pruning tomato plants?

[Jeremy brua]

I have three plants that are a little closer to each other then maybe they should be. they are all big and healthy but it is a mess. I know when you remove the suckers to only go to the first blossoms. but do you go higher after it sets fruit or the blossoms die? what other branches can be removed?

thanks for the help!

[Bobberman]

Suckers come between the branches on the main stem. A simple way to get more and bigger tomatoes is to leave the sucker grow till it has its first set of flowers and pich the stem off above the flowers. What this does is give the plant more leaves for production and alow the first fruit to grow on the sucker while stopping the sucker from getting bigger and draining the main stem!!.

[Jeremy brua]

so once the fruit sets I can remove the sucker? what about the branches that don't have flowers? I have some that almost grow all most strait down.

[Bobberman]

All suckrs usually get a set of flowers after theyu grow about a foot. The stem passes the set of flowers and forms another set. I usually cut the sucker about a inch above the first set of flowers. If you want two sets of flowers before you cut it that will also work! I by accident you cut the main sem the suckers can become the main new stem! The first sucker on the main stem can become the second main stem if you want and even the suckers will get suckers on them!
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I usually leave a few plants grow undesturbed and get later and more tomatoes on those plants! if you have very rich soil I would not worry about suckers because the plants will grow alot of tomatoes. Also I like to hill tomatoes by putting about 6 nches of dirt around the stem and it will grow stroner!

[Jeremy brua]

thanks I am learning alot! I might just let them be for now.

[cynthia_h]

Many of us never "prune" a tomato plant; it's a surprisingly divisive topic.

I sometimes take off leaves which, no matter how gently I water the plants, insist on receiving soil splash-up, but that's IT. Whatever the plant wants to grow, I'm willing to deal with, since I have so little dirt to grow plants in.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[Ruffsta]

I have three plants that are a little closer to each other then maybe they should be. they are all big and healthy but it is a mess. I know when you remove the suckers to only go to the first blossoms. but do you go higher after it sets fruit or the blossoms die? what other branches can be removed?

personally, I cut off what I don't want - doesn't seem to harm my plants at all.