Tomato Snowfall F1 is a mid-season hybrid of the first generation. It is unpretentious in cultivation and produces fruits of medium size with a moderately sweet taste and rich aroma. The variety is resistant to diseases, and therefore has earned the attention and love of Russian gardeners. Consider the description of the Snowfall tomato.
General Features
The originator of the variety is the Pridnestrovian Research Institute of Agriculture. The variety was bred for cultivation both in greenhouses and in open ground. The second option is suitable for regions with a warm climate. The hybrid gives a high yield, its bushes reach a height of two meters.
Tomato bushes grow moderately sprawling, form a large amount of greenery. The stem is green, thick, the edges are barely visible. The leaf is simple, five-lobed, small in size.
The flowers of the plant are small, up to 12 mm in diameter, the inflorescence is a brush, collecting up to 10 flowers. Many ovaries are formed, almost every flower bears fruit.
The fruiting period is 4-5 months from the date of planting the seeds. The time to get the tomatoes will depend on whensow seedlings of tomatoes when growing. To speed up the ripening of fruits, you should increase the amount of heat and light.
Description of fruits
Each brush forms 8-10 fruits of the same size. The mass of each is 60-80 grams when cultivated in open ground and 80-130 grams in a greenhouse.
The shape of tomatoes is round, with a slight ribbing at the stem. Fruit color is uniformly red. The flesh is firm, juicy and meaty.
Gardeners who grow this hybrid note the rich sweetish taste and delicate aroma of tomatoes. They are consumed fresh and canned. The high sugar content allows the use of tomatoes in baby food.
Tomato skin is thin but firm. For this reason, the fruits tolerate transportation well and are stored for a long time.
Variety indicators
Speaking about the characteristics of the variety, it is worth noting:
- Tomato yield Snowfall - up to 5 kg per square. meter when cultivated in open ground. In the greenhouse, similar numbers can be obtained from each bush.
- Tomato is mid-season in terms of fruiting. In the greenhouse, they are 100-110 days. Some sources classify the plant as a late-ripening variety, since when grown outdoors, the time increases to 150 days.
- Increase in yield is achieved by sufficient heat and abundant watering. But keep in mind that too frequent watering can lead to fruit cracking.
- Tomato is resistant to fungal diseases and tobacco mosaic virus. Occasionally, anthracnose and alternariosis can occur.
Pros and cons
Summarizing the presented indicators, we can highlight the advantages and disadvantages of the variety in question. Benefits include:
- High tomato yield Snowfall.
- Great fruit taste.
- Unpretentious care.
- Excellent fruit appearance.
- Resistant to transport.
- Long preservation after collection.
- Versatile in use.
- Immunity to diseases.
- Possibility of cultivation in the greenhouse and in the open field.
Among the cons are:
- temperature sensitivity;
- drought intolerance;
- need for bush formation and tying;
- the tendency to form green mass and reduce the size of the fruit.
The characteristics of the Snowfall tomato make it one of the most successful varieties for growing in amateur gardens.
Planting seeds
Features of planting tomato Snowfall are not much different from other varieties. Differences can only be in terms of cultivation.
Gardeners are faced with the question of when to sow tomatoes for seedlings when grown in a greenhouse or in open ground. In the first case, seeds are sown for seedlings at the end of February, in the second - in mid-March.
Soil for seedlings is taken nutritious, with neutral acidity. You can mix equal proportions of garden soil, humus and sand. Alsoadd some ash or superphosphate.
Instead of humus, peat is also suitable, then they take one part of it, and two parts of earth and sand.
The soil must be disinfected, the seeds are disinfected before planting in a weak solution of potassium permanganate or hydrogen peroxide.
Seeds are sown in plastic containers or in individual peat cups. In the latter case, the seedlings will not need to dive and replant. The material is planted in small holes 1-2 cm deep, two seeds each.
If containers are used, then the distance between the furrows is 5-6 cm. In this case, the seeds are planted one at a time, after 2-3 cm.
Further, the seeds are sprinkled with soil, the soil is moistened and covered with a film. The containers are cleaned in a warm dark place until shoots appear. As soon as the first shoots hatch, the film is removed, the seedlings are placed in the sun, the temperature is lowered by 2-3 degrees.
