Tomato advice please

[Duke Ellington]

My indeterminate tomatoes are doing really well. I have one main stem and have pinched out the side shoots but every year I get into a mess as the plant gets taller and seems to develop a second stem branching from the main one. should I take this out? This second stem is the same thickness as the main oneand appears when the plant is about two foot tall.

Duke

[Duke Ellington]

[Ian Pearson]

They quite often seem to form these double leaders. Just pinch out whichever seems weakest if you want to keep it as a single cordon.

[strawberry1]

I find the one with tiny flower buds and I pinch out the other one

[ed dibbles]

Like you I get confused with the tomato double leaders and will often leave both to grow in the hope I will get extra tomatoes than otherwise.

It also means I don't have to grow them so high (though they often do grow tall)

However then the laterals need to be ruthlessly taken out as well a the foliage severely curtailed.

It is surprising how little foliage tomatoes in fact need compared to the amount they grow. I usually go for removing a half to two thirds of the existing older foliage once the first couple of trusses have formed. (I'm sure some eyes will roll at me removing so much) ::)


But this saves on the watering so the plant is less stressed as well as helping with blight since that usually infects the leaves first.

[cornykev]

I take mine off and repot and get a few extra plants.   :D

[antipodes]

Gosh, I have exactly the same problem!!! This year I am being very vigilant towards the little plants, and I will try to pick just one main stem and pinch out the other. I find that I have left on two stems in the past but it just makes the plant unruly and generally unstable, as it tends to get too heavy. I also tend to leave on too much foliage. Because it seems wrong to strip all the leaves, but I think I do need to be a bit stricter and take off more than I usually would. I have all heritage varieties this year and really want to nurture them and get seeds!!!
They are doing quite well actually, most over a foot tall despite May's rotten weather. A sunny patch here has brought them on spectacularly.

[strawberry1]

Ed I do the same with the leaves. I`ll wait until I get 4 set trusses and then the plant will lose half its leaves. I have already taken the bottom leaves off. I removed a lot of leaves last year and got great results