Pruning Tomato Plants – A “How To” Guide

By Olivia Stanford

If you love large, juicy, show-stopping tomatoes, then you need to know the proper method of pruning tomato plants.

Determinate and Indeterminate Tomato Varieties Require Different Pruning Methods

Determinate tomato varieties are plants that produce all of their fruits in one fell swoop. In other words, they produce fruits that mature at the same time. If you have determinate tomato plants, you’ll notice that at a certain time, all of a sudden they will stop producing leaves and the green tomatoes will ripen.

Determinate tomatoes are varieties like sandwich and beefsteak. Roma and Celebrity tomatoes are determinate.

Indeterminate tomato plants are those typically used for salads like cherry tomatoes, Big Boy and Early Girl. These tomato varieties continue to grow and will produce fruits that ripen in a progressive pattern, not all at once.

Pruning tomato plants of both varieties requires different techniques for best performance.

Use Your Fingers for Pruning Tomato Plants

Do not use a knife for pruning tomato plants unless you have some very tough or stubborn stems.

If you prune your tomatoes once a week, you should be able to “pinch” the stems between your thumb and first fingernail, leaving a much-less-prone-to-infection wound that will heal very quickly.

Knives and bypass cutters, also called loppers, can spread infection from one plant to another easily when pruning tomato plants.

Again, it’s best if you try pruning tomato plants once a week for optimum fruit production.

Instructions for Pruning Tomato Plants – Determinate Varieties

Start at the bottom of your plant. Look for “suckers,” which are stems that have started growing between the main stem and each branch.

Pinch the suckers off. This is called “simple pruning.” If you check your plant each week for new suckers, then you won’t have to deal with any stems that have become hard to remove because of age.

Check for early blossoms and remove them when pruning tomato plants, if your plant is not large enough to handle fruits yet.

The goal in pruning tomato plants is to prevent the plant from putting energy into fruits before it is ready to handle them. Removing suckers will encourage your plant to get bigger and stronger without allowing the suckers to drain needed energy away.

As the growing season grows near its end, you’ll want to “top” your tomato plant. This means that you’ll pinch off the top of the main stem, called the “terminal.”

Topping the tomato plant allows it to finish ripening those green tomatoes that you see hanging, and preventing any further upward growth of the main stem. (If you don’t top your plants, then they will continue to produce stems and leaves and green wimpy fruit that you won’t enjoy.)

Pruning Tomato Plants – Indeterminate Varieties

When pruning tomato plants, take off any blossoms until the plant reaches about 18 inches tall.

Indeterminate tomatoes produce several vines. Since you’ll want to concentrate all that energy on tomato production, you’ll want to eliminate all but 1 or 2, or possibly as many as 3 vines, but leave no more than that.

Pinch off any suckers you see that form between the main stem and the branches. This is the same procedure that you would perform for pruning tomato plants of determinate varieties.

However, if you’re planning to leave 2 or 3 vines, then you’ll want to leave the stem(s) growing just above the initial fruit cluster.

Another method for pruning tomato plants is called “Missouri pruning,” which means that instead of taking the entire sucker off, you remove the part of the sucker that is above the first two leaves nearest the main stem.

Missouri pruning allows the two leaves to remain, which allows additional energy to be harvested from the sun by these remaining leaves. However, new suckers will grow very quickly, meaning that your pruning chores will be increased.

Missouri pruning is also helpful if your plants have gotten out of control, and you think pruning suckers severely may hurt the mother plant.

A Few Additional Tips for Pruning Tomato Plants

You’ll notice that as your plants get larger and begin producing fruit that the bottom leaves may start to yellow and drop off. Don’t worry! This is normal. Feel free to remove them yourself if you like.

Topping your plants should typically be done about a month before your first anticipated frost. This allows the plant to put all its remaining energy into ripening fruits.

Remember to stake or support your plants. Plants that are kept upright and off the ground are healthier and produce better fruit.  You might even try hanging tomato plants.

If you’re a smoker, don’t prune unless you’ve washed your hands thoroughly. Mosiac Virus is spread to tomatoes through tobacco residue on your hands.

If you put a little energy and effort into pruning tomato plants, you’ll reap a crop you’ll be proud of!

Tips for Tomato Success

By Pauline Rausch

If you’re interested in growing tomatoes from seed, then you’re probably looking for tips to make your gardening venture a success.

The good news is that raising tomatoes is not hard, and even the gardening novice can grow a bumper crop with a little care and attention to detail.

