French grape tomato reviews photo yield

Description and characteristics of the variety

The French bunch tomato from Siberian Garden is a medium-sized determinate plant. Bushes usually stop growing after reaching a meter, but in a greenhouse they can grow up to two. They do not produce side shoots and do not require pinching. In open ground, the formation of a bush of 3-4 stems is required. The ripening period is mid-season, the harvest is harvested in August, 110-120 days after seed germination.

The fruits are set in clusters, each of which contains 10-20 tomatoes. They are compact, medium in size - 40-100 grams each, bright red in color and elongated in shape, similar to an elongated oval. The pulp is fleshy, dense, and has a sweetish taste. At the maturity stage, voids may form in the seed chambers. The plant bears fruit for a long time - in the greenhouse until frost.

Similar varieties

Among the analogues of the French grape tomato, the following are noted:

1. Canned cream. Determinate bushes of standard type do not grow higher than 0.7 m. Plants are suitable for open or closed ground. Red fruits ripen in clusters, but are characterized by their small size. The shape is less elongated, reminiscent of a plum. The average weight of a tomato is 25 g; up to 3.5 kg of tomatoes are harvested per square meter. The use of the crop is similar - whole-fruit canning.
2. Salting miracle. An early ripening variety begins to bear fruit 80 or 100 days after sowing the seeds. Red, round tomatoes weigh up to 85 g and are used in salads or canning. The bushes are low-growing, determinate type. Like the French bunch, they do not require pinching and produce high yields with minimal care. It is preferable to plant seedlings in open ground.
3. Watercolor. Siberian breeders worked on this tomato, so the variety tolerates cool summers well. The ripening period of tomatoes is early, about 100 days. Thanks to the determinant standard type, the bushes do not require formation or additional support. Stepchildren do not form in the leaf axils. The fruits are red in color and have an elongated shape. The thick skin resists cracking. The average weight of the fruit is 55 g. Plants are resistant to septoria and tobacco mosaic.

Planting and care

Before planting seeds for seedlings, it is recommended not only to disinfect the soil with a solution of potassium permanganate, but also to calcinate it. French grape tomato seeds must first be germinated by wrapping them in a damp cloth. The procedures begin 65-70 days before transferring the future seedlings to a permanent place.

After the development of the second full-fledged leaf, the plants dive. They need long daylight hours - from 6 am to 9 pm, as well as a temperature of +20 degrees (at night +16).

When the soil temperature in a permanent place reaches +17, the seedlings are transferred. For 1 sq.m. place 2 bushes. A liter of humus, straw ash and a little mineral fertilizer are placed in the holes. Freshly planted bushes are watered abundantly and the ground is mulched. Further watering is once a week.

During flowering, regular fertilizing with organic fertilizers is needed. They are stopped when the plants begin to bear fruit.

Features of caring for Grozdeva F1 tomato

Tomatoes respond with gratitude to proper care and adherence to the rules of agricultural technology.

Watering rules

The tomato consists of 93% water and is very sensitive to lack of moisture, so organizing proper watering is simply necessary:

1. Tomatoes do not like water treatments. Excess moisture harms the plant - the green mass increases to the detriment of the development of ovaries on the first inflorescences.
2. Watering is carried out with warm water when the soil dries in the morning or evening hours directly under the root, avoiding water getting on the stems and leaves.
3. After watering the seedlings abundantly when planting them in the garden, do not water them for the first seven days. The roots go deeper in search of moisture and develop intensively - as a result, the plant becomes resistant to drought.
4. With the appearance of fruits, watering is carried out several times a week, depending on weather conditions. Water consumption during this period can be up to 5 liters per 1 square. m.
5. With the irrigation method, water comes closer to the roots and the soil is not compacted.
6. Drip irrigation is considered the best method - irrigation is carried out at any time of the day.
7. To avoid the tedious work of watering and weeding, you can use the method of mulching with straw, sawdust or dark film to retain moisture in the top layer of soil.

Water the soil with a solution of phytosporin. This drug kills fungal infection in the soil. After cultivating the soil, tomato seedlings are not threatened with black leg. To guarantee, soak the seeds in a solution of potassium permanganate right on the day of planting. You don't need to hold it for long, 15 minutes is enough.

On the day of sowing, water the soil with warm water, cover the seeds with a 1 cm layer of soil. Cover the boxes with film, place them in a room where the temperature is constant and not lower than 25 ° C.

