be convinced of its merits using real examples.

Description of the variety

The species was bred by Siberian breeders in the 21st century. Its main feature is adaptation to any climatic conditions, which makes it possible to grow it in all regions of our country. Not hybrid. Recommended for cultivation both in greenhouses and in open ground.

Bush determinant, short. Height up to 80 cm, in greenhouses it grows up to 1 m. The stem is weak, there are few leaves. In terms of ripening, it is classified as mid-season. Fruiting occurs 105 -115 days after the appearance of the first shoots. Summer residents receive ripe tomatoes already in July.

The productivity is high, 4-5 fruits are tied in one brush. From 1 bush you can collect at least 7 kg of vegetables.

Needs stepsoning. The plant is formed into 2 stems.

It is highly resistant to diseases and is practically not susceptible to attacks from infections and pests.

The fruits are large, weight from 500 g to 1 kg.The shape is round-heart-shaped, the color is pink with a raspberry tint. The pulp is dense and juicy. There are few seeds. The peel is smooth and thin. The taste is sweet with a slight sourness.

The harvest is stored for a long time and tolerates long-term transportation well.

In cooking, it is used in a variety of salads, retains its taste in tomato paste, juices, sauces, and ketchups. Not suitable for preservation due to its large size.

Thanks to its presentable appearance, size and excellent transportability, farmers grow tomato crops not only for personal use, but also for sale, which fully reimburses the initial funds spent.

Pictured are Buffalo Heart tomatoes:

How to grow seedlings

Sowing of seeds begins 2 months before planting seedlings in the ground. The soil mixture contains the following components: 2 parts of peat, 1 part of garden soil, 1 part of washed river sand and 0.5 parts of humus with the addition of complex fertilizer with a high content of potassium and phosphorus. The prepared soil is disinfected with boiling water. For looseness, add sphagnum or coconut shavings.

Seeds are sown in a common wooden box or individual containers. Before planting, disinfection is carried out in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes. To improve germination, grains are soaked in a growth stimulator overnight. Afterwards, the dried grains are laid out on a wet cloth and left in a warm place for sprouts to germinate.

Reference! While the seeds are in a wet cloth for 3 days, the temperature is changed sharply: at night the grains are left on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, and during the day they are again transferred to a warm place. This kind of early hardening will not only increase germination, but will also help to better adapt to street conditions in the near future.

Planting depth - 1 cm. Distance between holes - 3 cm, between rows - 1.5 cm. After sowing, the soil on top is leveled and moistened with a spray bottle. Then cover the containers with film or glass and leave them in a room where the air temperature is at least 23 degrees.

Reference! The Buffalo Heart tomato variety is not a hybrid variety, so you can select the seeds for the next planting yourself.

The first shoots appear 7 days after sowing the seeds. When two true leaves appear on the sprouts, they are picked into separate containers. These can be plastic glasses, peat or seedling pots. The only condition: both boxes and individual containers must have drainage holes.

When the first shoots appear, the seedlings are moved to a lighted place, for example, on a windowsill. The duration of daylight should be at least 12 hours.

Attention! For the first three days, seedlings need round-the-clock lighting.

Water with settled water at room temperature as needed. After picking - once a week, after the appearance of 5 leaves, the number of waterings increases to once every 4 days. The main thing is to ensure that the soil does not become waterlogged.

After 2 weeks, the sprouts are fed for the first time with complex fertilizer, for example: “Master”, “Agricola”.

2 weeks before planting in a permanent place, the seedlings begin to harden. Despite the fact that the culture was created in the harsh northern region, the seedlings look weak. Those who sow seeds of this species for the first time initially think that the seedlings have failed or are sick. But don’t be afraid of the appearance of the seedlings. Oddly enough, but soon the young bushes grow stronger and successfully survive in any weather conditions.

The hardening process boils down to keeping the seedlings in the open air, starting from 2-3 hours and gradually increasing to 1 day. In this case, the night temperature of the room where the seedlings are brought overnight should drop to 14 C.

How to grow tomatoes

After 2 months, when the height of the sprouts is at least 30 cm and they have 7-8 leaves, they are ready for transplanting. And again, there is no need to be alarmed that the seedlings are tall, long and seemingly unhealthy. Once you transplant them into open ground, they will begin to strengthen.

Transplanting seedlings into the ground after the threat of the last frost, when warm weather sets in. Basically, this is the middle - end of May.

The culture loves loamy soil, pre-fed with organic matter or minerals. Planting scheme: 3-4 seedlings per 1 sq. m. The holes are well watered and sprinkled with ash.

Until the ovaries, water 2 times a week with a small amount of settled water. During fruit ripening, water more often and more abundantly. Water at the root, otherwise the likelihood of fungal infections increases. Overmoistening of the soil negatively affects the taste of tomatoes; they become watery.

To keep moisture in the soil longer, the beds mulch.

From day 10, young bushes begin to grow regularly feed. During the period of growth and development of bushes, nitrogen fertilizers are used as top dressing. They promote healthy growth and green growth. During flowering and ovaries, fertilizers are changed to potassium and phosphorus.

