Tomato help needed

[Deux]

I have grown tomatoes a couple of times before and not really done much with them except water and feed them.

This year I have a tall raised bed and have planted up 3 tomoto plants and they've gone absolutely mad. Really bushy and seem to be growing at an astonishing rate.

Should I be cutting branches off them? DH says I should to encourage fruiting but I've no idea. They are like triffids. Do I need to tame them or just support the branches with canes? Or leave them be?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

You do need to pinch out the side shoots - however, if they are growing like a mad thing it might be difficult to work out what is the main stem and what is the side shoot.

Have a look here - basically, you want to get rid of the side branches in the 'armpit' of the tomato plant so that you have one main stem and horizontal branches to the side which will eventually have flowers on them. This concentrates the energy into fewer trusses of tomatoes and they are more likely to ripen that way.

I have one that has kinda run away from me and now has two big stems but I am trying to keep the rest of it under control.

It's a bit scary to start with cos you feel like you shouldn't be removing healthy bits! But it does help tame them.

Check first what sort they are - I grow "bush" varieties which don't need pinching out as well as Cordon varieties which do.

Thanks for this. I will check the varieties later. There are several branches growing from the main stem on each plant and these are now about 2 - 2.5 feet long. I think I need some of them to go. I think I should have removed some side shoots earlier and I wouldn't be in this predicament now. That article is really interesting.

when you remove those side shoots, put them in compost and water really well and they'll grow into tomato plants too

Do not feed them, it only encourages foliage. The theory is that a plant will go on to produce fruit and therefore seed without feed.

you only feed them when they have flowers already...

By not feeding them, the plant puts its energy into producing fruit/reproducing seed before it dies. That is its purpose in life. I do something slightly different with our Toms each year, and this is the most useful observation we have made to date. Also do not let them produce too much fruit, at the expense of quality. Limit each plant to about 7/9 vines and then pinch out the leading stem, thus stopping further growth which may not mature and ripen as the weather gets cooler.

Yes, only feed when the first truss has 'set' ie has baby tomatoes on it. I also give them a weak feed (1/3 to 1/2 strength) after repotting as a wee boost. Otherwise, they get only water.

Wow, thanks for all of this. I'm learning. Have trusses of toms and flowers but I think way too much foliage. Have inspected them and have identified the side shoots. Also ear-marked what is for the chop.

Will report back!