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More than 2.5 thousand varieties and hybrids of tomatoes are registered in the Russian State Register. There are standard round-shaped tomatoes with a sweet-sour taste, and completely exotic options, the taste of which resembles fruit, and the appearance is more like an amazing tropical berry.
Among all this variety, lettuce-type tomatoes stand out. It is these fruits that are specifically intended for fresh consumption.
What is the difference between salad varieties of tomatoes from the rest, how to grow them correctly and what varieties to choose for your garden - this is the article about this.
Tomato classification
You can endlessly divide tomatoes into groups: by the type of pollination, by the height of the bushes, by the method of planting, according to the ripening time, etc. Most people are interested in exactly the taste of vegetables grown on their plots.
On this basis, tomatoes can be divided into:
- salad - those that are tasty fresh;
- salted, with a well-permeable peel through which the marinade passes, and dense pulp;
- intended for canning tomatoes they are often small in size, because they must crawl through the neck of the can;
- cocktail tomatoes are small neat fruits that decorate ready-made meals, snacks or desserts;
- cherry - dessert tomatoes of small sizes, often having an uncharacteristic taste for a tomato (fruit or berry);
- it is good to make sauces from sauce tomatoes, because there are very few seeds in them;
- stuffed fruits are convenient to stuff and bake or stew in this form.
What is special about salad tomatoes
Lettuce varieties are easy to distinguish by the indescribable aroma of fruits - this is the smell of fresh grass, greenery, summer. These tomatoes must be eaten fresh, only plucked from the bush. It is in this form that the fruits contain the maximum amount of nutrients and vitamins.
Do not pluck lettuce tomatoes unripe - this method is not for them. The fruits must be fully ripe on the branches in order to absorb the maximum of trace elements, to be saturated with aroma and taste.
It is tomatoes of salad varieties that contain the highest amount of vitamins and nutrients.
Moreover, none of those who have tried such a mix will guess that there are no other ingredients in the salad, except for various tomatoes.
Salad tomato varieties, in turn, are also divided into several subspecies:
- Sweet - have a harmonious sugar and acid content. On the fracture of such a tomato, small grains, similar to sugar, are even visible.
- Fleshy tomatoes are very nutritious, they are even eaten as a separate dish. They are especially popular with vegetarians and those who follow a diet. During the preparation of a salad of fleshy tomatoes, you do not need to season with oil or mayonnaise, their taste is already quite rich.
- Pink tomatoes Is a classic salad variety.Tasters say that even by smell they can determine the color of the fruit. It is pink tomatoes that smell more than others in summer and the sun. There are a lot of such fruits among salad tomatoes, they are considered the most delicious, contain the maximum amount of vitamins and useful microelements.
"Steak"
The bushes of this variety are quite tall, so they need to be strengthened with supports and lateral processes removed. There are very few seeds in the pulp of tomatoes, they are juicy and fleshy. Each fruit weighs approximately 0.4 kg. Spherical tomatoes have a slightly flattened shape and are colored scarlet.
The peel of the fruit is very thin, the tomatoes do not crack. The taste of tomatoes is excellent, but they cannot be stored for a long time - they are too tender and juicy. It is better to use the crop immediately after harvest for making salads or juice.
"Raspberry Giant"
The variety is one of the earliest - the growing season of tomatoes is very short. Large tomatoes, weigh from 0.6 to 1 kilogram. The color of the fruit is unusual - bright crimson.
The height of the bushes is average - about 0.7 meters. The bushes must be strengthened with supports, pinched the lateral processes. The fruits taste great in salads; these tomatoes make excellent vitamin juices.
"Mikado"
They are also quite large tomatoes, weighing about 0.5 kg. The color of these tomatoes is bright scarlet. Their peel is thin, the flesh is low-seeded. These tomatoes differ from other varieties in an unusual sweet and sour taste.