1. If you’re planning to put your tomato plants outside after last frost, (generally in the month of May sometime unless you live in extremely cold country), then you want to start your baby plants from seed about 6 to 8 weeks before the last date when it’s possible to have frost. For example, we live in southern Wyoming and the last chance of frost is typically May 15. This means that I will want to start my seeds about March 15.
2. You want to start your seeds in sterile medium. This prevents other plants or fungus from competing with the seeds for nutrients. Check carefully for sterile medium, and choose a well known brand if at all possible. I’ve found that several big box stores carry something they call sterile, but when used, lots of little things start to grow, and not the seeds that I planted!
3. Growing tomatoes from seed means that you’ll want an heirloom seed variety for good propagation. You may have saved some hybrid seeds from last year’s crop, but hybrids do not do well when replanted. They just don’t have the vigor needed for a plant to thrive.
4. The place where you’re planting your seeds needs to be warm. This is imperative! The temperature needs to be a stable 70 degrees or higher, and 75 to 90 degrees is better. Tomatoes love heat!
5. The simplest method of growing tomatoes from seed is to use peat pellets. They are not expensive, and you can find them at the big box stores or home improvement stores about the beginning of February. They are already sterile, so you can disregard tip #2 if you use the pellet. You simply cover the pellets with warm water. Wait about half an hour for the pellets to absorb the water (they will swell to full size) and then you’re ready to plant!
6. Take a sharpened pencil and poke a couple of holes no deeper than ¼ inch in the pots. Place a seed or two in each hole, and cover. Water the new seeds with warm water, and presto! Your tomatoes are planted.
7. Keep your newly planted seeds moist at all times. Do not drown them! You may want to water with a spray mister. Remember to keep them at least 70 degrees, and again, 75 degrees or higher is better. Within 4 to 10 days you should have germination.
8. Once your seeds have germinated, you need to start providing them with stable light. They need at least 14 hours or more. I’ve used a grow light with great success. A grow light is simply a florescent light fixture like you’d find in most garages, except it has grow light bulbs in place of the regular florescent bulbs. The grow light bulbs provide the proper light wavelengths needed by growing plants. Place the light fixture down very near the plants, just a few inches away. As the plants grow, you’ll need to raise it up to give your seedlings room to continue upward, so you might consider some “s” hooks and chain to mount your grow lights. And just so you know, a windowsill will not work. You’ll get spindly plants that will not thrive.
9. When your plants are about 3 inches tall, you’ll need to decide which seedlings to cull. You want your tomato plants to succeed, and sharing a pot with each other will not help them. Snip the weaker plant out of each peat pellet cell. Don’t pull them out, you’ll risk uprooting the plant you want to keep.
10. Do you fertilize? Well, yes and no. If your starter medium has built-in fertilizer, then no, do not fertilize. But if there is no fertilizer in the peat pellets, then yes, you can fertilize after the first few true leaves have appeared. If you do fertilize, only use half-strength fertilizer that is water soluble. You don’t want to kill your seedlings with something they are just not ready to handle. (It would be like feeding Red Bull to a newborn baby, you get the picture.) If you’ve used a sterile mix, you’ll probably fertilize at most two times while your plants are indoors.
11. Here’s something most people have never thought of: Train a modulating fan on the seedlings so that they get a gentle breeze for 15 minutes a day, morning and afternoon. Do not position it full force on the seedlings, but imagine a lightly blowing wind stirring the leaves of the plants. This will encourage your seedlings to develop strong stems.
12. When you water your seedlings, always use warm or room temperature water, and again, it’s a good idea to spray mist.
13. Another tip to help develop firm, stable stems is to brush your hand – very lightly – across the tops of your seedlings.
14. Tomatoes don’t like to be crowded, so about the time there are 3 or 4 true leaves on your plants, transplant them to 4 inch pots. Plants them as deeply as you can in these pots, and you can even pinch off the bottom leaves if you want to. Roots will develop from the places where the leaves were pinched off, so if you pinch, make sure there is soil covering up to and over those pinched places on the plant’s stem.
15. Continue with all of the above: grow light for 14 hours or more per day, mist gently to keep moist, and keep the seedlings warm.
16. Growing tomatoes from seed means that you’ll need to harden the seedlings before you transplant outdoors. This helps them to get used living outside, and helps them to withstand outdoor conditions. Some people will use a wall ‘o water with great success. I usually start to take my tomato seedlings outside for 2 hours the first day, 4 hours the next day, and so on, giving the plants the chance to get used to being outside. Take at least a week to do this, always increasing the amount of time each day that the seedlings spend outside. Give them a variety of sun and shade. If you’re able to harden your plants over 10 days or 2 weeks, even better.
17. You’re not done! Now comes that actual transplanting. Pinch off the bottom few leaves and plant your tomato seedlings as deep in the ground as possible, but keep at least one quarter of the plant above ground. This encourages strong roots, which means healthier plants. Do not mulch, since at this time the ground is still on the cool side and mulch can keep the ground around the plants cooler. Give a week or two before you add mulch. A wall ‘o water will also help to keep your seedlings warm.
18. Water immediately, but use warm water – not cold water from the hose. Remember your seedlings have been used to indoor conditions, don’t make the transition any harder for them than need be.
19. Watch the weather religiously for the first few weeks; even though the last date of potential frost is supposed to be May 15 in my area, we’ve had frost as late as June 22. If frost is forecast, or even if it just might get close, cover your plants.
20. Wait a few more weeks, and get ready to enjoy the fruits of your labor!

