- Advantages of growing tomatoes in a greenhouse
- Tomato varieties for greenhouse
- Buying a greenhouse for tomatoes: what to look out for
Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!
Tomatoes are true children of the sun. They are best cultivated on a sunny house wall, in a tomato house or greenhouse. Find out more here.
Tomatoes love warmth and therefore protected locations such as warm house walls or places under overhanging roofs are very well suited. If you have the luxury of still having a free spot for a greenhouse in your garden, you should seriously consider purchasing one. We explain the advantages of a greenhouse for tomatoes and what to look out for when growing them.
Advantages of growing tomatoes in a greenhouse
Tomatoes, for example, can be planted in the greenhouse as early as the end of April (about two weeks before the ice saints). The advantages are obvious: the plants not only grow faster, but also longer and can develop more tasty tomatoes. The harvest time in the greenhouse does not end until the end of October. Another advantage is the protected environment. Cold and strong winds cannot harm the tomatoes and even long periods of rain do not cause late blight. However, even in the greenhouse there are a few things to consider for a successful grow. On the one hand, you have to pay attention to quality when buying. This also includes the altitude. Because if the tomato house is too low, warm and humid air collects above. This means that the brown rot on the upper tomato shoots has an easy time and subsequently spreads quickly to the lower part of the plant. To avoid this, the greenhouse should not only have sufficient height, but also some ventilation options. Tomatoes don't like it too hot anyway. Temperatures above 35 °C are poorly tolerated by the plants. In the best case, you ensure constant temperatures between 20 and 30°C, because that's how the tomato likes it best. This includes ventilation during sunny days and closing the ventilation flaps during the night and on cooler rainy days.
Tomato varieties for greenhouse
Not all tomatoes are suitableopt for a greenhouse culture. On the one hand, some varieties do not tolerate high temperatures well, which can sometimes lead to modest growth or fruit bursting. On the other hand, pollination problems can quickly arise in a sheltered greenhouse. Usually the wind or insects pollinate outdoor tomatoes. If you buy seeds, you should always check whether the respective variety is suitable for cultivation in a greenhouse.
In greenhouses, tomatoes are either tied to strings (common method in commercial cultivation) or pulled up on long plant stakes (hazelnut or bamboo). It is important not to constrict the young shoots too much and thus damage them in the long term. Depending on the variety, tomato plants in the greenhouse should be about 70 cm apart. The first harvest can be expected as early as June.
Buying a greenhouse for tomatoes: what to look out for
When buying a greenhouse, you should focus on quality. If you don't want to spend so much money, you can also make a construction with wood, foil and plexiglass. If you have some manual skills, the result is really more than impressive and is in direct competition with the professional tomato house.