Organic matter - bird droppings or mullein infusion - is considered a universal fertilizer: it contains all the necessary nutrients. Organic fertilizers are good for plants throughout the growing season.

After watering, it is necessary to loosen and remove weeds with roots. Loosening helps warm the earth and saturate it with oxygen. Hilling up the bushes helps oxygen penetrate to the roots, which has a beneficial effect on the growth and development of the bush.

Culture requires mandatory stepsoning. It is recommended to keep bushes with 2 stems. This means that all side brushes are removed. In this case, nutrients are spent on the formation and mass of the vegetable, and not on the growth of unnecessary branches. Stepping is carried out once every 10 days.

Despite the fact that the species is short, gartering of the wrists is required. Which is not surprising, considering the mass of fruit. The garter is tied to wooden stakes installed next to the plants.

Diseases and pests

The vegetable crop has proven itself to be unusually resistant to diseases characteristic of the nightshade family. It is also resistant to attacks from insect pests.
Therefore, it remains only to briefly mention the necessary preventive measures in the event of a massive pest invasion. And fungal spores can take completely unprotected plants by surprise. Preventive measures are a kind of barrier, an obstacle to infection.

From late blight Fitosporin is a good barrier. It will not protect the plant from disease, but it will also destroy the cause of the disease. Alternative options are “Quadris” or “Revus”.

There are many traditional methods for parasites that are no less effective than treatment with insecticides. For example, tobacco dust, which is used to cover the beds, repels insects. Treating the stems with a soap solution works well against aphids.Spraying with a weak solution of vinegar repels insects with a pungent odor, as does planting fragrant herbs next to tomatoes.

The nuances of growing in open ground and in a greenhouse

The species adapts equally well to both field and greenhouse conditions. The choice of planting site is influenced by the climatic features of the region.

In a greenhouse, the growth of determinate bushes will be higher than outside. Here their height can reach 1.2-1.8 m. If necessary, pinching the crown of the plant is done, which determines the final growth point.

Plants are planted in the greenhouse 2-3 weeks earlier, which makes it possible to pick the first ripened vegetables already in June.

Remember to regularly ventilate closed spaces. This protects plants from fungal diseases and insect pests.

All tomatoes love moderately sunny places, protected from strong winds. Accordingly, open beds should not be ventilated. However, a light southern breeze blowing through the beds will protect them from pathogenic fungi and promote pollination.

Harvesting and application

The first ripened vegetables occur in the middle - end of July, and, thanks to extended fruiting, the collection of ripe vegetables continues until the end of summer. Picking large tomatoes from tied bunches is not difficult. But if the branches are not tied up, the fruits will have to be picked up from the ground along with the broken branches.

Since the crop belongs to the salad family, its best culinary use is in fresh salads. Tomatoes are also fried with scrambled eggs and baked with meat. It is when used fresh that vegetables reveal their full range of flavors.

Due to their large size, vegetables are not used for canning, but they are quite suitable for processing for winter preparations. Among tomato products, the juice is especially noteworthy, thick and tasty, where tomatoes best retain their gastronomic properties. Lecho, ketchup and adjika are also made from the fruits.

Vegetables can be stored for a long time and retain their appearance well during long-term transportation. These qualities allow them to be used for commercial purposes, which is of great importance for entrepreneurial farmers. Other advantages for commerce are the high fruiting rate and the large weight of vegetables.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

The following advantages can be of interest to many tomato lovers who want to receive high-quality tomatoes that do not require complex care:

• high level of adaptation in all regions;
• ability to tolerate short-term drought and cold snap;
• high resistance to diseases;
• ease of care;
• low growing bush;
• extended fruiting period;
• high quantitative and qualitative indicators;
• large fruits;
• excellent taste;
• long-term storage of ripe vegetables;
• excellent transportability;
• the ability to independently select seeds for planting.

A few minor disadvantages of this type:

• weak seedlings;
• Garter required;
• stepsoning required;
• impossibility of use for whole-fruit canning.

Farmer reviews

Of course, many gardeners are satisfied with large harvests with minimal effort. You don’t even need to dream of anything better: planted, watered, fed and after 2 months - excellent healthy offspring. One tomato is enough for a salad or a main course. And you don’t need to worry if for some reason you can’t water your tomato crop on time on a hot summer day.She will calmly endure such a misunderstanding, preserving the external and taste qualities of her fruits.

Pavel, Kemerovo: “Great tomatoes. I grow it in open ground year after year. Even if the summer is not warm enough, you can get a lot of vegetables. The very first ones are the largest. There are 4-5 pieces in a brush. The main advantage for me is that I collect the seeds myself for next year.”

Olga, Lipetsk region: “I grew it under film and sowed it in February. The vegetables ripened in early June, tasty and large. Compared to other varieties sown at the same time, they turned out to be the earliest. The result was impressive, I will plant again.”

Conclusion

Numerous reviews of the Buffalo Heart tomato leave no doubt about the reliability of the innovative variety. High yields, excellent taste and size of fruits, extraordinary resistance to diseases and simple agricultural technology are the main advantages of the crop. Thanks to them, summer will be remembered for pleasant dacha chores, and not for exhausting work in the garden.