By Bobangles
Oxfordshire, United Kingdom
Can i pinch out toms ,they have two sets of flowers,and should i remove large leaves, there are masses of them.
- 24 Jun, 2010
Answers
all those leaves help to feed the plant and make lotsof tomatoes for you, are you feeding it regularly with tomato food?
24 Jun, 2010
The old argument used to be that you removed the lower leaves to let the sun get to the fruit to help ripen them. That's not true, and the fruit will ripen just as easily due to warm temperatures. Pamq is right about every leaf helping, and you should only remove leaves if they show signs of yellowing and disease.
It's far more important to keep pinching out the unwanted sideshoots to maintain the tomato as a single cordon (unless it's a bush type). Pinching out now might mean the first two trusses set earlier, but you will lose out on some of the later fruit, even in Aberdeenshire, unless you have a very cold garden.
24 Jun, 2010
Thank youe Pam and Moon. Bertie, i heard not supposed to feed till 2nd truss ie fruit is set? thanks
24 Jun, 2010
We are feeding already and only first truss starting to set
24 Jun, 2010
I'd leave the tomatoes to form four sets of flowers or trusses before I stopped them. It is too early to remove the leaves yet, wait until the tomatoes are formed and starting to grow, then you can remove some of them.
24 Jun, 2010