Topic: strange goings on in the tomato beds

[manicscousers]

 ;D
has anyone else had any tomatoes stop producing growing points, 3 out of the 8 beefsteak ones have set about  4 lots of flowers and just stopped, they have 2 branches of flowers at the top and no growing tip, I don't know whether to leave them for some early fruit or let one of the side shoots grow on?

[OllieC]

I don't grow very many varieties, manics (probably only ever done 15 varieties), and only do outdoor ones, but have always noticed that Outdoor Girl want to be a bush - they throw a flower truss out where the growing tip should be & you have to tie up a side shoot...

[manicscousers]

sounds similar, got lots of double flower/fruits too, I blame the weather for everything  ;D
not the squirrels  ;D

[OllieC]

Haha, have you checked? It could be squirrels in there, meddling with things!

[manicscousers]

even our polytunnel has mesh doors  ;D

[Sinbad7]

Two of my plants have done the same thing mainscousers, thought it might have been to do with the variety as I have never grown them before.  Did think it strange though.

Sinbad

[manicscousers]

glad I'm not on my own, are you letting the sideshoot grow ?

[Sinbad7]

Yes, I have as they didn't grow up and I thought they looked odd ;D  But as I live in fear of blight yet again I am going to stop everything on all of my tomatoes soon.  I must have about 40 plants in all.  I feel desperate about my toms this year and determined to get some, well lots I hope even though I am going to stop them all at 3 trusses.  Apart from the 2 that have stopped themselves.

Sinbad

[tim]

Typical!

And, just to confuse you, they bifurcate & so you have 2 shoots which stop!!

[manicscousers]

sinbad, are yours outside like ollie's then ?
they're all confused, Tim, between being over 100 degrees a few days ago to 60 degrees today  ::) ???

[Sinbad7]

Splitting of the main body!

Mine are all outside, have just found another the same, so, that now makes 3 :)

Sinbad

[shirlton]

A couple of mine have done the same. Both the same variety. Constiluto florentino. Shirley and gardeners delight are ok.

[Sinbad7]

I have only ever grown the, what I would call normal toms, but after reading A4A it spurred me on to wanting to grow different varities and to the kindness of the people on here I now have loads of different varities growing, so, I would like to know do the flowers all look  different? I ask as I thought the flower died and you were left with a tomato but after inspecting some of my plants, in a friends garden, I notice some of the flowers are really large like double flowers and there is also a tomato inside, is this normal?

Sinbad

[tim]

Yes - to both of those - Costoluto is a great offender.

[Tee Gee]

3 out of the 8 beefsteak ones have set about  4 lots of flowers and just stopped, they have 2 branches of flowers

I have noticed this in the past (only with beefsteak) and put it down to 'mother nature'

It is as if the plant has decided as to how many trusses it can sustain so does what we 'humans' do when we removing the growing tip from plants i.e. go for quality not quantity'!!

[tricia]

Two of my outdoor plants both split at the large second truss and one just stopped after the second truss had flowered so I let a side shoot grow on that one. I'm still waiting to see what the other two do. They both have very large trusses, so - fingers crossed we don't get blight - maybe that will be enough for those two plants.

Tricia

[growmore]

Beefsteak toms are renowned for going blind at the tip. always check tip before removing last side shoot .If tip has gone blind grow on from side shoot..