5+ foot tall tomatoes...

[DawnSuiter]

So, two of my tomato plants, a yellow pear and a pink brandywine are now more than 5 foot tall. I have forced them into this wooden trellis as they grew, it's beautiful and totally full and now they are standing above the trellis. They have small fruits and look great. I've babied these with extra water and ALL the attention.

Can I/Should I begin cutting the tops off to encourage them to stop growing tall or to fruit?

If not, does anyone have an idea on how to continue supporting them?

I'll try to get a new pic uploaded today to show you, but here are the two culprits along the trellis. I pushed one to the left & one to the right and now they are both growing on both sides of the trellis and it's completely full! Wait till you see how big they got in just like 3 weeks!!!

 

[vfem]

Aw yes... the monster tomato dilemma! I had a brandywine last year get over 6 feet and my husband freaked. We stuck a piece of bamboo in there and tied her to it. She was already in a tomato cage to start with.

We got an early blight, and I think it stunted her growth last minute, but I think I could have gotten her an easy 8 ft!

Good luck!

 

[DawnSuiter]

Sooooo.. you think I should just let them be?

 

[vfem]

I pinched off some of the suckers and I think that was enough.

 

[hoodat]

I notice that my Purple Cherokee get about three feet or so tall and then make a right angle turn and insist on growing hoizontally. I just let them sprawl onto the cage next to them.

 

[HunkieDorie23]

If they are as tall as you want them than go ahead and pinch them off. How tall are you? My cages are 4 ft tall. Once they hit 5 ft they need to stop growing because they have nothing to support them, plus I am only 5'3". I let my cherries get too tall a couple of years ago they just broke over. This didn't kill them they kept producing just from a bent over position.

 

[hoodat]

You can also just let them bow over and give them a tie to support them if the weight of the fruit threatens to break them. If they get all the way back down to the ground you can start them back up. Another alternative is to use another trells supported horizontally instead of vertically and let them sprawl across that. Tomatos are sprawlers by nature. It is only gardeners who force them into upright growth.

 

[DawnSuiter]

Thanks everyone for the advice. They are now 6' tall and taking over, I can hardly get to my sink now!!!

I sure wish I could make them ripen some tomatoes... I hate going to market each week without any tomatoes!!

 

[Beekissed]

I have noticed that my tomatoes that are tall and lush like the ones you describe, are lovely to look upon but do not produce as much fruit as the shorter plants, regardless of variety.

After last years beautiful, lush, tall jungle of tomatoes(112 plants!) that produced little to nothing and not enough to even can...I've decided to top my maters when they reach the 4 ft. mark. I've never seen fruit grow higher than the 3 ft area anyway, except on cherry tomatoes.

I'm trellising on my 4 ft. garden fence this year and am letting the sheep trim off any excess that grows over the top.

I'll let you know if I see a difference with the production! :bee

 

[DawnSuiter]

I think I might have to start cutting them off... really, it's taking over too much space. But it is a yellow pear that is the tallest one... so they are cherry like tomatoes...