Topping Tomato Plants: How, Why and When You Should Do This

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Follow us on Twitter @NCGardening

[@s0yboy]

Im in zone 4b and my tomatoes weren't growing many fruits but lots pf flowers. I topped them after watching this video and now waaay more of the flowers are setting fruit! Thanks for the advise! Hope these bebes will ripen before the frosts come!

[@johnnygirl51]

Thanks for this video! The timing is perfect, as my current tomatoes in zone 6b Central KY have now reached the top and beyond of my panels. I was out there with a ladder yesterday and giving my neighbors quite a laugh, I'm sure :) I was told NOT to top them, that it would not only stop vertical growth, which I knew, but also stop the plant from setting more flowers. It is great to know that's NOT the case and I can safely do this! Thank you!

[@dougmorissette459]

Thanks for another great video. This contained the information that I needed to know as my tomato plants have been pushing against the roof of my greenhouse.

[@lidip8700]

OH MY GOODNESS!! I had just asked you to create a video on how to prune IN tomatoes.... I had seen this video!! Thanks so much!!!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

You're welcome!

[@alexas8902]

This video is incredibly helpful. I'm in zone 5b and should have topped much earlier than today, but it's done and I'll keep my fingers crossed! Thank you!!!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching!

[@ktreznin5538]

zone 5b here too! how did it go?

[@allendanco5406]

By far my favorite/informative video on the health of a tomato plant. Very good job and thank you for the knowledge.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching! I appreciate it.

[@airinbone]

Another wonderful and informative video. Thanks for all that you do.

[@drinkwithcarrie4773]

This is so helpful, thank you! I thought something was wrong with my plants, they're just tall, but still producing lots of fruit. They live on my 23rd floor balcony, so wind has been my enemy. This gives me hope. :)

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@grantfahlman1815]

Thanks so much for the very informative video. I live in zone 3b (Regina, SK) and you just confirmed for me what I should be doing with my 4' tall tomatoes.

[@JamesSmith-pt8dy]

Hey ...everyone Moniee-Mon, is listening thanks for the info vedios keep doing what'cha do best God bless ya!.😇💖🙏

[@workoutswithroz]

Great video! Thanks so much. Exactly the info I was looking for.

[@FarmLifewithKids]

I agree! I too was looking for this info! I’ll be applying what I learned here uploading a video on how it works out for me. Good luck growing!

[@bagitson]

Love that setup. Mine are trellised to a fence and I have always wanted a free standing hedge.

[@plantingonpoint8365]

Great videos, very comprehensive and useful information that you share here. Thanks!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you! I appreciate it. I'm glad I can help.

[@mariethomson8626]

SO HELPFUL!! first time trying container planter...wish I had viewed this a month ago but will take your advice and start clipping.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@angelaschettino1327]

Excellent info. I have a lot of work to do!!

[@dmclassical08]

That's exactly what I need in September 2022! Thank you!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

You're welcome!

[@Mischiou]

Great tip. Definetely going to give it a try after my plants dry up after yet another heavy rainfall. Do you reuse the soil for other veggies in same growbags and what veggies do you recommend? I'm a newbie...

[@StaceyHerewegrowagain]

Great video my friend! Very much appreciated! This is a really great method to use to increase the size and amount of tomatoes produced on each vine. Thanks for sharing!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you for watching!

[@susanenright9961]

Thanks again 🍅 Although I am seeing this Vid 3 years late, I’m going out Now to top mine, it’s 75 at night here and 98 during the day, and Don’t even with this Crazy Humidity 😩🥵😡🤬 xo Your # 1 New Fan, Susan

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I feel your pain. Our lows the past week have been around 76F, our dew point hasn't budged from between 70-80 over the past month, we've recorded almost 25 inches of rain since June 2, and it's still 96 degrees here today 😂 But I moved here for milder winters, not cooler summers, so I knew what I was buying. I never complain about the heat; only the rain. More heat and dry weather = better figs! Thank you for watching!

[@bearfruitgardening6908]

This is a really great video. You do a great job explaining all the concepts.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thank you! I appreciate it.

