Demidovskie Lapti Tomato: Variety Characteristics, Yield, and Photos

Tomatoes

Gardeners are well aware that achieving a high tomato yield in risky farming zones is no easy task. Much depends on the quality of the seeds and the correct choice of variety. Thanks to the diligent work of breeders, new, improved varieties are constantly being developed, and one of them, with a unique name, is the subject of this article.

The word "bast shoe" is used in various ways. It can mean an illiterate, dim-witted person, or someone as healthy as a bast shoe. This is precisely the meaning used in the name of this variety. It is characterized by high yields, hardiness, and disease resistance, and is ideal for growing in both Siberia and the Urals. So, let's learn more about the Demidov Lapti tomato and discuss the specifics of its cultivation.

Description of the variety: so big, it's just a "bast shoe"

The bush height varies from 130 to 180 cm. The foliage is dark green and not very dense. This mid-season variety, with the period from germination to technical maturity being 110–115 days, is suitable for growing in both protected and open ground conditions.

Ripe fruits are dark pink, have a round-flat shape, really reminiscent of a bast shoe, and have “fleshy” pulp and excellent taste.

Each fruit weighs 400-500 g. With proper agricultural practices, yields reach 5-6 kg per square meter. In central Russia and in northern regions, this variety of tomato is best grown indoors.

"Demidov bast shoes" are perfect for:

salads;
they are convenient for making tomato juice;
small fruits are suitable for canning.

Tomatoes of this variety make a surprisingly tender lecho. They keep well and retain their flavor for up to 10 days.

What's so good about Demidov's bast shoes?

Growing large, juicy tomatoes in the Siberian climate is far from easy. The breeders of this variety have done everything to ease this difficult task. This variety has proven itself to be an excellent choice and has already become a favorite among many gardeners and summer residents who have chosen it.

The Demidovskie bast shoes variety has the following advantages:

disease resistance;
high productivity;
not afraid of temperature fluctuations;
excellent taste and appearance of the fruits.

If seedlings are planted correctly, tomatoes of this variety have time to fully grow and ripen during the short northern summer, before late blight sets in. Seeds from ripened tomatoes can be used for sowing the following year. Gardeners have not encountered any serious complaints about "Demidovskie Lapti." This variety is very resilient and easy to grow, but certain growing guidelines are still necessary.

Agricultural technology

All gardeners plant seedlings based on the climate of their specific region. It's important to remember that seedlings should be 60–65 days old when planted in the ground. To achieve this, in colder regions, they are planted earlier and supported with phytolamps. In the south, where it's warm and sunny, growing without seedlings is acceptable.

Seeds should be prepared for sowing

Preparing the seed is a crucial part of the process. It should never be neglected. The quality of the future seedlings, and subsequently the harvest, depends greatly on this. Tomato seeds should be treated in a weak, slightly pinkish solution of potassium permanganate, which will further protect them from disease, and then rinsed and allowed to dry. The second step is treatment with a growth stimulant.

For this purpose, the following are usually chosen:

Epin;
Ideal;
Zircon;
wood ash.

Each growth stimulant comes with instructions that must be strictly followed. If you decide to use wood ash, follow these steps: mix a tablespoon of wood ash with a liter of water. After treating the seeds with either the growth stimulant or the ash, germinate them in a damp canvas cloth or paper towel until they sprout.

Once this has happened, the seeds are sown in pre-prepared containers with soil. Tomatoes prefer a sifted, lump-free mixture of turf and river sand, with the addition of ash and superphosphate. However, it's more convenient to buy ready-mixed soil.

Sow the seeds in shallow furrows, carefully cover them with soil, water lightly, and cover with either glass or plastic to retain moisture. Temperatures should be maintained between 23°C and 24°C until germination. Once germination occurs, remove the glass and expose the seedling containers to light, maintaining the temperature no higher than 18°C for a week. After a week, the temperature can be raised to 20°C, avoiding sudden fluctuations.

How to care for emerging seedlings

Once the seedlings emerge, the main parameters to carefully monitor are temperature, light, and humidity. If the days are still short and there's not enough sun, illuminate the seedlings with special lamps to prevent them from stretching. Exposing seedlings to temperature fluctuations (such as a draft) on a windowsill can adversely affect their development. Never allow the soil to dry out, but avoid overwatering.

Seedlings are usually pricked out at the third leaf stage, and this process should be done quickly to avoid major difficulties later during transplantation, when the roots of the sprouts become stronger and intertwined. Before pricking out, the seedlings should be thoroughly watered and then kept in a dark place for a few days.

During growth, seedlings can be fed twice with a complex fertilizer, and 10 days before planting directly into the ground, they should be "hardened off" by placing them outside or in a greenhouse for a short period. Hardening off should begin with 15 minutes and be continued for several hours.

Note! The hardening process allows plants to gradually adjust to new conditions. Without this, adaptation will still occur, only more slowly, more slowly, and with greater risk to the plants.

Planting seedlings in the ground

Of course, each gardener determines the planting time based on their local climate, weather conditions, and the method they will use to grow tomatoes (outdoors or indoors). Typically, they try to plant when the risk of frost has passed and the soil has warmed up sufficiently. In greenhouses, this happens earlier.

The beds should be dug, prepared, and loosened in advance. Tomatoes prefer loose, neutral, fertile soil. Gardeners often use covering materials to mitigate the unpleasant surprises of unstable weather.

