I'm using five foot tomato stakes to support my plant. I have a bit of a teepee setup with two entirely vertical stakes and leaning stakes supporting those. So very sturdy. Anyway, the tomato has grown as tall as the stakes (about four feet tall). Clearly it's going to grow much taller. It's an indeterminate variety, and I didn't know what that meant until after I purchased it. It's a Sun Gold, which I'm told gets very big and very prolific. So I'm not sure what to do now that it's growing bigger than the supports. My peas did the same thing and ended up falling over (the peas, not the trellis).
What should I do? I realize it will grow a bit taller without needing further support, but at some point it will need something if it gets *very* much bigger. Should I just let it grow and see what happens? Or should I start lopping it off at a certain height? I'm really not sure what to do. This is my first time growing tomatoes.
Sun Gold will get very tall and bushy and you will have it drape over the top and cascade down to the ground. If you don't have mulch (I use three layers of newspaper on the ground and four to six inches of straw on top of that) it would be a good idea to add a mulch layer under the plant to keep the leaves from contacting the soil.
That will reduce the chance of soil borne disease and keep the tomatoes off the ground for less rot. You will get more tomatoes than you ever thought possible from one plant. Sun Gold is very sweet and tasty, but tend to split open if left on the vine too long. Pick a bunch and let them ripen off the vine for some nice cherry tomatoes.
That will reduce the chance of soil borne disease and keep the tomatoes off the ground for less rot. You will get more tomatoes than you ever thought possible from one plant. Sun Gold is very sweet and tasty, but tend to split open if left on the vine too long. Pick a bunch and let them ripen off the vine for some nice cherry tomatoes.
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jemsister
- Senior Member
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- Joined: Mon May 27, 2013 7:15 pm
- Location: Western Washington, USA
Thanks, Paul. So it's okay to just let it grow and slump over? I would have thought it would break the stem. I'm growing it in a raised bed (a converted dresser frame) on a patio, so if it grows all the way back down to the ground, it will more than likely be resting on concrete rather than dirt. I wonder if I could guide it down one of the side stakes. That way I could control where it grows.
I pick my tomatoes early and let them ripen inside near a full sun window. I have problems with birds, squirrels, and other creatures, so I gather them when they show some color. Hard to say at what stage. I do like for them to have some red before I pick them.jemsister wrote:Oh, one more thing--about them splitting on the vine. How do you know when it's okay to pick them early and ripen on the counter? I mean it seems like if you pick them prematurely they would just stay green. Do you have to wait until they show a little color before considering picking them early?
I edited to add a picture of what I picked today, to give an idea of how far along they are when picked. These will turn red in two or three days