[@FarmLifewithKids]

I agree, he did an awesome job at explaining.

[@sozsr7473]

Very great and on time.

[@VegesOfChina]

In fact, you can try another way to "short" your tomato plants, first, free the upper part of the plants, then gently lay the lower part bare stems on the ground, kind of like a standing cobra. Gardeners here in China practice this method a lot.

[@bennyhana3556]

I do the other way around and cut the stem above the leaf node insted of the flower node... I just assumed that its nice to have a leaf node above to give energy down to the next flower node.

[@therockymoundbull3698]

Help for anyone that wants it and will do you good. I figured this out along time ago and it's been the best thing for me in the garden and anyone that I have told. Go to your hardware store and ask them for it if you don't know what this is but get a roll of the florescent marker tape/ribon (used by serveyors to mark a steak that marks a land line or something like that)it's stretchable and you can just tie your tomato plants to your trellises or steak that you have to help support them. I use rivercane that I cut at about ten feet high and cut the bottom at a 45 degree angle and shove it into the dirt beside the tomato plant and as the plant grows tie it to the canepole loosely . Even if the tomato plant gets bigger than the tie you have made it will stretch and not cut into the tomato plant at all.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I use expandable vinyl tape. The kind I use is linked in my Amazon Storefront in the video description.

[@FarmLifewithKids]

New sub! I just found your channel and I’m glad I did! My tomato plants are just so tall and unruly, they definitely need this topping method. I will apply the info learned here and maybe even upload a video on how it works out for me here in zone 8b.

[@dmariewalker6880]

My indeterminate tomatoes are like yours & I wondered if I could do this, thanks for the video.

[@abhinav284]

Thank you for the video.. I am a first-time grower and I am in Charlotte, so the video was super helpful.. Just a quick question.. If I top the tomato plant will it stop flowering?

[@georgemurray426]

No the flowering is determined by the light cycle. When the days get shorter it will start to flower

[@josephrafferty5472]

This is my first year growing tomato’s. And this video has been very helpful. Thanks Have you moved out of North Carolina.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

No, I love it here for the most part. I don't intend to leave NC for a long time.

[@KishorTwist]

Nice tip for next year as I really didn't prune anything except tomato flowers in August. The plants grew out of control from not topping them. 👍 I have a potted determinate Roma plant. Does it mean I should not plant any other tomato variant in that same container next season?

[@Soviless99]

im watching this because my friends wise italian step dad said to me, top the tom- ah - toes in mid july :)

[@one-of-us9939]

Thanks bro... Sun's out, motorbike out! Gotta ride... Late!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching!

[@CustomGardenSolutions]

Great video. It must be great to have such a long tomato season. I live in IL and AZ. In Chicago it gets too cold and in Arizona it gets too hot.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

CustomGardenSolutions here it gets too humid! There are so many diseases and pests here it is tough to manage. Next year I am going to try for two tomato seasons. A second planting in early August I think can yield a good late September harvest. Mid-summer weather here is too rainy and humid for tomatoes, but the eggplant and peppers LOVE it. Thanks for watching.

[@KishorTwist]

Not too affected by the hurricane?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

amazingdany I took down the trellis and removed the tomatoes before Florence. What I left, the hurricane destroyed. My season is officially over, but the house and everyone else is ok, so I can’t complain. Our area didn’t flood, so I am very thankful. It was a very long storm.

[@KishorTwist]

Good to know everything is ok. Besides, frost was just < 3 weeks away anyway. Better and easier to rebuild a destroyed garden than a flattened house or worse of all, a shattered family life!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

amazingdany thanks for your concern, I really appreciate it. You are absolutely correct. Our first frost is about 6 weeks away here, but I am moving this weekend so everything had to go anyway. The hurricane put me ahead of schedule cleaning up 😄

[@MrNicofrog]

use worm compost profusely and spray with compost teas and forget worrying about soil diseases

[@FarmLifewithKids]

Great tip! Thanks 🙏🏼

[@My_Secret_Sketchbook999]

Enjoyed this video thankyou. Glad I subscribed to you. Appreciate your efforts great to see others growing tomatoes. Can you grow another plant from The part which you cut off at top please,?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks! Yes, you can root any suckers that are pruned off that are free of disease (not leaf nodes, they need to be the suckers). I have a video on how to do this here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKKomXWApNhkg7s

[@NICHOLSRETIREMENTEMPIRE]

Thanks for the video!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Sure! Thanks for watching.