Plants are considered indeterminate, they are tall and spreading. That is why the bushes need to be strengthened, tied up, and also removed from the lateral processes.
Those tomatoes that ripen first can weigh about a kilogram. The next fruits will be smaller - weighing from 600 grams.
Each tall bush gives a good harvest - about eight kilograms of tomatoes. The fruits, like most salad tomatoes, are poorly stored, but they taste great.
"Bull heart"
Another variety of tomato for salads, known to most gardeners and gardeners. These tomatoes are grown everywhere, their bushes reach 180 cm, have powerful stems and large fruits.
The mass of each such tomato is 0.5 kg. Fruit color is rich, with a raspberry tinge. The shape of the tomatoes corresponds to the name - they are like a heart.
The yield of tomatoes is so high that the bushes may not withstand so many fruits, so it is very important to regularly monitor the condition of the branches and tie them up, if necessary.
"Sugar Bison"
The variety is similar to the previous one: the same tall bushes, good harvest, large heart-shaped tomatoes. The weight of the fruits is about 0.4 kg, they are colored scarlet, have a thin skin and do not crack.
With proper care, more than seven kilograms of tomatoes can be removed from each Sugar Bison bush.
"Black Prince"
Black fruits of this variety differ from red-fruited tomatoes in the absence of sourness - the tomatoes are absolutely sweet, sugary, very aromatic.
Tomatoes are colored brown-scarlet, sometimes almost black tomatoes are found. Such a fruit weighs about 250 grams, in the cut of a tomato one can see seed chambers of a greenish tint.
The variety is very productive, suitable for growing in most regions of the country. The color of the juices or sauces made from these tomatoes will be quite unusual, allowing you to experiment with your dishes.
"Wild Rose"
Crimson tomatoes weigh about 0.4 kg. The bushes of these plants are very tall, they can reach 250 cm. The stems must be strengthened with supports, pinching the lateral processes.
"Persimmon"
This is a variety intended for southern Russia, but in the northern regions, tomatoes can also be grown by planting them in greenhouses. Determinate bushes, grow up to one meter, have a limited number of lateral shoots.
Fruit ripening occurs on the 110th day after planting the seeds in the soil. The surface of the tomato is slightly ribbed, the shape is flattened, the peel is thin, colored in an orange tint.
Tomatoes weigh about 300 grams. Up to seven kilograms of tomatoes can be harvested from a square meter of a garden bed. The fruits are very tasty fresh, contain a large amount of B vitamins, as evidenced by the color of the tomatoes.
"Marissa"
Low bushes are medium early varieties, tomatoes ripen on the 115th day. The fruits are smooth, round, colored in scarlet, with an average weight of about 130 grams.
The crop is protected from most of the diseases inherent in tomatoes. The fruits are suitable not only for making fresh salads, due to their small size and strong peel, tomatoes can be salted or canned.
"Gina"
An ideal salad-type tomato that performs equally well in greenhouses and in open beds. The growing season of tomato is medium - tomatoes ripen 100 days after planting.
Plants are short, determinate type. Ripe fruits have a subtle ribbing, a slightly flattened shape, and are colored red. The average weight of tomatoes does not exceed 200 grams.
The taste of the fruit is balanced: the pulp has an excellent combination of sour and sweet aftertaste. The tomato contains a large amount of healthy sugars, it is delicious in salads, juices and sauces.
The yield of the variety is decent - up to six kilograms per meter.
"Gift"
A tomato with a short growing season - the fruits ripen within three months after sowing into the ground. Bushes of medium height (slightly more than 70 cm) belong to the semi-determinant type, that is, a large number of ovaries appear on the plants, which makes it possible to classify the variety as high-yielding.
The tomatoes are medium in size, round and red, each weighing 150 grams on average. From a meter of beds or greenhouses, you can get up to 15 kilograms of tomatoes. Taste qualities of tomatoes are high, they make excellent salads, juices and purees.
