Description of the Butterfly tomato and cultivation features of the variety

Small varieties, such as the Butterfly tomato, have their advantages. Their shape and size allow them to create real beauty in garden beds and jars.

These are very small but delicious tomatoes that will make a real table decoration, whether fresh or pickled. Gardeners who have grown Butterfly tomatoes have had no complaints about the yield.

Characteristics of the variety

The variety's description and characteristics indicate that Butterfly tomatoes are mid-season. This means you shouldn't expect ripe fruits too early. Furthermore, the Butterfly variety isn't known for uniform or even ripening, so fruit harvests can take several months.

The average time to reach full edible maturity is about 115 days. The tomatoes gradually turn red on long trusses. Therefore, the fruits can be harvested from mid-July to September.

Tomatoes of this variety are determinate. This means the plant doesn't grow very tall. Most often, the bush reaches a height of one and a half meters. However, in greenhouses, the bushes can grow somewhat taller.

Such sizes indicate that tomatoes need to be tied up. A single trunk produces numerous clusters laden with small tomatoes. The weight of the tomatoes can cause the plant to break, which can lead to partial loss of the harvest.

Peculiarities:

• The Butterfly variety is distinguished by its very high fruit yield.
• Brushes appear every 2-3 leaves.
• The fruits grow in clusters (up to 50 in each). This looks very beautiful, so these varieties can be a real highlight in a garden or greenhouse.

To increase yield, experts recommend forming the bush into 1-2 stems and removing excess branches.

A properly formed bush will be quite compact. Therefore, the plants can be planted more densely in beds. The optimal spacing for the Butterfly variety is 5-6 bushes per square meter. However, with a good summer and sufficient sunshine, planting around 8 bushes per square meter is acceptable. This will allow you to harvest a very large number of tomatoes even in a small space.

Growing this variety is best done with mineral fertilizers, especially during the growing season. Once the fruit begins to ripen, weeding and periodic soil loosening are all that's needed. It's believed that the maximum yield from Butterfly bushes can be achieved by planting seedlings in areas previously occupied by cucumbers, cauliflower, zucchini, parsley, carrots, or dill. In this case, each plant can yield up to 5 kg of fruit.

Description of fruits

The main characteristic of Butterfly tomatoes is that they are small, yet produce a large number of them. Each cluster produces up to 50 fruits, averaging 20 grams in weight (sometimes up to 50 grams).

Unlike other small-fruited varieties, this tomato has a very pleasant, slightly sweet flavor. These tomatoes are suitable not only for canning but also for use in salads.

The fruit is round, but some tomatoes appear as small pears. Regardless, they have a pleasant, fleshy texture and a pinkish hue when ripe.

Gardeners' reviews of this variety are mostly positive.

Sofia, Novocherkassk: "Of all the small varieties, Butterfly is my favorite. I love these tomatoes for their flavor, disease resistance, and excellent yield. I harvest at least 20 kg of small tomatoes per square meter per season. They're great for canning. It's a shame they don't ripen evenly, but they store well, so that's a slight drawback."

Regina, Feodosia: "These are good tomatoes. They have a pleasant flavor and thin skin. These are exactly the kind I like for salads. I get a good harvest, so I have enough for both fresh eating and canning for the winter."