By discussing the definition of technical terms, the different methods and practical tips for pruning tomatoes, you will have all the basics to obtain a good tomato harvest!
How do you get a lot of tomatoes on a plant?
A tomato plant, grown in favourable conditions for the vegetable garden, can give the amateur gardener 2 to 4 kg per plant. To achieve this feat, and even go beyond, the tomato, an annual vegetable plant, likes to be planted in the sun and requires regular care and attention during its growing cycle, from May to October.
After planting in rich, well-draining soil, the gardener must carry out various interventions: staking, mulching, watering and pruning, as well as global prophylactic monitoring of potential insect attacks and especially fungal diseases.
Read alsoWatering tomatoes: the keys to success
Pruning is important because it leads to a good harvest and allows the foot to be ventilated, thus limiting the development of fungal diseases: powdery mildew and especially mildew.
What's a gourmand on a tomato plant?
Before telling you that you have to prune them, you still need to be able to recognize these famous gourmets!
The tomato is an expansive and dynamic plant. As it grows, it can develop a number of secondary branches that will not systematically bear flowers and then fruit. Among the branches that rarely bear fruit, generations of gardeners and market gardeners have identified the "gourmets". These twigs are born at the base of the stems and under the axils of the leaves.
By removing suckers, the number of stems is limited so as not to weaken the tomato plant Copyright (c) 2020 FotoHelin/Shutterstock. No use without permission.
By removing suckers, the number of stems is limited so as not to weaken the tomato plant. Eliminating suckers is also called "disbudding". To be done 1 month after planting and throughout the cultivation. Keep 4 to 5 secondary stems.
Special case of grafted tomatoes: here again, the recommendation is to remove the suckers. The branches that are below the graft point are also called "greedy". You will absolutely delete them.
When and how to prune tomatoes?
The term "tomato pruning" includes several operations, all of which are important: leaf thinning, removal of suckers and topping.
It's a good thing to know before you start: every pruning operation creates wounds on the plants, which are all potential entry points for diseases that would jeopardize your harvest. So, to prune, you will need sharpened pruning shears or spruce with a clean, sharp blade, regularly disinfected with alcohol.
When to remove leaves from tomato plants?
You've read or heard this advice before: "Don't wet the leaves of your tomatoes." What for? High humidity in the air and water on the foliage promote the development of fungal diseases such as mildew and powdery mildew, which seriously compromise the health and harvest of your vegetables. Aerating your tomatoes by removing a few leaves here and there improves overall plant health. Also remember to remove any yellow, yellowing or damaged leaves as you go.
Read alsoTomato diseases: the twelve you need to know
Leaf thinning from the base of tomato plants also addresses this protection issue. By removing the lowest leaves, those that touch the ground and over a good twenty centimeters, you don't risk getting them wet when watering, so you eliminate part of the risk! Remove the leaves from the base as soon as the overall size of the plant allows.
You can also remove the leaves from tomatoes for a completely different reason: to ensure that the fruit receives good sunlight and to speed up its ripening. This operation is carried out as the tomatoes are grown, as the fruit clusters form.
It is practiced:
- In the coolest regions, where it is sometimes difficult to obtain crops;
- If the season is not very sunny;
- At the end of the season, from mid-August, to be sure that the last fruits will be ripe before the frosts!
For these leaf removal operations, don't forget to keep a good quantity of leaves on the vines since they are the driving force behind photosynthesis and therefore the quantity and taste of your fruit.
to prune, you will need pruning shears or spruce sharpened with a clean blade Copyright (c) 2022 Uryupina Nadezhda/Shutterstock. No use without permission.
Do not leave the leaves at the base of the plants, especially on unmulched soil, as this will create nitrogen starvation and slow plant growth.
Prune the tomatoes to the top
Topping tomatoes is an operation that involves cutting off the heads of the main stems so that all the fruits are ripe. This operation is carried out from mid-August. By stopping the growth in height of your tomato plants, you ensure that the sap concentrates on the remaining fruit so that it ripens.
Can all tomato varieties be pruned?
You may have experienced it: there's no need to prune cherry tomatoes! What for? Because these varieties belong to the group of so-called "determinate-growth" tomatoes, i.e. they spontaneously cease to grow in height beyond 3 to 4 clumps of flowers per stem.
Among the 'determined' tomato varieties: 'Roma', 'Gold Nugget', 'Siberian', 'Banana Legs', 'Voyage', 'Grushkova', 'Orange Queen', 'Green sausage', 'Golden Delight', 'Tribeca', 'Morane', 'Esmeralda', 'Valina', 'Hector', etc.
Don't prune tomatoes?
And if we did nothing, if we let the tomatoes grow freely, what would happen? Some gardeners advocate not hindering or limiting the growth of tomatoes. So they let their plants grow freely, without intervention.
What are the disadvantages?
- Potential development of downy mildew and powdery mildew favoured by the density of the foliage (and the weather!),
- Each foot takes up a lot of space: about 2 meters in diameter and must be supported with a cage because the stakes are not enough,
- Fruit can be hidden by foliage: the harvest is potentially longer and some fruit is lost,
- Not all fruit will ripen.
What are the benefits?
- More free time for the gardener;
- No injury when trimming;
- A vegetable garden with a freer, less rigid appearance.