I show you how the ‘Patio Princess Hybrid’ tomato did in 2.5 gallon containers, 5 gallon containers, grow bags and in straw bales. It is also important to re…
Question by Anonymous: Is it too late to prune my tomato plant?
I’ve never grown tomato before and didn’t know it was supposed to be pruned. The plant is about 3 feet tall and has many, large branches. There are tons of flowers that never seem to become tomatoes. Can I still prune it, or is it too late? I don’t want to kill it.
Best answer:
Answer by theradioham
I’d pull off any small shoots from the leaf axils, but it’s probably not worth removing those that are already large enough to flower.
To encorage setting, it halps to mist the flowers with water, and or tap the stem to vibrate them.
Commercial growers use either an “electric bee” which vibrates the stem ot the stake it’s attached to, Or hormone setting which creates disgusting goop where the seeds should have been.
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Oh.. I would but I am not growing any. Sorry. But I do make videos of requests if I have something to offer.
Quick question can you do a video on red beans please.
Yep 5 US gallons. Your welcome. I wish you success!
Hi Gary, is this 5 US gallons so 19 litres? Thanks for all your videos! This is my first year doing this and your videos are a great help
Prescott no problem
That is frustrating. Ill keep cheap in mind if I decide to look. Maybe ask what others have been using. Thanks.
Well it hards to guess without picks. But I think early girl are determinate tomatoes. Do you thing they are aging out and just starting a natural death?
But if it is yellow with brown dots in it it cold be fungus. Spraying with baking soda wont hurt.
I think it shows definitive results when you compare ‘apples to apples’ results like that. Interesting to see that the tomatoes grew the same in the 5 or 18 gal buckets…guess for ease of space and portability the 5 gallon bucket seems to be the optimum size. Question though. In your patio tomatoes you used the clear tray underneath during the hottest time of year to hold water available throughout the day. Did you drill lower holes than the 2″ high ones when using the trays?,
I thought it would be helpful to grow the same variety in different containers. You shade movement is a great idea. It will make a difference. The experiments are fun. I just finished one on growing potatoes in small containers. Indirectly neglected them. Next year more water and food and I should have lots of baby potatoes.
Wow, amazing the difference in containers. I am in the high desert AZ and it has been over 90 everyday starting early in June. I like the idea of using the 5 gallon buckets for the portability factor. I have a large covered patio that I could move plants into or out of as the weather changes. I love that you do experiments, I am an experimenter too. Read my blog and you see that my kitchen is like a laboratory, haha. Going to visit your blog now!
Gary: I plant two tomatoes (one patio and one early girl) in the 5 gal containers with a mix of coco coir (soaked in water and worm tea) perlite and topsoil. I drilled three holes about the waist line of the containers cause my idea is that I don’t have to water them that often. These weeks, VA is extremely wet with lots of rain, therefore, I only water them once. Now, early girl starts getting yellowish with tiny dots on the leafs. Any idea? Thanks.
Great job, I have self watering containers, with coconut coir, and I was wondering why they were drying out so quickly. Thinking that Coconut Coir was like a sponge, doesn’t matter when we have 100+ heat in July and August. Thanks for the video.
I appreciate how you experiment and show both the good and the bad.
i then had to cut the hose off of every connection and drill each individual joint and then put it all back together.
I started a drip irrigation for my peppers in pots and a few other plants that extend past my soaker hose ( I have only about 50 X 4′ of garden space) One thing I can say is the cheapest systems are cheap for a reason. I bought a Rain Bird Patio Irrigation start up kit for 15 bucks, put it together, and found out after the fact it was put together that the manufacturer didn’t drill the third hole in the t-joints used to irrigate the water to the drip. VERY frustrating.
Is that a hay bale or a straw bale? Hay bales are much more nutritious and finer. They retain water better as well. Those look like straw bales. Hay bales are difficult to find.
awsome thanks! new york zone 5A
Appreciated. I think seeing the actual different container types with the same variety of tomato might help with selecting the right container. So much hard works goes into everyones tomatoes… I hate seeing the heat of summer wipe them out. It is important to imagine the plant big and the heat high when picking out a container.
I like how you showed us the different methods you used to grow tomatoes, as well as having the water reserve. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks. I start to run out energy now BUT I put in 5 hours weeding yesterday and knocked the garden back into shape. Im using the videos to keep me motivated.
I havent done one. It is a good idea. Probably most effective out of everything.
Put GARDEN ZONES in for web search. A map will come up.
I found them at local hardware store. Under $2. Very cheap. And I found them at Big Lots for $1. I was lucky.
I also wanted to use the same plant as to make it slightly more scientific. That is slightly.
Gary, I give you a lot of credit for doing so much container growing and working full time. That is a HUGE amount of work. I enjoy your videos and appreciate your tips, techniques and knowledge of gardening. Thank you for sharing. I like walking through your yard and gardens.
The only thing I prune is the yellow leaves at the bottom. How hot is it. Bees don’t come out in the high heat like over 90F. Be a BEE and joggle all the flowers with your finger. Also do not fertilize but twice a season.