Description of the tomato variety Dachnik, its characteristics and cultivation

Do you love growing vegetables but don't have a dacha or a small garden plot? Consider the Dachnik tomato. It certainly won't disappoint. You can grow these tomatoes, with their classic tomato flavor and slightly tart flavor, even on your own balcony.

Description of the variety

Early-ripening Dachnik tomatoes. If you plan to grow them outdoors, don't rush into sowing seeds for seedlings. It takes only 100 days from the first shoots to harvesting the first fruits. Seeds can be sown for seedlings in April, and by the end of May, they will be ready for transplanting outdoors.

The Dachnik variety can be grown in any region of Russia. This frost- and drought-resistant plant manages to produce a harvest even in short, cold summers. Fruit sets equally well during droughts and rainy seasons. Tomatoes are planted in greenhouses, open ground, and on loggias.

The bushes are standard, meaning they are short and stocky with strong, short stems. The description guarantees a height of 50 cm, but reviews suggest they can grow up to 70 cm. They have few leaves. A single cluster produces up to 5-6 medium-sized fruits. Each fruit rarely weighs more than 100 g, but all the fruits are nearly uniform in size, have a beautiful round shape, and are bright red when fully ripe.

The fruit's flesh is medium-dense with a distinctive tomato flavor and aroma. The seeds are medium in number, and the fruit's intended uses are:

• preparing salads;
• production of sauces, ketchups, tomato paste;
• whole fruit canning;
• preparation of fresh juice.

The yield, despite the short stature of the bushes, is decent, but the figures cited by vegetable growers vary. Some report a yield of 3 kg/m², while others claim 3 kg of fruit per bush, or a bucket of tomatoes per square meter. Both are probably right; apparently, the better the care, the higher the yield.

Growing

Experienced vegetable growers' advice mostly concerns planting seeds for seedlings. The main mistake is sowing too early. Since seedlings enter the flowering phase too early, seeds should be sown no earlier than the end of March.

When planting seedlings in a greenhouse or outdoors, consider their age. Plants 50 days old adapt more quickly. Overgrown and very young seedlings take longer to establish and are more susceptible to disease.

Seedlings should be planted in the ground after the soil warms to 12–15°C and no frost is expected. This isn't necessary for greenhouses, as temperatures down to -5°C are safe for plants there, but it's best to cover them with a covering material overnight.

Care Features

The manufacturer's recommendations for Dachnik bushes recommend not pinching or tying them up, but years of experience among amateur vegetable growers suggests otherwise: the best results are achieved by shaping the bushes into 2-3 trunks and partially rationing the yield.

Although the fruits are small, they form in clusters in large numbers and at the same time, so don't neglect to support the fruiting shoots. It's best to install a support (a 1-meter-high stake) at planting time, driving it into the center of the planting hole.

Important stages of caring for the Dachnik tomato:

• maintaining optimal humidity in the root zone, moderate watering;
• removing the 3 lower leaves to ensure ventilation of the bush;
• During the season, feed the bushes with complex mineral fertilizers 3 times.

Advantages and disadvantages

Almost any characteristic of the Dachnik tomato will speak to its merits; the list is long:

• convenient, compact bush shape;
• grows in open ground, in greenhouses, on windowsills;
• does not reduce yields in low light conditions;
• productivity depends little on weather conditions;
• the possibility of obtaining early production;
• disease resistance;
• productivity and friendly fruit yield;
• there is no need to shape and tie up the bushes;
• long fruiting throughout the summer.

The Dachnik tomato has very few disadvantages; its taste is usually criticized; it has a sourness typical of early tomatoes. Due to its long fruiting period, the early variety can be susceptible to late blight in August. Dachnik's resistance to this disease is moderate, and sharp daily temperature fluctuations create favorable conditions for the fungus to develop.

Pests and diseases

The early maturity of the Dachnik variety allows it to avoid many diseases, but fruiting, which continues until late summer, does not eliminate the risk of late blight and early blight. Agronomists have developed preventative measures against late blight and early blight. Most vegetable growers use the product Ordan to combat these diseases:

• first spraying after the formation of 4–5 leaves;
• subsequent treatments every 10 days;
• The final spraying is carried out 3 weeks before harvesting.

With proper farming practices and preventative measures, tomatoes are resistant to all diseases, making this variety popular in high-risk farming areas. Advantages of the Dachnik tomato include resistance to fusarium wilt and blossom-end rot.

Harvesting and storage

The fruits in the cluster fill out and ripen at about the same time. After picking, ripe tomatoes should be processed immediately or used in salads and other dishes. The fruits don't keep well at room temperature, so it's best to refrigerate them.

In the produce section, ripe tomatoes retain their marketable appearance and nutritional value for three weeks. Fruits showing signs of rot or mechanical damage should not be stored with healthy ones.

Gardeners' reviews

Elena, Oryol: "I spoke with the seller and he recommended an early tomato variety called Dachnik. He assured me it was popular: it's early maturing, easy to care for, and also productive. I read descriptions of the variety on various forums, and they were praising it. I planted 10 seeds in early March, and they all sprouted. The seedlings are short but sturdy. I'll transplant them outdoors under arches in mid-April. The bushes are short for a greenhouse."

Tatyana, Ryazan: "I read reviews of the Dachnik tomato. I decided to grow a few bushes on my balcony. I sowed the seeds for seedlings early—early February. It's May now, and the small tomatoes are already filling out. The bushes are short, but they've produced a lot of fruit. We'll be making salads soon."

Ekaterina, Achinsk: "Those who have planted the Dachnik tomato say it's a lazy variety. I'm exactly that type of gardener. I love going to my dacha, but spending all day in the garden isn't for me. I planted this variety and am waiting for warmer weather to plant the seedlings outdoors. The seedlings are strong and not very tall. I hope everything I read about this variety is true, and we'll be harvesting our first tomatoes soon."