This Is Why Pruning Tomatoes Is So Important 🍅

In this video, I discuss why pruning tomatoes is so important in the summer garden. I go through the top pruning techniques for growing healthier tomato plants. By using these methods, you can also expect bigger, better quality tomatoes.
Different tomato plants are pruned differently, so I go through how I like to prune our determinates, indeterminates (large types), and cherry tomatoes. Hope you enjoy!
Learn to clone tomatoes:
• Cloning Tomato Plants ...
Pruning shears:
amzn.to/449Qu22
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Timestamps:
0:00 Why prune tomatoes?
0:48 About pruning and using shears
Pruning methods for ALL tomatoes:
1:52 Bottom pruning
2:27 Thinning foliage
3:11 Unhealthy foliage
Special pruning based on tomato variety:
3:53 Determinate vs. indeterminate tomatoes
4:11 Pruning determinate tomatoes
4:45 Pruning large indeterminate tomatoes
8:10 Pruning cherry tomatoes
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🖥 geekygreenhouse.com
🌱 USDA Hardiness Zone: 6A
🌶 / peppergeek
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Thanks for watching Geeky Greenhouse!
#gardening #tomatoes #vegetables

[@Donnie_M.]

I've discovered even on non-determinate plants....A LOT of fruit clusters grow on those "suckers". I've concluded through experience that I can get more fruit by allowing those clusters to develop rather than pruning them. JMO

[@geekygreenhouse]

Nice, thanks for sharing. We've experimented a bit with leaving the first fruit cluster on the sucker, and pruning off the rest of it and it can work. The best fruits always form closer to the main stem though

[@toddclark2084]

😊 ​@@geekygreenhouse

[@laurafrey5244]

I follow these guidelines, but often struggle keeping my tomatoes to a single stem. Some of my plants are wild! 🍅

[@markzambelli]

I lower prune and thin foliage just as you outline in the vid... 1... I grow determinate Plum toms and only prune foliage, never suckers. 2... My indeterminate Costoluto Fiorentinas (beefsteak) love to split into four or five main leaders around 2 feet up so I usually keep three and prune suckers and top 'em if they get to the top of their strings (about 8 feet up). I keep four plants in a 60 litre box-container. 3... My Cherry toms (no idea the name as I've been keeping this line going for the last 10 years (keep seed and replant each year)) are the same setup (four plants in their 60 litre box) but I let them do what they want and only prune suckers when things get crowded... this year one of 'em has 7 leaders already and each has flowers/fruit already. Years ago I used to keep only 2 leaders per Cherry plant but I grew 6 plants per tub and had Tomatoes enough for daily use and for canning through the season but then a friends grandad showed me his garden and how he lets his soil-grown cherry-toms just go wild all up and over his shed walls and roof. His yeilds were tremendous and I've never regretted treating mine with a similar, if space controlled fashion, since. Take care all.

[@matthewderoche3645]

Great video! This year I think my girlfriend and I may have gone a bit crazy on the plants, between just tomatoes and peppers we have 90 plants. When I first found your geeky greenhouse and pepper geek, we lived in a basement suit with a nice south facing area to start growing our own food. We learned so much from all your videos that our first time gardening gave us such a big harvest we could not resist finding a bigger place with more room for gardening. This year we moved to a farm rancher with acres that I can use, I'm still mostly doing container gardening, but I'm getting some beds ready soon. Keep up the great videos you two, we always look forward to seeing your next videos.

[@northernmemaw4036]

Thank you so much for this😊

[@VeryMiley]

EXCELLENT summary video on tomato pruning

[@geekygreenhouse]

Thank you! ☺️

[@HighlyKhoalified]

i do exactly as you do on indeterminate slicer plants, except I'll also top them off once they get tall enough to outgrow their cage. Once I top them off, I'll stop pruning the lower suckers, since the plant can no longer grow its main production stems.

[@mistersmith8962]

13,000th YT video on tomato pruning...we needed this☀️

[@geekygreenhouse]

Hope you enjoyed it!

[@holeinmind]

I'm glad you agree. People only seem to get new videos in their algorithm, so it was important someone kept a video fresh for new gardeners.

[@mombet9146]

Oh man. I’ve got some serious pruning to do 😂!

[@bikinggal1]

I have a garden tower....aeroponics. And my tomatoes are CHERRY. Its like a jungle! The amt of stuff I prune is HUGE.....and so many flowers and so many tomatos. I love it because I am single and I can eat what it produces, 5 or 6 a day!!!

[@waynerutledge8802]

I have a 3x8 raised bed with a 7' tall chicken wire (critter issues) cage and 4 indeterminate plants. Last year I was on a ladder plucking fruit that was 3-4' above. Is there a way to keep the vines inside by curving or training the vines? Good idea for a video??? I'm getting too old for ladders.

[@linda1359]

I grow my sweet 100 cherry tomatoes in five gallon buckets every year and they grow to be 6 to 7 ft tall! They produce all the way into Oct for me here in zone 6. Thank you for the pruning tips!

[@geekygreenhouse]

That's amazing - I love the time of year when the plants are in full productivity. Daily cherry tomatoes!

[@deanwatt]

I would love to see you check out a commercial tomato farm and see what they do from go to woah. They need to squeeze as many pounds of fruit from every plant to make a living, I bet they have plenty of bits us regular gardeners don't know about. Great vid, cheers!

[@geekygreenhouse]

That sounds like a lot of fun. I’ve seen videos of the big hoop houses and how they trellis the plants. Maybe we can find a local grower 👍

[@indiefan23]

Thing is tomato seeds are cheap. In a commercial farm they're going to do whatever produces the most fastest. When you're in a garden with limited plants the same things aren't going to maximize your results at all. The best thing to do is not prune at all aside from bottom leaves so you learn the true nature of the plant itself. Then start pruning with that knowledge for what fits your space and desired results.

[@deanwatt]

@@indiefan23 But we all want to "produce the most, the fastest" like the commercial growers don't we?

[@fishlovme]

I no longer prune my indetermite tomato plants. Found i have better yield when I keep them and usually I they're still pretty good size as well.

[@geekygreenhouse]

Fair enough! Definitely easier not to prune 😁

[@Makthecat]

Did a lot grow and did they grow big because I just pruned my indeterminate one and I’m looking for advice for the future?

[@mairzydotes3548]

When pruning the suckers, do you leave the lower branch of the V too? I usually do because they never seem to get fruit. Thoughts?

[@geekygreenhouse]

Yes, we just take out the sucker and leave the leaf branch in place

[@thepreacher2558]

I have mostly cherry tomatoes and I accidently pruned all their suckers off. Will that mean I will have less of a yield? How much less? Should I leave future suckers where they are?

[@billsnyder6945]

There are also semi-determinate types that do not produce all at once.

[@mikec1882]

Prune suckers off large tomatoes but not cherry tomatoes? I don't understand. I've always pruned suckers off everything.

[@geekygreenhouse]

Well, the smaller types can typically grow full-sized fruits off of the suckers. For big varieties, the sucker pruning helps give you bigger fruits, closer to the main stem. For cherries and grapes, we let them run more wild and end up with bigger overall yields.

[@regatta2k]