At the age of 60 days, transplant the seedlings into the ground (greenhouse). Further care will consist of several activities:

1. Glaze.
2. Weeding.
3. Feeding.
4. Garters.
5. Ventilation.

Despite the distinctly foreign name, the French Grozdeva variety was bred in Siberia. Tomatoes can be grown indoors or outdoors. In greenhouse conditions, fruiting will last until frost. French Grozdevoy is a high-yielding mid-late variety. The bush is determinate, reaches 1-1.5 m in height. Side shoots are formed insignificantly, so pinching is not required.

The fruits are collected in clusters of 10-20 pieces, and in the middle zone they fully ripen in August. If you follow the rules of watering and fertilizing, fruiting is abundant; up to 20 kg of tomatoes can be harvested per bush per season.

Among the main advantages of the variety:

• high productivity;
• excellent taste of the fruit;
• low maintenance requirements;
• beautiful appearance of the fruit, ideal for canning;
• good keeping quality.

There are practically no shortcomings in the variety. Gardeners consider the relatively late ripening to be the only disadvantage. When grown in open ground, tomatoes have to be picked green and brought to ripeness at home.

Features of cultivation, planting and care

photo author Konstantin Shumsky

The photo shows French grape tomato seedlings.

We recommend sowing the seeds of this tomato variety for seedlings 60-65 days before the intended planting in the ground. Seedlings dive at the stage of two true leaves. When planting seedlings in a permanent place per 1 sq. It is recommended to place up to 4 plants per meter of land.

Further care for tomatoes consists of timely watering, fertilizing with complex mineral fertilizer, pinching and preventive measures to protect against diseases and pests.

Growing seedlings

Tomato seedlings begin to be grown 55-65 days before planting in open ground. The timing of sowing seeds depends on the climatic characteristics of the region :

• southern cities - end of February;
• central Russia - mid-March;
• northern regions – early April.

Seed treatment

Pre-treatment of seeds will protect seedlings from infections, temperature changes and other negative factors. This will also speed up the germination of planting material.

Before purchasing seeds, you need to check their expiration dates. Expired seeds will not germinate.

To test the germination of seeds, they are soaked in a solution prepared from a teaspoon of salt and a glass of water.
After half an hour, the seeds that float to the surface are collected and thrown away. Those specimens that sank to the bottom are considered suitable for planting. To prevent infection of seedlings with blackleg and other diseases, the seeds are disinfected. There are several ways to do this:

1. Potassium permanganate solution . Take 2 mg of potassium permanganate per 200 ml of water. The seeds are soaked for half an hour. After this, they are washed with clean water and dried.
2. Hydrogen peroxide . Planting material is soaked in the product for a quarter of an hour. The seeds are washed under running water and dried.
3. Soda solution . For 100 ml of water take 0.5 tsp of salt. The seeds are soaked in the product for 10 hours. The drug not only disinfects planting material, but also stimulates its germination.

In order for the seeds to germinate faster and become resistant to negative environmental factors, they need to be stimulated.

Methods for stimulating germination of planting material:

1. Treatment with special purchased preparations . Most often they use “Epin” or “Sodium Humate”.
2. Using homemade products . Suitable preparations include aloe juice, honey water, and soda solution.
3. Cold treatment . Before planting, seeds are placed in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

Options for soil and containers for tomato seedlings

Tomato seedlings need light and nutritious soil.
You can buy it in a specialized store or prepare it yourself. There are several options for soil mixtures for tomatoes :

1. Peat, humus and turf are mixed in equal proportions. To 10 liters of the resulting mixture add 1 tbsp. water.
2. 10 kg of peat are mixed with 1 glass of ash . 10 g of potassium fertilizer and urea, 30 g of superphosphate are added to the composition.
3. Chernozem and sand are mixed in equal proportions. To enrich the composition, potassium fertilizers and superphosphate are used.

Large containers are used for sowing seeds . Plastic trays, wooden boxes, trimmed 6-liter bottles, etc. will do. Tomatoes are planted in individual pots with a volume of 300-500 ml. Plastic cups are also used. Holes are made in homemade containers.

Sowing seeds

French bunch tomato seeds are sown in the usual way . This variety tolerates picking well. Furrows 1 cm deep are made in the soil at a distance of 2 cm arcs from each other. The seeds are placed in them at a distance of 1.5 cm.

The planting material is covered with earth on top . The soil is moistened using a spray bottle with warm water. The containers with seeds are covered with film and placed in a place with a temperature of at least 23 degrees. The seeds will germinate in 3-7 days.

