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German breeders have long since developed a tomato variety called Rotkäppchen. Translated into Russian, these tomatoes are called Little Red Riding Hood. These tomatoes got their name due to the unusual arrangement of fruits on the bush. Most of them are located in the upper and middle parts of the plant. Tomato Red Riding Hood was brought to Russia in 2010 and registered in 2011. The variety is superdeterminate standard. The bushes of these tomatoes do not need pruning, pinching and garter. However, a large number of fruits on the bush still forces gardeners to resort to a garter plant at least once in the middle of the bush.
Characteristics and features of the variety
Tomato bushes Little Red Riding Hood are low and compact, they reach no more than 40 cm in height. The stem is quite thick and firm, moderately deciduous. Due to its compactness, this tomato variety is grown on windowsills and balconies.
Tomato Little Red Riding Hood
Among the main characteristics of these tomatoes are:
- round shape tomato;
- the size of tomatoes varies from 20 to 60 g;
- a brush contains up to 5 fruits;
- the skin is tender, the pulp is juicy, fleshy;
- suitable for conservation;
- fruits are not prone to cracking;
- the taste of tomatoes is sweetish.
Among the shortcomings are called:
- Red Riding Hood tomatoes cannot be stored for a long time;
- do not tolerate transportation well.
The advantages include:
- stable yield;
- disease resistance;
- cultivation is possible in central Russia and even in the Northern region;
- resistant to cold;
- early ripening tomato Rotkappchen - the first fruits can be removed as early as 95 days after full germination;
- the yield is always stable - up to 1.5 kg of tomatoes can be removed from one bush;
- behave well in the open field and in the greenhouse;
- in mid-August, complete removal of fruits from the plant is possible;
- Little Red Riding Hood's bush is quite compact, so the distance between them in the interval from 50 to 70 cm is quite enough;
- like moderate watering;
- tolerate frost and sudden temperature changes well.
The Red Riding Hood tomato variety is self-pollinating and suitable for growing on a windowsill, helping the plant does not hurt. When the tomato blooms, you need to take a small brush and lightly "pollinate" the flowers, waving it slightly from flower to flower. Another way is to shake the plant: put on a soft mitten on your hand, then, putting your hand on the crown, lightly shake the flower.
One of the varieties of Red Riding Hood tomatoes are Orange Riding Hood and Yellow Riding Hood tomatoes. They will also be undersized and require little maintenance. These varieties of tomatoes were developed by Russian breeders and registered in 2011.
Yellow cap
What is the difference between the Yellow Cap tomato characteristic and description of the variety? This variety of tomato is very similar to Little Red Riding Hood: it has the same strong dense stem, its height does not exceed 50 cm. The leaves are medium-sized, dark green in color, wrinkled, prone to curling. The Yellow Cap tomato is an early cultivar and ripens 90 days after germination.Resistant to diseases and pests. The average yield of the Yellow Cap is about 0.5 kg per bush. When growing indoors, be sure to use additional lighting. This variety has retained all the advantages of Little Red Riding Hood, and the disadvantages include a rather low yield. Fruits - up to 4 cm in diameter and weighing about 30 g. Tomato Yellow cap and tomato Orange cap differ only in the color of ripe fruits. Both have soft juicy flesh and excellent taste and aroma reviews.
Agricultural technology varieties
Tomatoes Little Red Riding Hood is better to start growing with seedlings. Only if you are in the Southern region, then you can sow seeds directly into the ground. It is necessary to start sowing seeds for seedlings in early March. If you purchased tomato seeds from a store, then there is no need to further process them before sowing. And if the seeds are collected from home fruits, then you will first need to carry out some procedures:
- soak in water and remove all seeds that have surfaced;
- the remaining seeds are disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate;
- then rinse with water;
- can be soaked in a synthetic growth stimulator, and if there is no desire to use it, then fresh aloe juice will help: you need to leave the seeds in it for about a day.
The tomato is very fond of light fertile soil, it needs good absorption of moisture and air. You can buy ready-made potting soil at the store or make it yourself. It is not difficult to make the soil yourself: you need to mix earth, coarse sand, humus, peat and mineral fertilizers. The capacity in which the tomatoes will be sown does not matter - it can be boxes, containers, cups, pots, cassettes.
The seeds go 1 cm deep into the ground, they wake up with dry soil from above, then the container must be covered with a film, put in a warm place until the first shoots appear. As soon as the first shoots appeared, the film is removed, the seedlings are transferred to the brightest place in the room, while the temperature is 5 degrees lower than it was before. It is possible to use lamps for additional illumination, since seedlings need at least 10 hours of light every day.
From experience, many gardeners recommend watering tomatoes no more often than their soil begins to dry out. Too moist soil provides favorable conditions for the development of fungal diseases, and too dry soil will weaken the growth of seedlings. At the stage of the appearance of the first two leaves, 2 weeks before transshipment, you need to start hardening the seedlings, for this they take it out into the street: first for one hour, and then leave it longer and longer.
Watering tomatoes
It is recommended to plant seedlings in an open bed when the threat of frost disappears and the soil warms up. The best place to grow Red Riding Hood tomatoes on the backyard is the area where cabbage, cucumbers, zucchini, greens, carrots and legumes grew last year.
Before planting seedlings, the land must be prepared: it must be dug up, humus, ash or mineral fertilizer must be added. It is recommended to plant tomatoes at a distance of 50 cm between rows and 30 cm in a row. For a tomato Little Red Riding Hood, timely watering, loosening, feeding and, of course, harvesting is necessary. Since the bushes of this variety are undersized, there is no need to form them, you can tie them up as needed and increase the number of fruits on the branch.
As a fertilizer, the Red Riding Hood tomato prefers liquid organic mineral mixtures, iodine, chicken manure infusion or mullein. At least 20 days should pass between dressings. 2 weeks before harvesting, the last feeding of the plants should be carried out.
It is very important for tomatoes to loosen the soil, it is better to do this after each watering, in this way you can provide oxygen access to the roots. Loosening is carried out no deeper than 5 cm, so as not to hurt the root system of the plant.
Loosening the soil
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
The gardeners call the main advantages of tomatoes Little Red Riding Hood their early maturity, wonderful taste, fruits resistant to cracking, plant care is minimal, pinching and bush formation are not required, and bushes are usually tied once, the variety is resistant to various diseases, and also pleases stably high yield of fruits.
Of the minuses, the inability of fruits to long-term storage and transportation is called. Some gardeners consider its not very large fruits to be the disadvantages of this type of tomato.
Early ripe tomato Little Red Riding Hood can be grown not only in the southern regions of the country, but also in the northern ones - it tolerates frost well. These tomatoes can be grown both outdoors and on a windowsill. The bushes are undersized, and the amount of harvest, with the right approach, can be increased to 2.5 kg per bush. Little Red Riding Hood is considered one of the most versatile varieties of tomatoes - ease of care, abundant harvest and delicate taste will delight any gardener.