Seedlings are fertilized after the appearance of two leaves on the sprouts. For this, complex fertilizer is suitable. If time permits, the next top dressing is carried out 10 days before transplanting to a permanent place.
Planting plants
When growing in greenhouses, seedlings are transplanted in the second decade of May, they can be transplanted into open ground in early June. In greenhouses, one or two rows are made with an interval of 70-80 cm between the bushes and one meter between the rows. In open ground, a 50 x 60 cm planting pattern is used.
Before planting in a permanent place, seedlings are hardened for 2-3day. For this, the plants are taken out into the open air (balcony) for several hours a day, gradually increasing this period. In the last two days - for the whole day from morning to evening, they clean the house at night.
Landing on the beds is best done in cloudy weather or in the evening. After transplanting, the soil is compacted and young tomatoes are watered abundantly.
Features of care
Growing tomatoes, they are watered 2-3 times a week, periodically fed. The first top dressing is carried out with nitrogen compounds (ammonium nitrate or urea), at the rate of 25 grams per 1 m 3 2. The second - phosphorus-potassium, it is performed a month after the first. A month later - the third, also phosphorus-potassium. Nitrogen fertilizers should not be overdone, as they lead to an increase in green mass and a decrease in yield.
Foliar top dressing is also useful. 1-2 times during the summer Snowfall is sprayed with a solution of superphosphate.
It is also worth bearing in mind that too much watering harms the plants. The soil should be moistened moderately, increasing the amount of moisture only during dry periods. Watered under the root, sprinkling is not recommended. After that, the greenhouse is opened for ventilation. This helps prevent blackleg and gray mold.
If aphids are seen on the bushes, they are washed with soapy water. From slugs helps a solution of ammonia. To do this, 1 liter of ammonia with a concentration of 10% is diluted in 5 liters of water. If there is no ammonia in such an amount, you can take less. Plants are sprayed with the prepared solution.
What to pay attention to when growing?
When cultivating the Snowfall tomato, you should carefully consider the formation of bushes. This process begins immediately after transplantation and continues until fruiting. Bushes should be single or double stemmed. It is important to constantly remove stepchildren. The bushes grow tall enough that they are tied to trellises.
The use of mulch will greatly facilitate many stages of the cultivation of tomatoes, and this is also worth considering in advance. Sawdust or peat is suitable for tomatoes. Such a mulch will prevent the reproduction of pests and simplify the process of caring for plants, eliminating the constant loosening and removal of weeds.
If there is such a nuisance as a fungal infection of tomatoes, copper sulfate or Bordeaux liquid will help. The parts of the plant affected by the disease are completely removed. To control pests, insecticides or a decoction of onion peel and celandine are used. Such compositions can be used for spraying, as well as watering the beds where the bushes grow.
Who does he get along with?
Snowfall is a mid-season variety, so you can plant tomatoes with different growing seasons in the same greenhouse with it. For example, ultra-early varieties: Irishka, Ivanhoe, Indigo. Their fruits will appear earlier, but they differ in no less rich taste.
Among the late-ripening varieties, you can consider Chernomor, Black Baron, Bull's Heart.
Opinions of gardeners
Reviews about tomato Snowfall are most often the mostenthusiastic. Gardeners growing it share their joy from bushes completely hung with fruits. High yield is the main advantage noted by gardeners.
Gardeners also like the long shelf life of fruits and the versatility of their use.
Growing Snowfall bushes get along well with other plants in the same shelter. The culture is unpretentious in care, resistant to diseases and pests.
To enhance fruiting, you should take care of good lighting, moderate watering and quality top dressing.
The undoubted advantages of the variety outweigh the difficulties in cultivating the crop, which consist in the formation of bushes and pinching.
Gardeners are also advised to purchase high-quality planting material from trusted manufacturers.
Snowfall tomato is a mid-season variety cultivated in greenhouses and open ground. The excellent taste of the fruit and the excellent characteristics of the variety make it one of the most favorite among gardeners in our country.