When planting seedlings, remember that plants growing too close together will lack nutrients and light, and will have to waste energy competing with each other. Ideally, no more than three plants per square meter are planted.

Care Features

After planting, the seedlings should not be watered for a week. This allows the plants and their root systems to actively engage and adapt. Subsequently, watering should be done in a manner that prevents the soil from drying out, but also avoids overwatering and root rot.

To achieve this, mulch the soil around the plants, which helps retain moisture and prevent them from drying out. Mulching can be done with sawdust, straw, dry grass, or compost. This also slows weed growth around the tomatoes. If mulching is not used, the soil around the plants should be loosened periodically to improve air circulation in the root system.

Necessarily! When growing tomatoes indoors, carefully monitor the humidity level inside the greenhouse and ventilate it periodically to prevent condensation from forming on the plant leaves. During hot periods, ventilation is necessary to protect the plants from overheating.

Approximate watering schedule:

Before flowers appear, plants should be watered once every 3 days;
during the period of active flowering of tomatoes and formation of ovaries, maintain the same schedule, increasing only the volume (if not enough);
When plants begin to bear fruit, watering should be reduced.

Reducing the amount of watering at this time is due to the fact that an abundance of moisture worsens the taste of tomatoes and makes their pulp more watery.

Supplemental fertilizers should be applied no more than 3-5 times per season. During the period of active stem and leaf growth, nitrogen fertilizers are used more often. Just before flowering and ovary formation, potassium and phosphorus fertilizers are used. Excess nitrogen leads to overactive stem and leaf growth, which prevents the plant from entering the stage of flower and ovary formation.

For this reason, many people apply foliar feeding, using ash solutions or solutions with whey or iodine and boric acid for this purpose.

To ensure good and numerous ovaries, you need:

ensure that the temperature in the greenhouse does not exceed +30 °C, otherwise the pollen will become sterile;
plant several honey plants next to the tomatoes to attract bees;
In the morning, gently shake the brushes with flowers to remove pollen, or you can use a brush for painting.

There are also a few other "tricks" that can improve the harvest. For example, many gardeners pluck the lower leaves on the main flower cluster, as well as any foliage that obscures the fruit, to allow sunlight to penetrate unimpeded.

It's recommended to grow Demidov's bast shoes in a "two-stem" formation. Shaping the plant in this manner achieves the best results. To achieve this, leave the strongest shoot under the main flower cluster, and trim the others to 1.5 cm above the ground. Pruning should be done in the morning to allow the "stumps" to dry during the day.

If you decide to train the bush into a single stem, you need to remove all side shoots. In the first ten days of August, the plant's stem is pinched. The purpose of this procedure is to ensure that the tomato plant stops growing during the remaining summer days and devotes all its energy to ripening fruits.

Proper agricultural practices are the key to plant health:

you need to take seed preparation seriously, treat them and adhere to sowing dates;
Soil rotation should be carried out, avoiding growing the same crop in the same place from year to year;
you must adhere to the recommended planting patterns;
It is necessary to monitor the ventilation of greenhouses, watering and fertilizing of plants.

There are many proven folk methods for maintaining plant health. For example, spraying them with various homemade solutions.

From late blight:

tomato bushes, before the flowers appear, are treated with a garlic solution and solutions to which such products as Zaslon, Barrier, etc. are added;
When the first signs are detected, use the drug Oxyhom.

To combat blossom-end rot:

tomato bushes are treated with calcium nitrate dissolved in water;
Ensure regular watering and do not allow the soil to dry out.

This tomato variety is resilient and disease-resistant, but preventative measures won't hurt. With proper care, "Demidovskie Lapti" will produce excellent fruit.

The fruit is harvested without waiting for it to reach 100% ripeness on the plant's trusses. Firstly, this moment is not always caught in time and is rarely "massively" harvested. Secondly, Demidov bast shoes will ripen perfectly well if harvested when they have turned slightly pink. This approach increases the overall ripening speed of the fruit.

If you decide to plant this tomato variety again next year, you should leave one of the best fruits on the bush for seed, one that is free of defects and fully meets the characteristics stated by the breeders.

Reviews of the variety from experienced gardeners

Irina, Kemerovo:

"For the past four years, I've been growing Siberian varieties of large-fruited tomatoes, including Demidov Lapti. I'm generally pleased with the results; everything stated on the seed packet is accurate, including the ripening time and yield. The Lapti tomatoes, in most cases, weighed around 500 grams each."

Julia, Balashikha (Moscow region):

"I'll be growing Demidovskie Lapti for the second year. I was very pleasantly surprised by this variety last season; a neighbor recommended it. The fruits are large and sweet. One 600-gram tomato was enough for a salad for our whole family."

Elena Petrovna, Kursk:

"I grew Demidov lapti tomatoes three years in a row. The first time, everything was fantastic. I couldn't praise them enough. I even showed off my half-kilogram "lapti" to the neighbors... But the second and third times, my tomatoes didn't do well. Maybe because I tried to grow them myself from the seeds I received and did something wrong, or maybe the weather got in the way. We demolished the old greenhouse, but without it, the results weren't so great."

Yuri, Altai Krai:

"I bought the Demidovskie Lapti variety the first time because of the name. Now, I'm going to dedicate half the greenhouse specifically to it. Last year's four 'Lapti' plants grew almost two meters tall, despite being labeled as medium-sized, and the tomatoes weighed 600-700 grams. They're not great for canning, of course, but they're very good for salads and juice. We'll see what happens this year."