[@cominooculto]

Thanks a lot i used to cut the leaves as well cause it became like a bush i couldnt see anything next time ill just focus on suckers

[@FarmLifewithKids]

Yes, removing suckers is very important so that your plant does not get out of control and wastes energy on reaching for the sky. All that energy will be put into fruit! I’ll be applying what I learned here and soon uploading a video on how it goes for me. My tomatoes are outgrowing my stakes and they are just too tall to handle comfortably.

[@jazradcliffe2286]

Will keeping a plant short early give you a bushy plant? I don't want a tall plant that I have to stake.

[@upside_down_01]

Couldn't you theoretically root those giant topped off vines to produce another plant? If you removed most of the lower branches on the Mortgage Lifter that you topped off and stuck it in soil, it wouldn't quickly develop a massive root system? It would be like rooting an extremely large sucker for a new tomato plant.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Ben Li yes, you absolutely can take the sucker cuttings, stick them in a glass of water for 2 weeks til they grow long roots and stick them in moist soil and get a clone. Problem is, all my tomatoes at this point have leaf spot. You only want to root perfectly healthy suckers. There isn’t a sucker that doesn’t have at least a few spots on them. Generally you want to root small suckers. The larger the sucker, the greater chance it’ll fail. The large suckers will shrivel up in a glass waiting to grow roots. It is difficult to successfully root a cutting larger than 6 inches in my experience. I’m not saying it can’t be done, but it is difficult.

[@VladTheImpalerTepesIII]

Yes, you can root them into new plants. This is called cloning. But you have to take growing season into consideration. A clone needs at least 3 weeks to recuperate from being cut before it starts growing again. Then it needs to grow, then it needs to flower and then set fruit. Then the fruit needs to grow and ripen. You are talking about a 2-1/2 month process, at the very least, and you are lucky if that is enough time to get a ripe tomato from a sucker. And most people do not have such a long growing season. Sure, you can pick them green and ripen them inside, but if you want a truly flavorful tomato, that is not a great option.

[@procon4]

Holy smokes, that was helpful.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Jay Stricks I’m glad it helped! Thanks!

[@FarmLifewithKids]

Agreed!

[@wearepic]

Can you top all kinds of vining vegetables for example: pumpkins, gourds, cucumbers? For maximum fruit yield with limited upward infrastructure?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

wearepic topping doesn’t promote more fruiting, it limits growth to your infrastructure. If you cut your cucumber vines, they’ll either send new vines from another section of the plant or they’ll go into decline. With cucumbers, I actually recommend you start new plants every 6 weeks. Cucumbers can tire out quickly, so if you succession plant them, you can remove the old ones once they get too tall.

[@bobbynester2142]

yeah my plants are 9 ft tall right now I have so much green leaves and fruits. I see everyone's videos with so little foliage and i keep all of the suckers cut out and double steam. But double steam and suckers cut out mine are still so bush like at times it's hard to see the fruit over all the leaves. Maybe i need to cut more branches off??? I've always been scared to cut off too many branches due to mine only get sun for about 8 hours of the day.

[@brock5925]

Will it continue to flower after you top?

[@Julie_77777]

I can see you leave flowers at the top, but no leaves above, do these flowers still set fruit?

