The cultivation of powerful tomato varieties is a permanent struggle between man and nature. The plant strives for space-consuming growth with numerous small fruits. Gardeners want voluminous, juicy fruits. With the help of expert pruning care, the decision is made in favor of the tomato gardener. This tutorial explains how to do it right.

Opinions differ on whether tomatoes should be pinched or not

Table of Contents

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  1. Avarice in focus
  2. Cut out the beefsteak and stick tomatoes
  3. Remove leaves close to the ground
  4. Cut the main shoot
  5. Do not cut balcony tomatoes
  6. frequently asked Questions

    7. Tightropes are in the crosshairs

    It starts a few weeks after the start of the season. Tomato plants constantly form side shoots that cheekily protrude from the leaf axils sprout and compete for nutrients from the valuable fruit shoots with flower buds. In this way, the plants want to enforce their will to produce as many small fruits as possible. The floral strategy is not unknown in the plant kingdom, because vines or peppers also fall back on the protection of stinging shoots.

    Tomato gardeners put a stop to the request by changing the care program regular exhaustion is expanded. If you let the nosy side shoots do as they please, you will struggle with the overly long, hanging tendrils that carry many leaves and puny fruits. The dense foliage also casts shadows on neighboring tomatoes and also affects the quality of the harvest.

    Cut out the beefsteak and stick tomatoes

    Candidates for regular pinching are primarily single-drive breeds Beef and stick tomatoes. Bushy balcony tomatoes and wild tomatoes produce miniature fruit anyway, which cannot be changed by pruning. You can identify a stinging shoot by its position in a leaf axil, the fork between the shoot and the leaf. Scissors are not mandatory for the measure. How to proceed correctly:

    • Put on rubber gloves to protect against the stubborn plant sap
    • From May onwards, check the stem tomatoes twice a week for stinging shoots
    • 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 miserly drives in a timely manner. In the early stages, the uninvited shoots are soft enough to pry open with two fingers. If an axillary shoot catches your eye too late and has reached a growth height of 10 cm, please use a sharp, disinfected knife to help. Consider in advance which approach will leave the smallest wound on the plant tissue.

    Remove late summer blooms

    Due to their tropical origin, tomatoes have no idea that the warm season is drawing to a close in late summer. Blossoms that open from August have no chance of turning into ripe tomatoes. At the same time, the plant pumps all the reserve substances that are lost for the ripening of existing fruits towards the blossoms. It is therefore common practice in tomato cultivation to break out late summer buds and flowers.

    digression

    Convert stinging shoots into cuttings

    Contrary to their name, stingy shoots do not skimp on growth. On the contrary, the vitality of a magnificent tomato plant rests in every exhausted side shoot. Do not throw away the clippings carelessly, but use them for vegetative propagation. All healthy shoots with a few leaves and no flowers are suitable for cuttings. Rooting progresses very quickly in the dark glass of water on the warm, bright window seat. In view of the short vegetation period in our latitudes, the effort for all stinging shoots, which you can get hold of until the end of June, is worth it.

    Remove the tomato leaves that are near the ground

    A scientific study teaches us that leaves in upper third of tomato plants almost 80 percent of photosynthesis achieve. The lower tier foliage contributes little to the growth of large, juicy tomatoes compared to energy consumption. For this reason, expert gardeners resort to cutting off the leaves at ground level. 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
    • Defoliate the tomatoes to a height of about 30 cm

    The advantages are apparent. First and foremost, you optimize the utilization of the nutrients. Furthermore, the tomato plant thrives loose and airy, which makes it difficult for pathogens to attack. Last but not least, no more irrigation or rainwater splashes on the foliage, which improves the prevention of late blight and late blight.

    tips

    The foliage of a tomato should be preserved, with the exception of the leaves that are close to the ground and diseased. Photosynthesis depends on each individual leaf. Valuable chlorophyll, the elixir of life for every tomato plant, flows freely here. If there are too few leaves available for the flowers and fruits, all efforts to harvest premium quality are wasted.

    If there is not enough space, cut the main shoot

    Few tomato growers can allow their plants unrestricted growth in height. As a rule, 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 a targeted cutbackto that to regulate growth. How to proceed correctly step by step:

    • After planting, fix the tomato to the support stick with soft binding material
    • Parallel to the growth, guide the strongest tendril upwards on the stick
    • Do not cut lateral fruit shoots with flower buds
    • Break out stinging shoots from the leaf axils
    • Prune the main shoot when the desired height is reached

    Timing of the main pruning is subject to your gardening judgment and the space available. In cultivation practice, it has been found that there should be at least three or four side shoots with flowering shoots before pruning takes place.

    Do not cut bush tomatoes

    Since the acreage has been getting smaller and smaller, small bush and balcony tomatoes have been gaining in popularity. The richly branched tomato plants are satisfied with little space, do not need climbing aids and are wonderfully easy to care for.

    Gardeners who are short on time will appreciate that bush tomatoes are not to be pinched and can also keep their ground-level leaves. It is taboo to cut the main shoot, because then the growth in height comes to a standstill. With a maximum growth height of 30 to 100 centimeters, it would be fatal to cut off the top bud. One of the most important laws of growth states that cutting a dominant bud breaks the floral will to increase 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 family shivers from as little as 10 degrees Celsius, which ruins any prospect of perennial outdoor cultivation. After all, there is the option of overwintering small varieties and wild tomatoes in pots behind glass.

    Can tomatoes be kept in a bucket?

    Tomatoes also thrive in pots. Stable pots and planters with a size of 40 x 40 cm and a water drain in the bottom have proven their worth. A mix of half-ripe compost, clay, fine-grained sand and some lime or bentonite is suitable as a substrate. It is best to pull beefsteak tomatoes in a single drive on the support rod. The leaves are gradually removed in the lower area up to a height of 30-40 cm. A rain cover is ideal. Alternatively, place the tub on a plant trolley to move the tomatoes to dry weather when it rains.

    The meteorologists announce the first cold autumn nights and our tomato plants are still bearing numerous green fruits. What to do?

    Tomatoes are among the fruits that ripen later. You can take advantage of this property and bring in the last harvest in the green state. To do this, uproot the entire plant and remove all leaves. In the house, choose a dark room with temperatures between 16 and 25 degrees Celsius, which ideally has high humidity. Here you hang the plants upside down on a stretched line. With this gardening trick 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 breaks down when it is ripe. Consuming a single green tomato, whether intentional or unintentional, can cause significant symptoms of intoxication, such as nausea, vomiting and convulsions. The danger remains even in the half-ripe state, when the fruit is partially red and green in color. Therefore, only bite into a tomato when the fruit has completely colored through.

    What to do with the cuttings from tomatoes?

    Leaves and shoots can also make a contribution to healthy, vigorous growth when cut. Simply leave the plant parts on the ground as mulch (€239.00). It is advantageous for the recycling process if you pour nettle manure over the tomato mulch from time to time. The clippings decompose and release their nutrients to the roots.

    The 3 most common cutting mistakes

    Climatic uncertainties make the cultivation of tomatoes a balancing act. So that at least the pruning care contributes to a rich harvest of juicy fruit, the following three pruning mistakes should not happen.

    cutting error damage picture prevention
    Beef and stick 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 depression, short plant Do not cut bush and balcony tomatoes

    tips

    Rain torpedoes all efforts to ensure that tomatoes are perfectly cut. If a greenhouse is not available for cultivation, the plants should thrive under a rain canopy. Alternatively, you can purchase the moisture protection ready-made in stores. With a little manual skill, you can build the rain protection yourself from greenhouse film (€15.90) and posts.

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Vegetable garden