Jessica Tomato: Variety Description, Reviews, Photos

Tomatoes

Recently, more and more gardeners are interested in new tomato varieties. The Jessica tomato may be one such find. It's sure to impress co-workers and delight family members with unusual and delicious tomatoes. This article will provide a full description of this variety and highlight its key characteristics.

Jessica is a tall, mid-season tomato variety native to Argentina. Despite its origins, this variety is considered undemanding. Experienced gardeners report that Jessica is suitable for growing in all regions, both outdoors and indoors. It boasts a relatively high yield.

Description of the variety, photos, reviews

Please note! Jessica seeds are a rare find in specialty stores. So, if you manage to find them, collect them after the first harvest and store them carefully.

The Jessica tomato grows quite tall (1.8 to 2 m), so it should be tied up and any excess shoots removed. The leaves are dark green and have a uniform shape. The fruits ripen in clusters and continue to bear fruit until frost. The fruit is two-chambered, pear-shaped, and dark cherry in color. Fruit weight is no more than 100 g. Other characteristics of the Jessica tomato include a sweet, slightly tart flavor, a fairly dense texture, and a small number of seeds.

Productivity

This tomato is a high-yielding variety. The first inflorescence forms above the 6th or 7th leaf, with the remaining inflorescences appearing every 2 or 3 leaves. Each cluster produces an average of 4–5 tomatoes. As mentioned earlier, this variety is quite productive. A single bush formed from two stems can produce up to 40 fruits.

Interesting! The yield of this variety varies virtually regardless of the region where it's grown; it adapts quickly and tolerates climate fluctuations. Photos of the bush and fruit can be seen below.

Use and storage

Jessica tomatoes are perfect for various types of canning and other homemade preserves. Their elegant shape allows them to look great whole in a jar, peeled or unpeeled. This variety is used to make sauces, dressings, ketchups, juices, and homemade dishes, as well as for freezing, drying, and curing. Of course, the sweet and small fruits are great for fresh consumption.

Jessica tomatoes are ideal for growing commercially. Their firm flesh and elastic skin allow them to retain their marketable appearance for a long time, even during long-term storage and long-distance transport.

Features of cultivation and care

How to properly grow Jessica tomatoes outdoors? When planting seedlings, leave a small area of soil exposed to the ground for the future plant.

What properties should the soil have:

Fertility. This will provide the future plant with the necessary mineral and nutritional elements.
Neutral acidity. Soil acidity can be excessive due to the accumulation of excess free hydrogen ions. This can prevent plants from obtaining the nutrients they need, even from fertile soil. If the soil is too acidic, it needs to be deacidified by liming or using specialized products.
High soil permeabilityThis determines how much water the soil will absorb and how much moisture can be used by the plant. Soil permeability is usually adjusted by adding natural sand.

When this variety matures, no more than four stems are typically left, and the height is adjusted depending on the staking method. As the bush grows, staking the stems is essential! As mentioned earlier, excess shoots should be removed along with the lower leaves, as they absorb micronutrients needed for fruit ripening. Remove unwanted leaves very carefully, ensuring that the newly formed fruit does not open and become scorched by direct sunlight.

You can also thin the crown to improve air flow to the young buds. Weeds and other plant debris should be removed.

Advice! Experienced gardeners use mulching to improve soil quality. When growing Jessica tomatoes, you can use straw or dried green manure.

Green manure crops are usually planted in a vacant area of the garden. The green parts of the plants are then cut (not dug up), dried, and mixed into the soil.

The most common types of green manure crops:

boboVы;
cereals;
buckwheat;
Asteraceae, etc.

Don't forget to loosen the soil around the bush. This should be done carefully to avoid damaging the plant's roots. As for watering frequency, once a week is sufficient in normal weather. The first feeding should be done when planting the seedlings, mixing the fertilizer into the soil in the hole. You can then repeat the feeding with specialized fertilizers two or three times during the season.

Protection from diseases and pests

The most common diseases that tomatoes are susceptible to are the following:

late blight;
septoria;
mosaic;
brown spot.

Of course, the most reliable way to protect plants is to use specialized chemicals. But now, more and more experienced gardeners agree that it's better to prevent diseases using natural methods.