[@litia]

hey i have a question about topping off tomatoes. i'll have to top them soon and i want to know where are the next blossoms coming going to come from? right now, i have tomatoes trusses close to the bottom, middle and top of the plant. When they become ripe and I harvest them all, are the next tomatoes going to come exclusively from the top of the plant? Not sure if I am being clear. Basically, will flowers ever appear near the bottom/middle of the plant or will they only come from new growth from the topped off part?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

litia it is still possible to sucker toward the bottom of the plant, but most of your suckers are going to come from upward growth. Once you top your plants, you won’t see much more growth and new flowers. You may get some new side growth, but it won’t be as vigorous as before unless you let a new main stem take over. Topping is something you want to do toward the end of your season. Since indeterminate tomatoes are a vine, what you COULD do is remove as much lower growth as possible and strip the tomatoes of their lower leaves and former fruit clusters now empty, untie the vines, pull down the plants and coil up the excess vines like a coil of wire. I’m probably going to do a video of this soon since most of my plants are 8 feet tall and above my stakes. I’m out of room, too.

[@lg4065]

This is the question I had thanks for answering!

[@gstefanos2792]

So, did it work?

[@wagontrack]

Good post thank you

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Thanks for watching!

[@billwilson7383]

This is my first year gardening. I bought tomato starters that were strong and healthy looking but had 3 stalks by the nursery. Maybe I should have trimmed it back to 1 or 2 stalks at that time but didn't. I later noticed a lot of the suckers branhes were dwarf. I wonder if the 3 branches diluted the energy to the individual branches so much, they couldn't support strong sucker growth? Any thoughts appreciated. Or are dwarf suckers a symptom of something else? At least I didn't have a lot of sucker trimming.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Bill Wilson it sounds like you bought a determinate variety to me if they were that bushy from the start. What variety did you buy? Determinate tomatoes should never be pruned. They grow as a bush, not a vine, and don’t require trellising, just minor staking to support the weight of the fruit.

[@liiskaro4138]

Thank youu

[@MichelleEntrop]

But you don’t spray the cut with peppermint oil or anything else like you do when you prune zucchini?

[@sowertosow]

2 Peter 3:18 KJV But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

[@elizabethblane201]

Now that you're using tomato hooks, will you still be topping your plants at the same time of the year to ripen already-set fruit before frost?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

For my spring-grown crop (which I will be planting in a few weeks), I do not top them. The reason why is disease kills off my spring tomatoes long before frost will. For a fall crop, if you choose to grow indeterminates, topping is advisable to help speed up ripening. However, I'm finding out my frosts are too early to grow fall tomatoes very well and I'm thinking about growing determinates as fall crops instead and scrapping the indeterminates. This year, I'll be planting more determinates for fall tomatoes.

[@elizabethblane201]

@@TheMillennialGardener I am going to try some determinates also, especially since you spoke so highly of their flavor, especially the Rosella Purple. You are correct in thinking that people have a misconceptions about "dwarf" tomatoes.

[@r.t.7925]

Good info, but why are you growing your plants in bags when you have land ?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Because this was a house I was renting at the time, so I couldn’t dig.

[@r.t.7925]

@@TheMillennialGardener got it

[@obsidiansea]

11:10 - list of squash/cucurbits and 11:17 - list of common nightshades

[@hirc2007]

Can you plant the top?

[@crossing3790]

Thanks for sharing. I planted my tomatoes 4 weeks early. Still have them inside which is ok but they are getting too big. Can I top off young tomatoes? I want to cut off about 6 inches off of the main stem. Thanks for any advice. Blessings to you.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

If you cut off a young tomato plant, you could either damage the plant or cause it to sucker in all different directions. I would not particularly do that, but I have never done so on purpose, either. With tomatoes, you can bury them deeply because the hairs that grow on the stem will turn into roots, so having a tall transplant is not a bad thing. You can just bury it deeper.

[@crossing3790]

@@TheMillennialGardener Thank you. Blessings and good luck this growing season

[@airinbone]

I am one who thinks outside the box. I often top young to yougish tomato plants, let more suckers grow, pruning indeterminates into being bush. The suckers will be their own stem with their own leave offshoots (solar panels). Doing this is also a way to extend your growing season if you are bringing late planted plants indoors to grow under lights. I have done this for over 30 years and it can work. Think it through and have a plan, I know it is opposite of the norm, but it does work most of the time.

