Tomato Chocolate Zebra

Recently appeared on the seed market, the tomato Chocolate Zebra is a real decoration of summer cottages and greenhouses. The unusual color of ripe fruits of this variety attracts attention, and in its taste properties it is not inferior to many leaders of the dessert direction. This versatile tomato grows equally well both outdoors and indoors.

The chocolate zebra is a determinant variety. The bushes are medium-sized, 100-120 cm high. The leafiness is medium, the tops are not too thick. On the main stem of the plant, up to 6 clusters of 4-6 fruits each are formed.

Ripe fruits have a dense skin, colored in the main chocolate brown shade, with lime-colored stripes. The size is large, each tomato reaches a mass of 200-400 g. The shape of the tomato is flat-round, regular. The pulp is granular, high density.

Sweet fruits have an excellent dessert taste. They are especially good fresh, but can also be used in salads.

Chocolate zebra is a mid-season variety. Ripening takes 115-120 days.

Fruit collection rates reach 20 kg / m2 in the greenhouse. From 1 bush, you can get up to 3 kg of tomatoes.

Tomatoes are not sown directly into the ground. They are grown in seedlings, placed in a soil substrate 55-60 days before the planned time of transplantation into the ground. Self-collected seed is pretreated with a disinfecting solution based on potassium permanganate. Since the variety is medium-sized, you can immediately place the seeds in separate containers. For the period of germination, it is recommended to cover the containers with foil.

The optimal distance between the bushes is 50 × 50 cm. There are no more than 3 bushes per 1 m2.

The formation of tomatoes of this variety is performed in 1 stalk in the open field and in 2 in a greenhouse. Bushes require regular pinching, with the removal of all side shoots below 1 flower cluster. It is important not to let them grow more than 50 mm. The stepchildren are broken out by hand, leaving about 1 cm of their length on the stems.

In the open field, cultivation is recommended to be carried out in beds located in well-lit places, without shading. They begin to transfer the bushes to a permanent place no earlier than the soil warms up to a temperature of +16 degrees. In the south, you can start transplanting as early as May, in the northern regions you will have to wait until the 1st decade of June.

The main care for tomatoes of the Chocolate Zebra variety is to organize the schedule of watering, weeding, and top dressing. After planting, plants are given 7-10 days to adapt, during which no moisture or fertilizer is applied. Then they begin to be watered weekly with warm, settled water, strictly at the root, so as not to provoke the spread of fungal diseases. Under each bush, 5 liters are poured at a time.

Mulching will help keep moisture in the soil for the whole week. Before filling the material - straw, sawdust, peat - the earth is loosened and weeded. It is better to take a light mulch that reflects direct sunlight well. Good weeding and loosening are also very important. They directly affect the supply of oxygen to the cells of the plant, help prevent decay and overheating of the roots.

The feeding schedule should also be followed strictly if you want to get a bountiful harvest. First, nitrogen and phosphorus are introduced into the soil under the root. Tomatoes are fed with them 14 days after transplantation. After another 2 weeks, you can repeat the procedure. The next stage of fertilization falls on the period of ovary formation, here potash-phosphorus complexes are used, which are also necessary for bushes in the stage of tomato ripening.

This variety of tomatoes is quite often affected by late blight, Alternaria. Against these diseases, it is necessary to regularly carry out professional treatment. The plant has developed immunity to other infections. In greenhouses, it can be affected by brown spot if the optimal humidity regime is not observed. In the open field, it is worth taking measures to combat spider mites.

The variety is well adapted to difficult climatic conditions. Plants form flowers and ovaries even in conditions of low solar activity, in cloudy weather. It is frost-resistant, not afraid of returning cold.

The variety is zoned for Siberia, it corresponds to its climatic characteristics. In most regions of the Russian Federation, there is a successful experience of growing it without shelter.

Chocolate zebra is an exotic variety, especially liked by the inhabitants of Siberia and the Urals. Summer residents note that even with the first sowing, you can get strong seedlings and bountiful harvests. The bushes easily take root in a new place after transplanting, on nutrient-rich soil they do without additional fertilizers.

There were no obvious flaws in the unusual tomato. It is only noted that large fruits are not suitable for whole-fruit canning. Fruiting terms cannot be called extended either. The entire crop is harvested in 2-3 weeks, since its return occurs in unison.