First time growing tomatoes on my terrace. Some plants have split into two main branches, and I’m struggling to tell which one is the sucker. Any tips on how to identify and manage them?
by Nafles
2 Comments
lactoseintolerants
You don’t have to cut off the suckers. A lot of tomato influencers do so they can grow them on a single vine for trellising purposes. I’ve left plenty suckers on to create a bushier plant.
The blue is your original leader, with the red circle being a sucker – To prune you just snip it off at the red slash. You don’t want to trim off the flower cluster.
Pruning isn’t required for indeterminate types, some people plant them and never prune. That said, for certain results, you’re more likely to get a tomato closer to what you like/want with pruning. I have severe space limitations – so I prune to one leader. Tomatoes grow a little differently than expected sometimes. If you ever accidentally prune off the main leader, just let a sucker grow out and become the new leader.
Don’t worry too much over it, just do your best. Good luck! 🙂
2 Comments
You don’t have to cut off the suckers. A lot of tomato influencers do so they can grow them on a single vine for trellising purposes. I’ve left plenty suckers on to create a bushier plant.
https://preview.redd.it/i56ixuig0kye1.jpeg?width=1016&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b999c63e94266a7752b20cb7c2f22d31789923b7
The blue is your original leader, with the red circle being a sucker – To prune you just snip it off at the red slash. You don’t want to trim off the flower cluster.
Pruning isn’t required for indeterminate types, some people plant them and never prune. That said, for certain results, you’re more likely to get a tomato closer to what you like/want with pruning. I have severe space limitations – so I prune to one leader. Tomatoes grow a little differently than expected sometimes. If you ever accidentally prune off the main leader, just let a sucker grow out and become the new leader.
Don’t worry too much over it, just do your best. Good luck! 🙂