[@crossing3790]

@@airinbone I actually think the same way. The more leaves the more energy the longer the life of the plant (if there is light). I have let some suckers grow very large and healthy. Then I removed them, set the stem in water and planted them again separately. I will see how their internal clock lets them develop into the late season before the cold comes. If all goes good I will take them inside under grow lights. Thanks for the tip. I always think against the masses in new ways to experiment. Not just with growing plants but in everything else too. Blessings to you.

[@jacquelinekorpi8071]

What do you do if tomatoe plant breaks on main stem when it is small

[@seaglass8940]

Look up how to replant that cutting! It will grow new roots and start a new plant.

[@Bellamoon111.]

I have 8 tomato plants in cups, and im hardening them off. They are so tall, that it makes it hard to move them in and out. Could I cut a few inches off or no?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

If you cut the tops off the tomatoes, they will begin to sucker. If I were you, I'd leave them tall, remove the lower leaves and plant them as deeply as possible. Tomatoes send roots along the stems (those little fine hairs will turn into roots if you bury them), so the deeper you bury the stems, the larger the roots, the healthier your tomatoes.

[@Vector_Ze]

I've got some Better Boy indetermanate plants which seem to be healthy. But, they've only been in the ground (from transplant) for a while and they're only about a foot tall. They've begun to blossom and I'm wondering if I should remove the blossoms until the plants are bigger.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I wouldn't. Tomato plants are extremely vigorous. As long as you give them enough soil to grow roots and fertilize them pretty heavily, they can set fruit and grow at the same time. I don't think the fruit really slows growth until they ripen. It seems to me that transition from green to red takes longest. I wouldn't remove blossoms unless you're trying to grow very large fruit, and in my opinion, the medium-sized fruit usually turns out more shapely, uniform and of higher quality.

[@MollyMcBooter]

smart451cab I always snip off mine (unless its a cherry tomato plant). Gives the plant more energy and time to build a thicker stem and put out more leaves to gather all that photosynthesis power for better tomatoes!

[@tomscott3]

I would actually leave more of greenery/solar panels, but still take off the newest middle shoot to prevent further growth. This way, you would have the most energy available going into fruit production. Very Best Regards, Tom Scott Author ● Speaker ● World's Leading Expert on the Corrupt U.S. Legal System _Stack the Legal Odds in Your Favor_ _Our American Injustice System_

[@kramnull8962]

Growing in bags you have left 18" above the ground to begin with.

[@mikehendrix6558]

So why did you let it get out of hand

[@barbaraperry2796]

Can you replant all of those tops that you cut off?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Yes, but only if you're 100% certain the cuttings are free of disease. Otherwise, you'll just be propagating a sickly cutting. If you're sure they're disease-free, you can clone them.

[@barbaraperry2796]

@@TheMillennialGardener good news! Thank you.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@barbaraperry2796 thanks for watching!

[@LeiaSmethurst]

So what are those black bags the tomatoes are planted in? That seems interesting... I’m in zone 7b (Oklahoma City) and we have really hot/humid summers here. I’ve had luck with Beefmaster, Early Girls, and Hybrid tomatoes... thanks to your video- I now know I need to prune badly! Interested in the bags tho- why not pots?! Thanks for your help!

[@Senrac28]

Leia Smethurst those are grow bags. Can get them off brand on amazon for pretty cheap. The bags allow roots to breathe and actually promote depth in growth as opposed to surface roots. When the roots reach the sides of the bag they can penetrate through, but will burn off in the sun. This stimulates new growth so that the roots will fill the bag! I started using them this year and love them! I use 7-10 gal. Great for transporting plants too.

[@martinwhitehurst9893]

Where at in NC are you?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I am in Brunswick County. Location details are in the video description and in the channel description.

[@martinwhitehurst9893]

Gotcha, I'm in Tyrrell County. Columbia

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Martin Whitehurst thanks for watching, neighbor!