Other varieties of tomatoes:

Full review of the Black Heart of Breda tomato

Tomato "Anniversary Tarasenko"

Yamal tomatoes, favorite among gardeners

Seedling care

Growing seedlings yourself is not difficult. To do this, you need to follow several important rules :

1. After the seeds germinate , it will no longer be possible to moisten the soil with a spray bottle. When watering tomato seedlings, you need to make sure that water does not get on the greens. Use only settled liquid at room temperature.
2. After the first shoots appear, it is recommended to place the seedlings for a week in a well-lit place with a temperature of 15 degrees. Then the plants are returned to heat. This will prevent the tomatoes from stretching.
3. Seedlings need 16 hours of daylight . In spring, natural light will not be enough for tomatoes. This is compensated by using fluorescent lamps.
4. Plants are planted in individual pots after the first two true leaves appear. A layer of broken brick, glass, expanded clay or shell rock is poured onto the bottom of the pots for aeration.
5. 2 weeks after picking, the plants are fed for the first time. Use a growth stimulator or vermicompost. Fertilizers are applied a second time after another 14 days. 3 days before picking tomatoes to a permanent place, they are fed for the last time. For this purpose, compositions with potassium and phosphorus are used.
6. 10 days before transplanting the seedlings to a permanent place, they begin to harden them. Plants are taken outside. First for half an hour, then for 1 hour, etc. The time is gradually increased to 12-16 hours.

Tomato variety French bunch on video

If you grew French bunch tomatoes, please write whether you liked them or not. What was the yield and taste of the fruits like under your climatic conditions? How do you rate the disease resistance of this tomato? Write briefly the advantages and disadvantages of this tomato in your opinion. If possible, attach to the comment a photo of the entire bush as a whole or individual fruits that you grew. Thank you!

Your reviews of the French grape tomato and additions to the description will help many gardeners evaluate this variety objectively and decide whether it is worth planting or not.

Tomato French bunch: characteristics and description of the variety

With the modern variety of varieties, the appearance of the tomato has long moved away from the image of the rounded giant familiar to everyone from childhood, with a slightly flattened shape and a bright red color. At the moment, there are tomatoes of almost all shades, except perhaps blue; even purple ones can be found. How diverse are the shapes and sizes of tomato fruits? In this sense, tomatoes are interesting, since their appearance is more reminiscent of other vegetable crops, for example, eggplants or cucumbers. Such varieties of tomatoes have become very popular in recent years, and one of the brightest representatives of tomatoes with an original fruit shape is the French bunch.

Even the name of this variety of tomatoes can attract an inexperienced summer resident, since a rich imagination immediately imagines bushes hung with bunches of tomatoes, in the manner of a lady’s finger grape. By the way, in this regard, the name of the variety more or less corresponds to reality, since bushes of ripening tomatoes actually somewhat resemble grape vines. But the word “French” was added solely for the beauty of the image, since the tomato has nothing to do with France at all.

Nevertheless, the French grape tomato has already gained quite a lot of popularity among gardeners and summer residents, reviews of their productivity and photos are evidence of this.

Diseases and pests

The French bunch tomato variety is resistant to major diseases and pests. However, if the area as a whole is contaminated with spores of fungi that cause tomato diseases, for example, late blight or fusarium wilt, then they should be sprayed 1-2 times with the following preparations:

1. Fitosporin M, 100 g - about 30 rubles;
2. Alirin B, 20 tablets - 99 rubles;
3. Previkur Energy, 20 ml - 219 rubles.

To prevent blossom end rot, plants are fed with calcium nitrate. However, blossom end rot practically does not appear on the “French bunch” tomato.

Among the pests, tomato roots can be eaten by mole crickets and cockchafer larvae. Rarely, tomatoes are attacked by aphids and spider mites. A modern drug with low danger is Fitoverm, 10 ml - 69 rubles. It will reliably protect tomato plants if necessary.

Description of the variety

The French grape tomato variety is the brainchild of specialists. Tomato bushes of this variety have great growth vigor and are capable of forming a bush of considerable size.

It is interesting that in the description and characteristics of the French grape variety, it is positioned as determinant. Indeed, in open ground it rarely grows more than one meter. But in good greenhouse conditions, this tomato can grow up to 1.8 meters or even more.

Manufacturers also assure that the bush must be tied up, but it does not require pinching or shaping. This issue has always been quite controversial among gardeners. The fact is that it is really better not to plant ordinary determinate varieties - in this case they are able to show much better yield results, especially when grown in greenhouses. But here it is necessary to take into account the fact that heavily overgrown bushes require increased nutrition and watering, and this should not be forgotten. In addition, they need to be planted at a considerable distance from each other so that all shoots with tomatoes can receive a sufficient amount of sunlight.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Studying the characteristics of the “French Bunch” variety, we can say that it has more advantages than disadvantages. What are they?

