Tomato Elk

A variety called Elk was recently bred, but in a short period of time it managed to gain the trust of both experienced gardeners and beginners. When creating it, experts took into account the wishes of Russian summer residents and tried to combine the maximum number of positive characteristics in one fruit crop.

It is recommended to grow the hybrid in different types of greenhouses, but in some regions of Russia it is cultivated in open ground. The type of growth is indeterminate, and the purpose of the fruit is universal. The bushes reach a height of 250-270 centimeters when grown in greenhouses. In the open air, they reach about 1.5 meters. Plants are vigorous, with a dense green mass and sturdy stems. The foliage is deep green. One bush forms 10 to 12 shoots.

Fully ripe tomatoes are pink with a raspberry tint, without a green spot at the stalk. The sizes of the tomatoes are marked as large. In mass, they gain from 200 to 250 grams, but some specimens can grow up to 0.5 kilograms. The shape is round, slightly flattened. The pulp is firm in moderation, fleshy and sugary, not watery. The skin is firm but not thick. Some gardeners remove vegetables from the shoots half-ripe, as they ripen remarkably on their own.

When cut, seed nests are observed in green. This characteristic indicates an intense taste. Due to their high transportability, vegetables are not afraid of transportation over long distances. And also tomatoes can be safely stored for two weeks. During this time, they do not lose their commercial qualities, such as attractiveness and high gastronomic properties. The Elk variety is often used for commercial cultivation.

Gardeners, who have been cultivating this variety for more than one year, note its wonderful taste characteristics. Most often, the fruits are eaten fresh, enjoying juicy and healthy tomatoes. They are also useful when preparing vegetable cuts, snacks or salads. Mature vegetables make delicious winter preparations, including nutritious canned juice.

Fully ripe tomatoes are sweet without sour notes. The taste is rich tomato, which is enhanced by the aroma.

The ripening period is 95-100 days. Thanks to this characteristic, the variety is considered early. Due to long-term fruiting, the crop is harvested throughout the season as the fruits ripen.

With proper care of the bushes, high yields are noted. 7.5 kilograms of vegetables are obtained from a square meter of the plantation. If you create the most comfortable conditions for the variety, you can increase fruiting up to 10 kilograms.

Note: problems with ovaries are not observed at low or high temperatures.

It is recommended to sow seeds for seedlings in March, in some regions the work is carried out in April. By the time of transplantation, the age of the seedlings should be at least 60-65 days. This must be taken into account when calculating the date of transfer of plants to a permanent planting site.

It is not difficult to grow seedlings on your own if you adhere to the following scheme.

• The seed is sown in a container filled with nutritious and lightly tamped soil. Seeds, like potting soil, are best purchased at a gardening store. This way the materials do not need to be processed and prepared before use.

• The seeds are sprinkled with a layer of peat or earth 1 centimeter thick.

• Irrigation is carried out with warm water through a sieve to evenly distribute moisture.

• After planting, the container is covered with film or glass and transferred to a warm room (the required temperature is +25 degrees Celsius).

• Immediately after the formation of seedlings, the shelter is removed, and the containers are transferred to the sun. With a lack of sunlight, daylight hours are compensated with the help of lighting devices.

• The temperature regime is lowered to 15-16 degrees Celsius. After that, the temperature is raised to a maximum of +22 degrees.

• It is obligatory to pick the seedlings in separate containers. The sprouts are planted no earlier than after the appearance of two true leaves.

As a rule, young plants are transplanted between May and June. By this time, the seedlings have developed enough and the first flower cluster will appear.

It is undesirable to thicken the planting, the maximum density is 2.5 bushes per square meter. The recommended layout is 40x40 centimeters.

Fruiting is strongly affected by the correct choice of place for the garden. The site must be protected from strong gusts of wind and drafts. Tomatoes love sunlight, so there should be plenty of it. When growing vegetables in a greenhouse, it is advisable to arrange drip irrigation. It makes it easy to maintain optimal moisture levels.

The beds should be loosened and weeded regularly to saturate the soil with oxygen. It is necessary for the full development of the root system.

When growing fruit crops, one cannot do without the use of dressings, especially if the soil is depleted. Tomatoes are fertilized during flowering with potassium-phosphorus fertilizers. Fertilizers are also used during transplanting. Bushes need minerals at the start of the growing season and during the formation of the crop.

The stems must be tied up as the shoots grow. Given the fact that the variety has an indeterminate type of growth, the bushes do not grow. It is also important to regularly carry out pinching. Removal of unnecessary lateral shoots is carried out so that the plant spends energy not on the formation of shoots, but on the fruits.

The next prerequisite is the formation of plants in 1-2 stems. This option is recommended by experienced gardeners. According to reviews, the highest yield can be achieved when the bushes are formed into 1 stem. When choosing this option, up to 35 tomatoes will ripen on one bush.

The Elk variety boasts a high resistance to diseases. Due to the innate immune system, the tomato is not afraid of most diseases that often harm vegetable crops. This characteristic does not mean that you need to completely abandon preventive measures. They should be carried out regularly, especially in adverse weather conditions.

It is advisable to carefully examine the bushes for symptoms, and when they appear, you need to immediately begin to fight pests or infections. Store-bought products such as "Hom" or "Fundazol" have long been used by Russian gardeners and have proven to be effective formulations. Folk remedies are also used. The bushes can be treated with an iodine solution or a manganese-garlic-based compound.

When cultivating the variety indoors, the premises should be sanitized. Plants are treated with a mixture of wood ash and tobacco dust.