No Suckers???

[FaTRippz]

I'm growing beefsteak tomatoes indoors and I'm just starting to get flower buds, but I don't have any suckers. Everyone says prune them when they first come up but I havent seen any. I'm just wondering why.

[CharlieBear]

I don't grow beefstake, but I have several varieties of tomatoes that produce few if any suckers. Generally, determinate tomatoes are far less likely to produce them then the semi indeterminate or the indeterminate. Also, I want to be on the same page, a sucker is anything growing between the main stem and a leaf grouping that is growing more or less at right angles to the main stem.

[TZ -OH6]

Suckers start to come out when the plant has excess energy. The plant might not be old enough or the light may not be strong enough or a combination.

[rainbowgardener]

What TZ said! I would assume there's not enough light indoors for it to be producing extra branches. Do you have grow lights on it? It can be difficult to get tomatoes to fruit indoors without lots of added light.

Check out this thread:

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=215923#215923

[FaTRippz]

I have three cfls on it along with other plants and seedlings. I also have a budding jalapeno but they keep fallin off but I but its the light or immaturity thanks TZ

[gixxerific]

Tz is right (of course ).

Give them some time and light. I was just trimming as I do every year bout this time. I trim off all the dead stuff on the lower end, Even though there is a ton of dead or dying stuff down low you still see a lot of new growth coming out. Tomatoes are not indestructible but they can be hard to stop given the right conditions.

P.S. if you need suckers that bad take a kid with you to the bank you more than likely get one there.

[Bobberman]

Fast growth means suckers and light and nitrogen does that. I think you must have both together and not too dry!