if anyone can give advice I would appreciate it
Thanks!Pruning question (and pic)
Hi I am planting my tomatoes fairly close together and am pruning them, I think I missed a pruning spot but am not sure what to remove-I attached a picture-it's where the stem splits in two in the middle of the photo
if anyone can give advice I would appreciate it Thanks!
if anyone can give advice I would appreciate it
Thanks!You prune out the suckers that appear above a leaf or branch node. Some people do let one or two suckers remain to allow for more branching. You can remove the lowest leaves of the tomato since they are the ones that gets splashed on and will get fungal disease. Mulch around the tomatoes to keep the weeds down, minimize splashing and hold moisture longer.
You don't need to prune to a single stem. It depends on why you are pruning.
If you want larger tomatoes you allow fewer branches to grow but you will have fewer total number of tomatoes
If you want more tomatoes you can allow additional branches to grow.
If you have a determinate tomato, you really don't want to prune at all since you will just decrease your total yield.
If you are growing in cages instead of up a pole or string and spaced three feet apart, you don't need to prune at all or just prune off what gets in the way.
If you are planting close and up a string or pole, then you want to reduce branching. Reducing branching will reduce your total number of fruit, but the fruit you do get will be larger if your plant is healthy and removing suckers will improve air circulation that will help stave off disease. By planting closer you will have more tomato plants in a given space. If you keep more branches you will need to provide stake and space for those branches to grow. You can choose to prune to a single stem or keep one or two other branches. It is your choice.
If you chose to prune to a single stem you would have to decide which branch you want to keep and cut the other side off. I prefer not to cut too close to the node in case the tip dies back and I would have preferred to have pinched out the side branch when it was a lot smaller so that the wound would not be so large.
If you want larger tomatoes you allow fewer branches to grow but you will have fewer total number of tomatoes
If you want more tomatoes you can allow additional branches to grow.
If you have a determinate tomato, you really don't want to prune at all since you will just decrease your total yield.
If you are growing in cages instead of up a pole or string and spaced three feet apart, you don't need to prune at all or just prune off what gets in the way.
If you are planting close and up a string or pole, then you want to reduce branching. Reducing branching will reduce your total number of fruit, but the fruit you do get will be larger if your plant is healthy and removing suckers will improve air circulation that will help stave off disease. By planting closer you will have more tomato plants in a given space. If you keep more branches you will need to provide stake and space for those branches to grow. You can choose to prune to a single stem or keep one or two other branches. It is your choice.
If you chose to prune to a single stem you would have to decide which branch you want to keep and cut the other side off. I prefer not to cut too close to the node in case the tip dies back and I would have preferred to have pinched out the side branch when it was a lot smaller so that the wound would not be so large.
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GardeningCook
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- Location: Upper Piedmont area of Virginia, Zone 7a
Regardless of whether or not you prune (I don't), it doesn't look like you have any support for those plants. Is your plan to have them sprawl on the ground? I've grown some that way when I had more plants than supports, & frankly I don't recommend the method.
If you plan on using supports, you need to get them onto those plants pronto. Stakes &/or the string methods will require pruning, while cages (which, if you're going to use them, need to be put over those plants asap) don't really require any pruning at all.
Here in Virginia I don't do any pruning except to remove leaves that appear damaged or diseased in some way. I like to leave as much foliage as possible to help prevent fruit sun scald.
If you plan on using supports, you need to get them onto those plants pronto. Stakes &/or the string methods will require pruning, while cages (which, if you're going to use them, need to be put over those plants asap) don't really require any pruning at all.
Here in Virginia I don't do any pruning except to remove leaves that appear damaged or diseased in some way. I like to leave as much foliage as possible to help prevent fruit sun scald.