plum tomatoes can I leave them without staking

[PureBlackVoid]

I have 5 or 6 plants in some raised beds. I staked them all when planted, but they are more bushy and dense than previous tomato plants I’ve had. There are loads of thick stems, in all different directions. They’re too heavy for the stakes I used now, and I’ve used up anything stake-like I had in the shed but there are still loads of stems leaning over and on the ground. They’re all fairly close together, so I don’t want to disturb them too much incase I snap any of the stems trying to lift and tie them.

They seem to be doing well (lots of them, still mostly green) but I’m clearly no expert. There are a couple of tomatoes under the mounds which have started going red but I can’t imagine they’re getting much sun. Will they all die if left like this?

Do you know what variety they are?
Toms are either 'cordon' or 'bush' types, the former you usually grow with supports/canes, and pinch out the side shoots.
Bush varieties can need supporting, especially if they are heavy with fruit. At this time of the year it's fine to remove some of the leaves to let the light get through to the green toms.
Try not to let them rest on the soil, this will rot them even if it's dry.
It is also good to give them some feed, no need to buy the posher branded ones, I use Wilko own.
Well done for getting a good crop, mine are rubbish as I think my little greenhouse got too hot this year.

Thanks it’s my first year actually getting this far with tomato plants tbh.

I got one of those ‘grow your own’ buckets from b&m, but can’t remember the type, just plum.. I think I will have to get some of those half circle supports as none of the stakes I’ve used so far have been strong enough, and it’ll be a shame if they rot.

I think I’ll be building some climbing frame type of things for next year!

I have several Roma plum tomatoes in my greenhouse that I attempted to stake - but they have flopped very badly so I just prop them up as best I can and let them do their own thing. I have continued to tie the central stem in to some extent but a lot of stems are leaning very precariously over the side of the pots and staging. So far they seem OK. So long as they are off the ground they should be fine.

In the wild they would scramble over other plants. They’re not true climbers as they have no means (tendrils, spiralling stems or leaf stems) of securing themselves. So they’re only doing what they’d do naturally. You might get more slug damage to fruit if it’s on the ground.

Thanks all. I found some wire mesh offcuts in the shed and made some makeshift supports with an old broom handle, and unused curtain poles (hoarding tendencies becoming useful for gardening…). It’s somewhat of a support for the heaviest/lowest parts.

I don’t seem to have had slug damage since I started using raised beds, so fingers crossed that continues!

I let mine grow out like bushes - end up picking them like blackberries lol. I usually put an upturned plant pot under heavier fruits to keep them off the ground.