As you see, growing tomatoes from seed isn’t hard, it’s just a matter of treating the plant gently and with care.

Hanging Tomato Planter – How to Grow Tomatoes Upside Down!

By Rick Zimmerman

There is nothing better than a fresh tomato from your very own garden, and a hanging tomato planter may be just what you need to grow tomatoes that taste great!

A Hanging Tomato Planter is Perfect for Small Spaces

If you want the reward of growing your own tomatoes but don’t have enough room in your garden, then a solution to your space problem may be the new hanging tomato planter.

All you need is a small amount of space outdoors in any place that gets direct sunlight and has enough room that you can hang a potted plant.

Some people claim that if you grow tomatoes upside down, you’ll get more tomatoes than if you were to plant them traditionally.

Make Your Own Hanging Tomato Planter

If you would like to try to grow your own tomatoes upside down in a hanging tomato planter, there is a very easy way to do so. Just follow these directions and in no time you will have your own fresh tomatoes.

What You Need:
1)  Five gallon bucket
2)  Potting soil
3)  A small tomato seedling
4)  Several feet of 1/8 inch cord
5)  Utility knife

You can choose any color bucket, however green gives more of a garden feel for some.

First, use warm water to rinse your hanging tomato planter well before starting.

Next, make a hole two to three inches in diameter in the center of the bottom with your knife.

Layer several newspapers in the bottom of the bucket. Make a small “X” cut in the newspaper through the hole in the bucket.

Attach the cord to the bucket.  Generally you will want to attach the cord in 3 places to the top of the bucket to keep your hanging tomato planter level.  you may want to use a drill or your utility knife to make the holes.

Remove the tomato seedling from its container.

Thread the seedling through the newspaper so the stem protrudes through the hole in the bucket, make sure the roots are inside the bucket.  Remember to be gentle!

Now fill the bucket with the potting soil, taking care to fill the soil snugly around the roots of your tomato seedling. Make sure to take care during this step as the seedling is very fragile.

Cut several holes in the bucket lid, and place the lid on top of the bucket.

Make sure your plant has adequate room to grow in the downward position.  That is, you want your hanging tomato planter to have several feet below it to allow for the plant to grow.

Make Sure to Hang Your Planter Where It Will Get Lots of Sun

Your plant should get direct sunlight at least half of the day, and more is better.  Tomatoes love sun!

Keep Your Hanging Tomato Planter Well-Watered

Keep your hanging tomato planter well-hydrated.  You may need to water your plant every 1-2 days, depending upon the heat and amount of sun.  Remember that since you don’t have the ground surrounding your plant, you may need to water more often.

Prune Your Plants As Needed

Feel free to prune your plant as needed, removing any suckers that start.  You can treat the plant in your hanging tomato planter just as a normal tomato plant.

Soon you’ll have some of the best tomatoes you have ever tasted. After your tomatoes have ripened on the vine, you may pick them as they become red and firm.

We aren’t sure if it’s the way these tomatoes are grown or if it is the satisfaction of growing them yourself, but tomatoes grown in a hanging tomato planter are some of the best.

Growing the tomatoes upside down does allow the nutrients to completely flow down into the leaves and plant itself.

Make sure to use a strong hook for your planter.  Each hanging tomato planter can weigh as much as 40 pounds!

By Denny Collins

The problem with living in the city is that when you want to grow fresh vegetables and fruit, such at tomatoes, is that you don’t have enough space to grow them the same way you would normally. A plant such as a tomato plant generally takes up a lot of space in a garden, as the leaves grown and the vines grow and the fruit sprouts. However, if you have the right resources, you can grow a hanging tomato plant almost anywhere you can find space and some sunlight.

There are kits you can buy that provide you with the equipment to grown your own hanging tomato plants. However, you do not necessarily have to use these kits to grow fresh tomatoes. All you need is a bucket, about five gallons or so, that you cut some holes into to then thread some rope through. This rope is what you use to hang the plant from a hook, say, off of a balcony or porch. You also need some soil specifically for growing tomatoes which you can find at any outdoor supply store or nursery. You then need what is known as a tomato seedling which you then plant in the vitamin rich soil and a place to hang the bucket and seedling.

Once you have your seedling and your bucket prepared, you need to carefully remove the seedling from what it came in from the nursery. Then place it in the bucket along with the soil and something like newspaper near the bottom to help hold the seedling in place. You will then place a lid on the bucket and over the seedling. Hang the bucket some place where it will receive plenty of sun and be sure to water it as instructed. Soon you will have a growing hanging tomato plant producing fresh tomatoes for you to use for whatever purposes you have for tomatoes.

It is best to plant the hanging tomato plants in the spring, usually around April or, at the latest, early June. Make sure the hook you have used is strong to hold the bucket, seedling and water. Also, make sure that wherever you hang them that animals such as squirrels do not take too much of an interest as they are known to climb to great heights, even in the city, to eat seedlings or newly growing plants.