Topping/culling

BigVanVader · June 17, 2015

This year I allowed many of my tomatoes to grow 3 or 4 main stems which has worked well and I have tons of fruitset (for me anyway) but I have been getting some BER on several varieties and now the heat here is hitting upper 90s without any cool down in the near future.

Many of my plants like Big Beef, Prudence Purple, Wes, Indian Stripe, and JBT have 30 to 40 fruits per plant and are still setting. They are also hitting the top of my post at 7ft. I am worried that with so many fruits our heat will stress the plant to much. I'm also curious if there is a limit to how many fruits an inground tomato plant can support effectively in temperature extremes, or if any of you ever limit the amount of fruitset? Thanks for any help.

Worth1 · June 17, 2015

I dont I just keep pouring the water and fertilizer to them.
Worth

Mike723 · June 17, 2015

Nah I wouldn't be worried.. If anything, the heat will cause some blossoms to drop..
As Worth said - just keep up with the water.. and lean back on the nitrogen (if you haven't already)..

I wouldn't be too worried about the BER.. The plants always seem to get past it after the first dozen or two fruit are effected IME.. You could get all crazy with sprays, tums and all that non-sense, but it's a waste of time IMO.. Consistent watering, proper PH (for calcium uptake) and a complete fertilizer are the best you can do to hedge your bets against developing BER.. Of course some varieties are more prone than others (some plum types IME).. It's a hot button topic, and I'll be seeing my way out now!

haha

**carolyn137** · June 17, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigVanVader

This year I allowed many of my tomatoes to grow 3 or 4 main stems which has worked well and I have tons of fruitset (for me anyway) but I have been getting some BER on several varieties and now the heat here is hitting upper 90s without any cool down in the near future.

Many of my plants like Big Beef, Prudence Purple, Wes, Indian Stripe, and JBT have 30 to 40 fruits per plant and are still setting. They are also hitting the top of my post at 7ft. I am worried that with so many fruits our heat will stress the plant to much. I'm also curious if there is a limit to how many fruits an inground tomato plant can support effectively in temperature extremes, or if any of you ever limit the amount of fruitset? Thanks for any help.

After many years reading here and at some other message sites from those in hot humid areas, they get their plants out early enough and let them set fruits before temps prevent that, and then let those fruits ripen up, but don't usually get good fruit set throughout the summer when the plants kind of go dormant.

As Worth said, keep them watered to keep them alive, and maybe some fertilizer as well.

But then in late summer or early fall some, not all, do top them and that allows for new growth and new blossoms, etc, so you have fruit production up toThanksgiving and often beyond that depending on the weather.

Just curious about your use of the variety name Prudence Purple , I just asked someone else here the same question since quite a while ago there was a huge disagreement going on in the SSE annual Yearbooks as to Prudence Purple, which one person was advocating, whereas all others were saying it should be Prudens Purple.

In the current 2015 SSE Yearbook just one person lists Prudence ( no purple included) and said that __________told him that Pruden's Purple was " developed" from Prudence, but that was not what that argument was about so long ago when it was a duel Between Prudence Purple vs Pruden's Purple.In the 2015 SSE Yearbook there were many listers for Pruden's Purple.

Just wondering where you got your seeds from that were labelled Prudence Purple?

Carolyn

BigVanVader · June 17, 2015

Thanks for the help guys/gal. Carolyn the seeds I got were labeled Pruden's Purple but I had read that the true original name was Prudence therefore I have been calling it that. I could be wrong but from my understanding they are the same variety, if not I will refrain from using "Prudence" though I do like the sound of it better.

Stvrob · June 17, 2015

[QUOTE=BigVanVader;481630]Thanks for the help guys/gal. Carolyn the seeds I got were labeled Pruden's Purple but I had read that the true original name was Prudence therefore I have been calling it that. I could be wrong but from my understanding they are the same variety, if not I will refrain from using "Prudence" though I do like the sound of it better.[/QUOTE]

Why they are practically homonyms!

June 17, 2015	#1
BigVanVader Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Greenville, South Carolina Posts: 3,099	Topping/culling This year I allowed many of my tomatoes to grow 3 or 4 main stems which has worked well and I have tons of fruitset (for me anyway) but I have been getting some BER on several varieties and now the heat here is hitting upper 90s without any cool down in the near future. Many of my plants like Big Beef, Prudence Purple, Wes, Indian Stripe, and JBT have 30 to 40 fruits per plant and are still setting. They are also hitting the top of my post at 7ft. I am worried that with so many fruits our heat will stress the plant to much. I'm also curious if there is a limit to how many fruits an inground tomato plant can support effectively in temperature extremes, or if any of you ever limit the amount of fruitset? Thanks for any help.

June 17, 2015	#2
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	I dont I just keep pouring the water and fertilizer to them. Worth

June 17, 2015	#3
Mike723 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: CT Posts: 290	Nah I wouldn't be worried.. If anything, the heat will cause some blossoms to drop.. As Worth said - just keep up with the water.. and lean back on the nitrogen (if you haven't already).. I wouldn't be too worried about the BER.. The plants always seem to get past it after the first dozen or two fruit are effected IME.. You could get all crazy with sprays, tums and all that non-sense, but it's a waste of time IMO.. Consistent watering, proper PH (for calcium uptake) and a complete fertilizer are the best you can do to hedge your bets against developing BER.. Of course some varieties are more prone than others (some plum types IME).. It's a hot button topic, and I'll be seeing my way out now! haha

June 17, 2015	#6
Stvrob Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 1,413	[QUOTE=BigVanVader;481630]Thanks for the help guys/gal. Carolyn the seeds I got were labeled Pruden's Purple but I had read that the true original name was Prudence therefore I have been calling it that. I could be wrong but from my understanding they are the same variety, if not I will refrain from using "Prudence" though I do like the sound of it better.[/QUOTE] Why they are practically homonyms!