A tasty, juicy and aromatic giant in the garden - the “Ox Heart” tomato
Every vegetable grower wants to grow the largest and tastiest tomatoes in his garden. Fragrant, fleshy, juicy tomatoes of the “Ox Heart” variety - they will be discussed in this article. You will learn how to properly plant and grow giant tomatoes.
Characteristics and description of the variety
"Ox Heart" is an excellent salad variety. Among gardeners it is recognized as one of the best large-fruited tomatoes. The population begins on days 111-116. The average height of the bush is one to three meters. But when grown in greenhouses can grow up to two meters. The foliage of these tomatoes is sparse, the leaves are green and of medium size.
During the season, one bush can produce up to 7 kg of fruit in open ground and up to 11 kg in greenhouses.
Fruit weight is 150-300 g and 350-500 g in greenhouse conditions. Productivity is high - from 6 to 8 kg per meter. The taste is sweet, with a slight sourness. The shape of the fruit is cone-shaped or heart-shaped. The pulp of the “Ox Heart” is multi-chambered, fleshy and dense, without white or green veins, without large seeds and liquid. And the color of these large-fruited tomatoes varies from pink (raspberry) to slightly red.
How to grow seedlings
“Oxheart,” like all tomatoes, grows well in light, fertile soil consisting of humus, peat and sand. The beds should be located in a sunny area without wind.
Preparing for landing
Before planting tomatoes in open ground or in greenhouses, seedlings are first grown.Seeds can be bought in the store, but experienced vegetable growers advise saving them from the previous harvest.
When choosing seeds from suppliers, pay attention to the integrity of the packaging and expiration date. Discard small seeds immediately. Healthy, strong plants will only grow from large, whole seeds.
Reference. On the market you can find seeds ready for planting. They have already been treated with disinfectants and growth stimulating agents.
If you decide to prepare the planting material yourself, follow the instructions:
- Two to four weeks before sowing, test for germination. To do this, wrap several seeds in a wet cloth and soak them in warm water for a day. Leave the seeds uncovered on a damp cloth for three to four days. Then they can be sown.
- Planting material should be disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate (1%), “Fitosporin” or another product. Dip the seeds wrapped in gauze into the solution for 15-20 minutes, then rinse with clean water. If you use potassium permanganate, then take 1 g of the substance per 1 liter of water. When using other disinfectants, follow the instructions on the package.
- In order to increase disease resistance and germination of tomatoes, treat the seeds with regular wood ash or ready-made microelements. For 250 g of water, use one teaspoon of ash. Insist for one day. Then soak the seeds for 3-4 days. Afterwards they should be rinsed. In order for the seeds to germinate better, a day before planting, place them on a damp cloth and leave them in a warm place.
Oxheart tomatoes are sown two months before planting under film, in a greenhouse or open ground - in the first ten days of March.
Care
Planting material is sown in moist soil to a depth of 2-2.5 cm and placed in a warm, sunny place. The temperature should be maintained around 20–22 °C. The box with seedlings can be covered with film, so the tomatoes will sprout faster. When the second leaf appears, the seedlings are planted in separate containers with nutrient soil.
Before planting in the ground, seedlings are hardened off. In 10-12 days it is taken out into the fresh air. First, the plants are left for a couple of hours, gradually increasing this time to 12 hours. If there is no frost, the seedlings can be taken out into the fresh air overnight in the last days before planting.
Reference. Tomatoes can be transplanted into a greenhouse in April, into a greenhouse under film - in early May. In the second or third decade of May it can be transplanted into open ground. In general, one should focus on the climatic features of the region.
How to grow Oxheart tomatoes
Tomatoes of the “Ox Heart” variety are grown on light, fertile soils. It is not advisable to plant tomatoes in the same place year after year. Use soil after carrots, peas, onions or radishes. This applies to tomatoes growing in open ground.
In a greenhouse where it is difficult to comply with crop rotation rules, it is recommended to prepare the soil in the fall. It is dug up with humus and mineral fertilizers. Feed the plant 2-3 times during active growth. A potassium-phosphorus mixture and a small amount of nitrogen fertilizers are used as fertilizer.
Planting, care and cultivation features
The seedlings are ready for replanting at 55–65 days. The soil after planting onions, radishes, peas, carrots, and beans is considered good. After them, the tomatoes bear fruit well and do not get sick. The soil temperature should be above +8 °C, but it is still recommended to wait until it is 12-15 °C.
“Oxheart” tomatoes are planted at a distance of 35-50 cm from each other. The hole should be no more than 20-25 cm deep. The distance between the holes is 45-50 cm. A gap of up to 90 cm should be left between the rows. Immediately after planting, the trunks are tied up. The planting density should be no higher than four bushes per 1 square meter. The bush is formed from one or two trunks.