Let's look at the simplest of them:

Changing the location of tomato plants. Planting them in the same spot season after season can lead to the accumulation of soil infections. Therefore, it is recommended to return tomato plants to their previous location no sooner than after two seasons.
It's also not recommended to grow tomatoes in soil previously occupied by plants such as potatoes, peppers, eggplants, and other nightshade plants. It's best to plant onions, legumes, cucumbers, or perennial herbs beforehand.
Seed preparation is of great importance. Disinfection is essential.
It is necessary to adhere to the planting dates in order to ensure the plants’ resistance to negative factors.
Prevention of the accumulation of infections in the soil is mulching, which was mentioned earlier.

These are perhaps the most accessible preventative measures for increasing the resistance of tomato bushes to diseases.

Pests are usually prevented by planting aromatic herbs around the beds, such as garlic, wormwood, basil, etc.

Seed collection, seedling preparation and planting

To ensure a high-quality harvest next season, seeds are collected from the best tomatoes. They are marked and allowed to ripen fully. The extracted seeds are soaked in a strong saline solution, and only those that float to the bottom are selected. Seeds that float to the surface are unsuitable and should be discarded. The selected seeds are washed, treated with a potassium permanganate solution, and allowed to dry.

Jessica tomato seeds are sown for seedlings approximately 60 days before planting in the ground. For seedlings, Jessica tomato seeds are sown 60 or 65 days before planting. Typically, the soil for this is prepared in the fall. A mixture of equal parts garden soil, humus, and sand is mixed. The resulting soil is stored outdoors throughout the winter.

Important! Allow the prepared soil to thaw and dry completely.

It doesn't matter where you sow the seeds. You can sow them in individual containers or in one large box. It's important to remember to place no more than three seeds per container. Plant the seedlings so that there's room for adding soil as the sprouts grow.

Afterwards, the soil should be treated with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, lightly spraying it with a spray bottle. Then, stretch a transparent film over the container, and when the tomatoes begin to sprout, remove the weak and unsightly shoots. Then, periodically moisten the soil.

As soon as the sprouts develop 2-3 leaves, they are separated into separate containers (if they were previously planted in the same container), cutting off 20% of the main root. This process is called pricking out. Provide the seedlings with additional light to prevent the stems from stretching. Before planting outdoors, harden off the tomatoes by leaving them in a cool place, such as a veranda. Three days before, the seedlings can be moved outside to a shady spot.

Tomatoes are planted outdoors only when the soil has warmed sufficiently and frosts are a thing of the past; they can be transplanted into a greenhouse earlier. Space the rows approximately 50–60 cm apart, and the plants 30–40 cm apart.

Jessica tomatoes are a very easy-to-grow and productive variety. They offer excellent resistance to both weather conditions and diseases and pests. These characteristics make it worthwhile to seek out seeds of this rare variety. Experiment, leave reviews, and share your impressions!

Advantages and disadvantages of the Jessica tomato

So, among the obvious advantages of the Jessica tomato, the following are noted in various reviews:

unusual shape of fruits;
pleasant, distinct sweet taste and rich aroma;
high yield (up to 40 fruits from 1 bush);
fruiting period;
possibility of cultivation both in open and closed ground;
adaptation to different climatic conditions;
resistance to diseases and pests;
long shelf life;
strength during transportation.

The following disadvantages have been identified:

a tall bush requires increased attention (garter and removal of excess shoots);
timely harvesting to prevent bush breakage.

Perhaps these are all the disadvantages, since with basic care, you are guaranteed a high-quality harvest.

Reviews

Beginning gardeners are typically very cautious when trying new and rare plant varieties. Before planting, some research websites and forums, while others prefer to gain first-hand experience and plant a few bushes to test them out. Here are some reviews from those who have already tried this variety:

Anna, 39 years old. Novoblagodarnoye, Stavropol Krai:

"These are very interesting tomatoes, a deep burgundy-brown color, fun and delicious. The bush is tall and produces fruit until frost. I plan to plant more of this variety next year."

Nina Alekseevna, 62 years old. Voronezh region:

"This is the best variety for canning! They look beautiful and don't burst. I grew them in open ground, but next year I'll try them in a greenhouse."

Galina Grigoryevna, 51 years old. Vologda Oblast:

"For some reason, my Jessica turned raspberry-colored. I liked the pear-shaped fruit, sweet without being sour. For me, it's the best variety this year."

Larisa Vladimirovna, 56 years old. Ryazan:

"The tomato yield and flavor are excellent, and collecting seeds is easy. I really like this variety, and I'm glad I managed to find it."