[@edwardhallett9670]

If you are looking for a tomato pruning and topping video that gets to the point, this is it. After years without a garden, I'm back at it in containers. For the last month I have been watching video after video after video trying to find out how I can grow tomatoes...... NOT LEAVES. My tomato plants are touching the house gutters and producing flowers, flowers, flowers and some few tomatoes. Now I want to know...........Where's the BEEF? THIS young man cuts to the chase and actually shows you what he is cutting and why.... then makes the cut. I hope his next project is to produce a video on how to make a video. If you are looking for good succinct information, watch this video. If you want a review by a guy who just received his order, talks about how it shipped, how the box looked, he will open it 42 days after the last snow fall (when the back ordered parts are due to arrive) then gives the product and the dealer 5 stars for nothing.......... then move on. This young man is the REAL DEAL!

[@thedood3604]

i have an indeterminate tomato plant and the top off it riped off will it grow back?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

It will likely send suckers at the breaking points and grow new growth. In a month, it probably won't even be noticeable as long as the plant stays healthy.

[@prideoverfire1]

I’m in Chapel Hill, where are you?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I'm down in Brunswick County. Location info is in the video description and in my channel description. Thanks for watching, neighbor!

[@peeechiz]

Hey! I knew I recognized that accent lol. I'm also from NC.

[@JessicaJones-me6sp]

I thought I saw Blossom end rot on one of those tomatoes, did I?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Jessica Jones I don’t think so. I haven’t had a tomato with BER in 4 years. I haven’t had a single case since I started mulching my plants. BER is usually caused by letting your plants dry out too much, then soaking them (uneven watering).

[@Dorothypotterspanish]

What pots are you using there? They look like bags.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

They are fabric grow bags. 20 gallons for indeterminates and 7 gallons for the dwarfs. I have them linked in my Amazon Storefront in the video description. They're awesome and very inexpensive. I'm reusing them for the 3rd season in a row. Very durable.

[@charlesberryhill7179]

Why would you restrict your tomato roots by growing in containers, especially with that wonderful flat ground? When you restrict tomato roots with containers, they cannot reach their possible 6 feet down for nutrients and water. You alsostop the transfer of soil like microbes and earth worms from entering the container when moisture and temperature change

[@nickf8524]

They need some shade

[@charlescoker7752]

One video. said the bloom may not being pollinated. I pass this tip on to my wife's Aunt. Her tomatoes were not setting tomatoes. The tip is to shake the plant, or take a electric toothbrush, and vibrate the blooms. She did this, and she called back in about a week . She was so happy her tomatoes were setting fruit. She lives in zone 8A in Mississippi. I had a problem with my tomatoes over growing my Fence style trellis. You can go buy electric metal conduit, and hose clamps. And extend the T Post trellis to whatever height you want.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Charles Coker a potential problem is most tomatoes will not set fruit if days are over 90 degrees and nights are over 70 degrees. The pollen becomes clumpy and the plants become infertile. That is the case that I am enduring right now. Nights are 75+ and days are 91-93. Most flowers will dry up and fall off. Beefsteaks will lose 90+% flowers with heirlooms nearly 100% aside from the most heat tolerant varieties. Heat tolerant hybrids will lose 75%+. Smaller slicers and cherry tomatoes can still set at decent rates. Only my smaller hybrids are making any fruit now, except strangely my Brandywine Sudduth and Brandy Boy, which have set a couple.

[@hamsterama]

This is why I don't consider planting flowers a waste of space. In fact, flowers make vegetable growing much more productive. I have a pollinator garden next to my vegetable garden. In fact, the pollinator garden is bigger than my vegetable garden. And that's on purpose. The key is to attract bumble bees and get them to stick around. Bumble bees use buzz pollination. Every single flower on my tomato plant gets visited by bumble bees. Heck, every single flower on every vegetable plant I have gets visited by bumblebees. Next year, get your wife's aunt to plant a lot of pollinator-friendly flowers.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@hamsterama I planted sunflowers all around my garden. My basil is also starting to bolt, and they're attracting tons of bees. The problem is tomato pollen is very undesirable to bees. They want honey rich in sugars - sunflower flowers, clover flowers...they go NUTS for my oregano flowers and basil flowers, too. Unfortunately, bees couldn't care less about tomato flowers and avoid them, it seems. I bought an electric toothbrush and an extra head to try this trick. I'm skeptical because it's very hot here and the pollen may be too clumpy and moist to work, but I'll give it a try. Even if I get a 10% success rate, that's something. Wind isn't adequate with temps and humidity as high as it is where I live right now. I just planted a new bed of tomatoes and they're flowering, so I'll give the toothbrush a try tonight when things cool off.

