Grow

Tomato Pruning

July 19, 2013

It seems as though everyone has a different opinion about whether or not you should prune your tomato plants by removing suckers and certain branches. There’s productivity, space and the overall health of your tomatoes to consider when thinking about the pruning process and really, I’m not sure there is a perfect answer, it’s just an individual decision.


I like to thin my tomato plants in order to keep them somewhat under control and to allow for more air circulation.  The extra bonus is that I can actually see what’s happening with my tomatoes and can catch any horn worms before they devour half my plant and tomatoes from the inside out (usually).

However, the necessity of tomato thinning is one of those things that sneaks up on me every single year!  For example, last week the tomatoes looked fine…a little thick, but not quite ready for thinning.  Then, all of a sudden (after a couple days of intense heat and a good, long rain), they had exploded!  Not only could I not see what what going on in there, but the tomatoes themselves (despite their cages) were getting incredibly heavy and were falling all over the place!  So, I had no choice but to attack them…

Back yard tomato bed, before:

Front yard tomato bed before:

Back yard tomato bed after:

  Front yard tomato bed after:

It took a couple of hours (and a wheelbarrow full of leaves), but I finally got all nine plants thinned to my liking.

And what did I find in the process?  About a thousand tomatoes!  So, barring any hail storms or bug infestations, I think it is going to be a very good tomato year!

Now, this one pruning doesn’t mean I’m done for the year, by no means.  It will, however, hold me over for a couple of weeks before I’ll have to attack again…and hopefully, by then, I’ll have some delicious, harvested tomatoes to show for all my effort!

What about you?  Do you prune your tomato plants or leave them to go wild?  Please share your insights in the comments below!

xoxo,
M

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16 Comments on “Tomato Pruning”

  2. I’ve suckered mine in the past and had great results. Thanks for sharing on Tuesday Greens!

  3. I don’t prune mine either and am glad to read all of these like-minded comments… My tomato area is quite a jungle. Every year I think I will prune and then I never do. Too much else to do, and I’m also quite lazy. Nice post! I’m a new follower – Michelle @ SimplifyLiveLove!

    1. I, too, love to hear all of the differing opinions and experiences!

      Thank you for popping over…now it’s my turn 😉

  4. Good work! Wow, I don’t prune mine but I don’t nearly have as many plants as you. I’m impressed!

    Wishing you a lovely day.
    xoxo

    1. They are definitely hard to keep up with! I don’t prune them incessantly, but I do attack them several times throughout the season. It’s a definite time-suck.

  5. I don’t tend to prune mine, in part because the research here suggested you get more tomatoes if you don’t and in part because I find the fruits are more susceptible to sunburn if I prune. Oh and I’m quite lazy really…..

    1. Sunburn is definitely an issue. We’re at ~7000 feet in elevation so sunburn is always a consideration. I try to be very intentional with which leaves I prune and where they are in relation to the angle of the sun on each particular bed. I had a couple of tomatoes burn a couple of years ago, but none since then 🙂

  6. I’ve never really pruned before but this year we have had a ton of rain for our area and my plants are out of control. So I think this year may be the year to do something new!!

  7. Wow! Big change in your tomatoes! I did the same thing a few days ago… having trouble seeing them, and decided to prune. Found some wormy tomatoes, too, so I’m glad I did. Did some more pruning this morning and found MORE “holey” tomatoes, so I’ll work in there tomorrow morning when it’s cool. Yours look good!

    1. Ugh…those worms are just so awful!!! I hope your tomatoes make it through the worm buffet!

  8. I prune! I started pruning them two or three years ago and it seems to make a HUGE difference for me. I get really cut throat with them in September when I am trying to get every last possible tomato to ripen and grow large enough. I want the plant’s energy to concentrate on the fruit, no making more leaves.

    KK

    1. Oohh…I love that you prune so late in the season! I may have to give that a try!

  9. I let them go wild, just because I hate to lose any food at all. However, I think it’s a good idea, I’ve thought about it a lot, and I may eventually try it. Mostly because it’s getting so I can’t walk in the dang tomato jungle! Yep, that may kick me into action. If so, I may just become a die-hard tomato pruner.

    1. The fact that there is the loss of tomatoes breaks my heart. For real. If I could figure out how to fit it all in, I absolutely would! That jungle thing, though, is a real thing! It always amazes me how crazy those little plants can get when given the opportunity!

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