"Pink raisins"
Tall bushes reach 170 cm. Fruits ripen on them early, have a perfectly even and regular shape - elongated cream. The shade of tomatoes is pink, they are very tasty and have a strong aroma. Tomatoes are suitable both for preparing fresh salads and for preservation.
"Banana legs"
The bushes of this plant are low - only 60 cm. These tomatoes are distinguished by their unusual appearance - a bright yellow tint and an elongated shape with a small shoot at the end of the fruit. The taste of the "Banana Legs" tomatoes is also interesting, it is sweet, absolutely without sourness.
Not everyone likes this fresh tomato, however, after pickling the tomatoes acquire a very spicy and unusual taste, they absorb the marinade well. Tomatoes are also delicious in salads and sauces.
"Ilyich F1"
An excellent variety for those who grow tomatoes for the purpose of selling. All fruits are the same size and regular shape. Plants give consistently high yields, they can be salted and consumed fresh.
"Pink Pearl"
Bushes of the determinant type do not grow much in height, but this does not prevent the variety from being very productive. Tomatoes of this variety can be planted both in the garden beds and in an unheated greenhouse.
In addition to the listed qualities, there is one more important feature - the plant is not afraid of late blight, pink pearl tomatoes rarely get sick with this fungal disease.
"Renet"
A very resistant plant, capable of acclimatizing in almost any conditions. The bushes are very compact, rarely exceed 40 cm in height. The growing season for the variety is short, it belongs to the super early.
The tomato yield is stable - under any whims of the weather, the gardener will get a good harvest of lettuce tomatoes.The average fruit weight is about 100 grams.
Fairy's Gift
A crop with an early maturity, determinant type, with low and compact bushes.
The fruits of this variety are very beautiful - their shape resembles a heart, and their color is orange. The yield of orange salad tomatoes is relatively high.
"Geisha"
Tomatoes that can be planted both in the garden and in the greenhouse. The fruits have an amazing pale pink hue, rather large in size - about 200 grams. Tomatoes are considered very tasty and are great for making salads.
Tips for those who grow salad tomatoes for the first time
As a rule, the best varieties of lettuce-type tomatoes are distinguished by large fruits, which is why certain rules for growing such tomatoes arise:
- More abundant watering of the bushes. You need to water salad tomatoes every day or every other day so that they are large enough and juicy. To prevent the fruit from cracking due to excessive moisture, it is necessary to choose varieties that are not prone to cracking in the skin.
- Frequent feeding is also very important. After all, not only the fruit itself will be large in order to withstand its weight, and the bushes must be powerful and strong enough. Therefore, tomatoes are fed several times a season using nitrogen and mineral fertilizers.
- Due to the abundant foliage and frequent watering, salad tomatoes can be threatened by late blight. To protect the bushes, it is necessary to use prophylactic antifungal agents, monitor the condition of the leaves and fruits, and, if possible, mulch the soil around the bushes.
- You need to harvest as the fruits ripen - these are not the tomatoes that can be "grown" on the windowsill.
- Careful tying of the bush, which needs to be supplemented as the stems grow. If the branches are not reinforced with supports, they can break off under the weight of the fruit.
This tactic will help increase yields, and the gardener's family will be provided with fresh vegetables throughout the season.
If the gardener also dreams of salted, canned tomatoes, you will have to take care of buying tomato seeds intended for pickling. Salad fruits are not very suitable for these purposes, their peel is too thin, it will crack easily under the influence of boiling marinade. Yes, and the pulp of these tomatoes is not very dense, so they can become even softer, lose their shape, as they say "sour."
For each purpose, it is necessary to choose certain varieties of tomatoes. Salad-type tomatoes are only suitable for fresh consumption or processing: making juices, mashed potatoes, sauces.
To diversify the menu and surprise guests, you can plant tomatoes with fruits of different colors on your site - a mixture of bright vegetables will look quite impressive on plates, and guests will not immediately understand what the dish is made of.