[@hamsterama]

@@TheMillennialGardener Maybe it depends on the bees of your area? I live in Ohio, and the common eastern bumble bee (bombus impatiens) go nuts over my my cherry tomato flowers. The small carpenter bee (ceratina species) also love tomato flowers. Every flower gets pollinated. I guess I'm really lucky that the bees in my area area like the flowers. All the tomatoes I have in my garden are volunteers from little yellow cherry tomatoes I originally bought from Aldi, where I composted a couple bad ones. So, I don't know the name of the variety, but the vines are absolutely huge. Great video, I now know how to prune back some of the vines.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

hamsterama very interesting! You are lucky indeed. The bees in my area could not care less about my tomatoes. They want the sunflowers, oregano, basil and cucumbers. I tried the toothbrush on my tomato flowers last night while this cold front is in place, so I’m crossing my fingers. I need some Ohio bees I guess. I’m glad you like the vids!

[@englishlovers7261]

The soil looked dry. Why don’t you plant into the ground. The plants only last for about 4 months. Why don’t you do 3 months and 3 months? The leaves looks curled and dryish. That’s why you’re not getting many tomatoes

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I was renting that house and moving in September. That's why I had to grow in pots and on the timeframe I was growing them in.

[@englishlovers7261]

The Millennial Gardener I see.

[@TheRealmfc90125]

I’m curious how many tomatoes grew after this video. Were you happy with results?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I shot this video toward the end of my season (I plant my tomatoes in March). Some of the varieties were starting to quit on me, but the most vigorous varieties (Brandy Boy and San Marzano particularly) continued to pump out tomatoes until Hurricane Florence destroyed everything in September. I was very happy with the results, particularly with trellising the tomatoes because it made it so much easier to manage the growth of the tomatoes once they get tall.

[@pandorachild]

These have to be the worst plants I ever saw, You planted in bags on the ground?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Yes. As mentioned, I was renting the house, so the only option was growing in containers. Fabric grow bags are extremely popular and I continue to use them to this day because they work so well.

[@dskrpncs]

Sorry...but your plants look terrible for being in the ground for 4 months. Did you do this same thing in 2019?

[@TheMillennialGardener]

Lawn Greengo I live just outside of Wilmington, NC. From June 1 to Sep 30, it is 90+ with a 75 degree dew point almost every day. Growing tomatoes here is very difficult, and the spring tomato crop is usually totally wiped out by August 1. It can’t be compared to the Northeast, Midwest or West, where a single tomato crop is grown throughout the summer. It is an entirely different climate in the Southeast and Deep South. I used to grow tomatoes in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and it was a breeze there compared to down here. It is truly an order of magnitude more difficult down here due to the heat, humidity, pests and soil type. I had to stake them in 2019 due to cost and infrastructure. Trellising is superior to staking for sure. I hope to improve my permanent infrastructure over the winter some.

[@dskrpncs]

@@TheMillennialGardener I dont grow indeterminate tomatoes and am looking for the best way to support the weight of the plants without using cages.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

@@dskrpncs do you grow determinates and/or dwarfs? If so, look into Florida Weave. It's the easiest, simplest way to grow determinates and dwarfs since those two types of plants should not be pruned like indeterminates should.

[@dilligaf2386]

Shorly all your plants growth is going into your plant instead of your tomatoes. I've never seen plants that big before

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I am blessed with a climate with a lot of growing degree days. Eventually, my humid, rainy summers kill the tomatoes, but I have good spring performance.

[@mandalynn1384]

Right. Crying in last frost in May, 100° June-August, and first frost in October

[@wvo5660]

I hate that american accent !! You should have cut off the top much earlier.

[@TheMillennialGardener]

There is no such thing as an "American accent." Accents change dramatically based on region. If you don't like my voice, you don't like a South Jersey/Philadelphia accent.