Pros:

1. High yield. From one bush you can harvest from 3 to 6 kg of tomatoes. There is information that with special care in a good greenhouse, 10 kg were collected from one plant.
2. Two plants are planted on one square meter in a greenhouse, since the plant requires lighting and a lot of space. For some, it’s a pity for space in the greenhouse, while others calculate that two bushes are enough to get two buckets of great tomatoes. In open ground, 3-4 bushes are planted per meter.
3. The beautiful-looking “fingers” are tasty, ripen well in the hand, and can be stored for up to two months. When ripening, they do not lose their taste and shape. And this is a big plus. You can remove the entire bunch of brown tomatoes, allowing other fruits to develop. It will be easier for the bush to grow further clusters, which will increase the yield. This allows you to start canning at the end of July, since the first bunches ripen at this time.
4. The tomato is considered a pickling tomato, but it is tasty both in salads and in cooking. It is easy to remove the hard skin from it for preparing any dishes where it reveals itself to the fullest, since it contains little liquid and a lot of sugars, and thanks to its meatiness, it behaves perfectly in vegetable stews, when frying, in salads and on the grill. There is no better variety for baking: it retains its shape perfectly after heat treatment and when the skin is removed. It makes excellent sauces and “tomatoes in tomato” preparations.
5. Some people don't like the dryness of the ripe fruit inside. But for many this is a plus! Nowadays sun-dried tomatoes are a popular preparation. And again, it seems that the “disadvantage” turns into an advantage for those who are looking for tomatoes for such tomato storage. It is ideal for drying.
6. Late ripening variety. This is neither a plus nor a minus. The growing region must be taken into account. In the northern territories the variety grows well, but its growth must be completed in early August. You need to pinch the top and not allow new stepsons to grow. This is done so that the remaining ovaries can fill up and produce a harvest before the end of August, so that late blight does not affect the tomatoes.
7. Does not require stepsoning. This point is again twofold. He works in the southern regions, where the summer is long, and the stepsons, no matter how many there are, will have time to ripen the fruits. It’s not for nothing that farmers in Kuban call this variety “long-lasting.”
8. They tolerate transportation well over any distance when picked while still brown, ripen well and quickly, maintaining and even improving the taste. This point is a big plus for those who will grow the variety for business. It is sold at Hurray due to its attractive appearance and shape.
9. Resistant to major viral diseases due to a good immune system.
10. You can collect your own seeds.

To get high-quality seeds, choose the most beautiful two fruits, which should be “like in the picture,” not diseased and ripe. And the bush and branch with them are the most abundant. Pick them and keep them at room temperature until they are overripe. Cut in half, remove the core with seeds and cover with water for 2 days. Keep in a warm place. Then strain, separate the seeds from the pulp, rinse and dry. Leave large, undamaged seeds.

At a stretch, several points can be considered as disadvantages:

1. Requires mandatory support and garters. But almost all varieties taller than 50 cm require support, so you can argue with the minus.
2. Not suitable for open ground in the middle zone and northern regions. This means that it should be planted in those regions only in greenhouses.

To summarize, we conclude: if you deliberately chose the “French Bunch” tomato variety, then you will not find any disadvantages in it!

Characteristics of tomatoes

Tomatoes of the French grape variety are distinguished by the following characteristics:

• The shape of the tomatoes is very original - they are somewhat elongated in length, slightly reminiscent of fingers with some thickening near the stalk and a prominent nose.
• The fruit has a standard color and is red when fully ripe.
• Tomatoes have a very smooth and dense skin, thanks to which they are not at all susceptible to cracking.
• The size of tomatoes is small, on average their weight is 85-100 grams. On the bush, the fruits grow in large clusters of 8 to 14 pieces each. On average, one bush can have 3-4 similar clusters.
• Naturally, the more shoots left on a tomato bush, the more clusters it can form and ripen with proper care. Hence the secrets of possible high yields. But in this case, caring for the tomato must be very intensive.
• The taste of tomatoes is good, experts rate it a solid four, but due to its thick skin, it is more suitable for pickling rather than salads.
• An ideal pickling variety, because the size is suitable for any jar, even a small one, it does not crack and looks very beautiful when canned whole.
• Tomatoes of the French bunch variety are stored very well and can be stored in a cool place for several months. They also withstand long-term transportation very well, making them suitable for industrial cultivation.