Stingy instincts are in the crosshairs
It starts a few weeks after the start of the season. Tomato plants incessantly form side shoots, which are cheeky from the Leaf axils sprout and dispute the valuable fruit shoots with flower roots for nutrients. In this way the plants want to get their way to produce as many small fruits as possible. The floral strategy is not unknown in the plant kingdom, because Grapevines or peppers also fall back on the help of miserly instincts.
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Tomato gardeners put a stop to this idea by changing the care program regular skimming is expanded. Those who let the nosy side shoots do their thing will struggle with the overly long, drooping tendrils that bear many leaves and puny fruits. The dense foliage also casts shadows on neighboring tomatoes and also affects the quality of the harvest.
Skinning meat and stake tomatoes
Candidates for regular skimming are primarily single-handedly drawn Meat and stake tomatoes. Bushy Balcony tomatoes and wild tomatoes produce miniature fruits anyway, which cannot be changed by pruning. You can identify a stingy shoot by its position in a leaf axil, the fork between the shoot and the leaf. Scissors are not required for the measure. How to do it correctly:
- Put on rubber gloves to protect against the stubborn sap
- From May, check stake tomatoes for stinging shoots twice a week
- Grasp the shoot at the base with your thumb and forefinger
- Bend back and forth several times until the stem breaks
Stay on the heels of stingy instincts as soon as possible. In the early stages, the uninvited shoots are soft enough to break out with two fingers. Do you feel an axillary drive too late? eye and has reached a height of 10 cm, please use a sharp, disinfected knife. Consider beforehand which procedure will leave the smallest wound on the plant tissue.
Remove late summer flowers
Due to their tropical origins, tomatoes have no idea that the warm season is coming to an end in late summer. Flowers that unfold from August onwards have no chance of turning into ripe tomatoes. At the same time, the plant pumps all reserve substances in the direction of the flower systems, which are lost for the maturity of existing fruits. It is therefore common practice in tomato cultivation to break out late summer buds and flowers.
Digression
Convert stinging shoots into cuttings
Remove tomato leaves close to the ground
A scientific study teaches us that leaves im upper third of tomato plants almost 80 percent of photosynthesis achieve. The foliage on the lower level contributes little to the growth of large, juicy tomatoes compared to the energy consumption. For this reason, skilled gardeners tend to cut the leaves near the ground. How to do it right:
- Remove leaves in the lower area from the second month of cultivation at the latest
- Ideally, break off young leaves manually
- Cut off larger leaves
- Tomatoes defoliate to a height of about 30 cm
The advantages are apparent. First and foremost, you optimize the utilization of nutrients. Furthermore, the tomato plant thrives loosely and airily, what Pathogens complicates the attack. Last but not least, no more irrigation or rain water splashes on the foliage, which improves the prevention of late blight and brown rot.
Tips
With the exception of leaves that are close to the ground and diseased, the foliage of a tomato should be preserved. Photosynthesis depends on every single leaf. Valuable chlorophyll flows here in streams, the elixir of life for every tomato plant. If too few leaves are available for the supply of flowers and fruits, all efforts to achieve a premium quality harvest are wasted.
If there is not enough space, cut the main shoot
Few tomato growers can allow their plants to grow freely upwards. As a rule, a lack of space determines the cultivation of tomatoes in the home garden and on the balcony. Limited acreage does not mean that you have to do without juicy beefsteak tomatoes. The good-natured cut tolerance offers one targeted pruningto that Regulate growth. How to proceed correctly step by step:
- After planting, fix the tomato to the support rod with soft binding material
- Lead the strongest tendril up the stick while growing
- Do not cut lateral fruit shoots with flower buds
- Break out stinging shoots from the leaf axils
- Cut the main shoot when the desired height is reached
The time for the cut on the main cut is subject to your horticultural assessment and the available space. In growing practice, it has been found that there should be at least three or four side shoots with flower shoots before the cut is made.
Do not cut the bush tomatoes
Since the cultivation areas have been getting smaller and smaller, small bush and balcony tomatoes are gaining popularity. The richly branched tomato plants are satisfied with little space, do not need any climbing aid and are wonderfully easy to care for.
Gardeners with limited time appreciate that bush tomatoes cannot be gutted and that they can keep their leaves close to the ground. It is taboo to cut the main shoot because it will stop the growth in height. With a maximum height of 30 to 100 centimeters, it would be fatal to cut the top bud. In one of the most important Laws of Growth it can be read that the cut of a dominant bud breaks the floral will to grow in height.
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frequently asked Questions
Are tomatoes hardy?
Although tomatoes have been grown in Central European gardens for generations, the delicate plants have not learned to survive the local winter outside. The tropical nightshade plants shiver from as little as 10 degrees Celsius, which destroys any prospect of multi-year cultivation in the open air. At least there is the option to overwinter small varieties and wild tomatoes in a pot behind glass.
Can tomatoes be kept in the bucket?
Tomatoes also thrive in the tub. Stable pots and planters with a size from 40 x 40 cm and a water drain in the bottom have proven to be very effective. A mix of semi-ripe compost, loam, fine-grain sand and some lime or bentonite is suitable as a substrate. It is best to pull beefsteak tomatoes with a single shoot on the support rod. The leaves are gradually removed in the lower area up to a height of 30-40 cm. A rain canopy is ideal. Alternatively, place the bucket on one Plant rollerto put the tomatoes in a dry place in rainy weather.
The meteorologists announce the first cold autumn nights and our tomato plants are still bearing numerous green fruits. What to do?
Tomatoes are one of the fruits that ripen afterwards. You can take advantage of this property and bring in the last harvest in a green state. To do this, tear up the entire plant and remove all the leaves. In the house, choose a dark room with temperatures between 16 and 25 degrees Celsius, which ideally has a high level of humidity. Here you hang the plants upside down on a stretched line. With this horticultural gimmick you can harvest ripe tomatoes by Christmas.
Are Green Tomatoes Poisonous?
Tomato plants belong to the nightshade family and contain harmful solanine. The alkaloid serves to ward off pests and only degrades when it is ripe. Intentional or unintentional consumption of a single green tomato can cause significant symptoms of intoxication, such as nausea, vomiting, and cramps. The danger remains even in the semi-ripe state, when the fruits are partly red and green in color. So don't bite into a tomato until the fruit is completely colored.
What to do with the cuttings of tomatoes?
Leaves and shoots can also make a contribution to healthy, vigorous growth as clippings. Just leave the plant parts on the ground as Mulch(€ 239.00 at Amazon *) lie. It is advantageous for the recycling process if you occasionally pour nettle liquid over the tomato mulch. The clippings decompose and release their nutrients to the roots.
The 3 most common mistakes
Climatic imponderables make that Cultivation from tomatoes to walking a tightrope. So that at least the pruning makes a contribution to a rich harvest of juicy fruits, the following three pruning mistakes should not happen.
| Cutting errors | Damage image | prevention |
|---|---|---|
| Meat and stake tomatoes not exhausted | uncontrolled growth, small fruits | from May stinging shoots break out regularly |
| lower floor not defoliated | Disease infestation, poor harvest quality | Remove leaves up to 30 cm high |
| Bush tomatoes main shoot cut | Growth depressions, short plant | Do not cut bush and balcony tomatoes |
Tips
Rain torpedoes all efforts to ensure the perfect pruning of tomatoes. If there is no greenhouse available for cultivation, the plants should be under one Rain cover thrive. Optionally, you can purchase the wet protection ready-made in stores. You can expand with a little manual skill Greenhouse film(€ 15.60 at Amazon *) and post the rain cover itself.
