Indeterminate varieties and large heirloom tomatoes can be pruned up higher. As they mature, keep the bottom 8 to 12 inches clear to keep air flowing through. How much you will cut depends on the type of tomato plant you are growing.ĭeterminate tomato varieties tend to grow shorter and bushier. Continue to cut up underneath as they grow to allow more space. Remove any stems by cutting right back to the main shoot. Start slowly when plants are young, trimming off a few inches under the plant. It also makes it much easier for you to water and fertilize the plants with easy access to the bottom root area. It allows for circulation at the bottom of your plants, and can help keep blight and mildew at bay too.
Pruning the bottom of your plants is the most important of the three areas. Here is a look at how to best prune each: Bottom Pruning Pruning can be broken down into 3 distinct areas, the bottom area of plants, the mid-section, and the top. How To Prune Tomato Plants Where To Prune And finally, it allows for pests to easily climb up and dine on your plants too – not to mention it gives them plenty of cover for hiding! Pruning your tomato plants is one of the best ways to ensure your plants produce bigger and more robust tomatoes. The leaves touch the soil, and spores can hop on to infect the plant.Īll of those leaves also hold in moisture and make it easy for mildew to take hold as well. Too much leaf canopy near the ground can make it easy for blight to take hold. Pruning also helps to allow for more light and air to reach the plant, and that has big benefits as well. By eliminating excessive growth, the plant can concentrate its energy on producing more flowers and fruit. Even more, it can keep water from reaching the roots as well. And all of that growth not only takes a lot of energy to produce, but it also blocks light and air.
Unfortunately, when they are left to grow on their own, they produce a tremendous amount of stems, shoots, branches and foliage. Tomato plants need air, light and nutrients to produce blooms and eventually ripen their fruit. Let’s first cover why pruning is so important. As always, we have included all of the podcast resource links at the end of this article. You can listen in below to our complete podcast on how and why to prune tomatoes – or read on for our full-length article on the subject. Watering, fertilizing and mulching are certainly important – but so is pruning.Īnd as you will see below, it’s not difficult at all to do – but it can really help your plants to grow and produce! But they are also one of the more needy garden plants when it comes to requiring nutrients, water and care. Tomato plants are one of the most beloved vegetable plants of all. Believe it or not – pruning is one of the best things you can do for your tomatoes to ensure healthy plants and a bigger and better harvest. This week’s podcast and corresponding article are about how and why to prune your tomato plants.
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