To form the second stem, leave the stepson below the first brush. All other stepsons are deleted. Watering should be done after the heat subsides (in the evening), and only with warm, settled water. Mulching (laying various special materials on the beds) protects the soil from drying out.
Reference. To accelerate the growth and ripening of tomatoes, the soil is often loosened and weeded, and fed with mineral fertilizers.
Be sure to tie the bushes to a vertical support so that heavy fruits do not break the branch. After the fifth or sixth cluster with an ovary has formed, the crown is pinched after three to five leaves.
If you leave all the tomatoes that have set, the fruits will be small and unripe. In greenhouses, conditions are more favorable for plant development, and the temperature remains longer. Therefore, up to seven clusters with ovaries are left on the shoots.
Important! If tomatoes are grown annually in the same greenhouse, the soil must be dug up in the fall, making sure to add mineral fertilizers and humus.
Diseases and pests
The “Ox Heart” variety is resistant to late blight and other fungal diseases. If the plant is sick, the cause could be a carelessly broken branch, lower leaf or stepson. The appearance of fungus can be caused by proximity to cucumbers or potatoes.
If you see signs of late blight infection or rot, treat the shoots with special preparations. With the majority tomato diseases (white, brown, gray rot) in the early stages can be dealt with by spraying the plants potassium permanganate solution with garlic. For 10 liters of water take one head of garlic and 1 g of potassium permanganate.
If a tomato looks unhealthy, then some signs can reveal the cause. Let's consider the possible options.
If the leaves on the trunks begin to turn yellow
Yellow leaves are cut off on the main stem. The reason for this is a lack of moisture in the root system. Planted in the ground seedlings should be watered in the hole, and not pour water onto the surface of the ground after hilling. It is this method of watering that promotes the formation of root growth at the top (it reaches for moisture).
Weak shoots growing close to the ground dry out quickly, resulting in yellowed leaves.
Experienced gardeners advise: When planting plants in the ground next to the hole (at a distance of 20 cm), deepen plastic bottles with holes made in them. If you pour water into them when watering, it will spread right at the level of the roots. This will have a beneficial effect on the condition of the plants.
If the leaves curl
Tomatoes should not be sprayed with water from sprayers. Moisture on leaves under the scorching sun is a conductor of heat. This damages the leaves of the plant.
Harvesting and application
The very first and, as a rule, the largest fruits of the “Ox Heart” variety tomatoes ripen in early August. The harvest ends in mid-late September, depending on climatic conditions.
If the weather has already turned bad and there are still unripe tomatoes on the branches, it is better to pick them.They will do well on a sunny windowsill. Tomatoes of this variety can be stored in the cellar or refrigerator, as they rarely crack.
It is this feature that farmers value very much: tomatoes are stored for a relatively long time and tolerate transportation well.
Due to its large size, this tomato variety is not suitable for pickling. It is more suitable for soup dressings and salads. They give a wonderful taste and aroma in sauces, pastes, juices, and cocktails. From one kilogram of fruit you can get up to 800-900 ml of tomato juice.
Look at the photo to see what a ripe Ox Heart tomato looks like.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
Like any variety of tomatoes, “Ox Heart” has its pros and cons.
The undoubted advantages will be:
- huge size of fruits;
- excellent taste;
- good yield;
- resistance to various diseases;
- excellent product appearance.
The disadvantages of this variety of tomatoes include:
- long growing season, not suitable for all climates;
- the plant requires constant care;
- It is very important to observe the temperature regime - “Ox Heart” does not tolerate temperature fluctuations.
Reviews
Most reviews about the Ox Heart tomato variety are positive. Rare negative ones are associated with the reluctance or inability to provide the plant with proper care.
Afanasy: «“Ox Heart” is a variety of late-ripening tomatoes that have an exceptional “tomato” and sweet taste, and therefore are very popular among gardeners. The variety is unpretentious, well-resistant, its only drawback is that it does not last long. Most often it is used in summer for salads. Grows up to 2 meters."
Hesha: «Its leaves are like Ephemera's, thin and miserable, and its tomatoes are light pink hearts.The yield turned out to be twice as high as that of the Bulls. Apparently, all the health went into the fruits, and not into the tops«.
Fialkova: «Tomatoes differ in taste. Professionals say that Ox Heart has juicy and dense juice with a very rich taste.«.
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Conclusion
Tomatoes of the Ox Heart variety are the best invention of breeders. With proper care and proper temperature conditions, the fruits will delight vegetable growers until the end of September. The impressive size and pronounced tomato taste of this variety of tomatoes will not leave anyone indifferent.