Is it normal to prune tomatoes? Do you get higher yield per plant? I don't care about size of tomatoes - larger a more of a PITA for canning, IMO. But more pounds of produce in smaller space sure sounds appealing.
Do your big tomatoes crack? I am not even planning large tomatoes this year because we lose probably 75% to cracking or rotting. I might plant one beefsteak up near the house, stake it up and baby it/
The main reason I prune some (not all of my tomatoes) is because it helps the plant direct its energy toward producing fruit rather than producing more foliage. The excess foliage will eventually grow into new branches that will form fruit, but most old timers will advise that tomatoes should be pruned to not only produce larger fruit earlier in the season, but also to protect the plants against pests and diseases. When a tomato plant is pruned properly, all of the foliage receives adequate airflow, sunlight, and the plant is able to photosynthesize better which results in growing and producing bigger fruit more efficiently.
There are two types of tomatoes plants irregardless of the variety of tomato they produce.
Determinate tomatoes you should not prune. Because determinate plants develop all of their fruit at one time, pruning may cause you low yields and for no good reason. Determinate tomato plants are commonly called a bush type
But
if you're growing indeterminate tomato plants which produce fruit regularly over the course of a season,
pruning is essential. Not only will it help keep the huge vines under control, but it will force energy into producing several really nice-sized tomatoes instead of lots of foliage and many more smaller tomatoes.
Another benefit to pruning is filling in skips (bare spot in the row that missing a tomato plant. Go out early in the morning when the stems are brittle find a 6 to 10" long sucker and snap it of from the main stem at it's base (where it's attached to the main steam) take the snapped and in firmly push.it into the soil abou 4 inches. Pack the soil around it tightly and keep it watered for about a week. Next thing to.know you'll have another Tomato.plant growing and it will go and produce fruit the same as the other will. It will just be several weeks behind the others.
I'll also off 2 more hints that you could try to gow healier tomato plants.
1) when you dig the hole to set your u tomato, dig it deep, add two bayer asprin and 1 or 2 spent shot gun shell to the bottom of the hole. set the roots on top of the asprins and spent shot gun shells. I can pretty much guarentee they will grow like crazy. They love the sulfer and asprin combo. But don't go overboard or the will.have stunted.growth.
2) the first time you spray them.for.bugs ( I use neen oil & Palmolive (original) and water mixed in a pump sprayer - also add in some epsome salt it doesn't take much epsome salt. It's something about the magnumsm on the leaves and steams that cause the leaves to grow large and the stream to grow thick. Repeat Epsom salt spary every 2 or 3 weeks But you should spary Palmolive (orginal) / need oil and water weekly. The key is to peat control is to discourage bugs before they find your unprotected plants and start munching. I like to think of it like cleaning.house. a house is easier to clean if it's cleaned regularly.
I guess I let out a few more secrets hu?
It just doesn't get cold in April around here...grrrr
