The DU Lounge
Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsAny tomato experts here?
What does one do with a single huge cherry tomato plant (indoors in a large pot in a south window) that is pretty much all stalks and leaves? It produces very few tomatoes and some of those are no larger than a small pea.
I have tried liquid tomato fertilizer (brown organic looking liquid) and lawn fertilizer but nothing seems to help.
Any help appreciated...!
msongs
(67,561 posts)Kali
(55,043 posts)he is a genuwine expert
Rhiannon12866
(207,606 posts)Phoenix61
(17,040 posts)need a lot of direct sunlight. Also, when you buy a plant you need to plant it very deep, a third of the stalk in the ground.
magicarpet
(14,288 posts)The Velveteen Ocelot
(116,137 posts)Also, it helps to pinch off the suckers that grow on the stems before they form larger branches. http://www.tomatodirt.com/pruning-tomato.html
cyclonefence
(4,483 posts)are easy to over-fertilize, especially if they are not producing flowers/fruits. I learned this from nasturtiums. Too much fertilizer goes to producing lots of stems and leaves and a stronger plant, not more flowers. It sounds to me as if--in addition to getting them more sun--you may want to stop fertilizing these plants.
Lars39
(26,121 posts)And we have a gardening forum:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1159
Disaffected
(4,588 posts)Since the plant is indoors, there are no bees around to pollinate and the pot is too big & heavy to move around. I have however tried pollination with a small paint brush - not sure if that helped or not.
I have also tried varying the amount of fertilizer but that doesn't seem to help either. It continues to prolifically produce branches and leaves but few flowers and fewer tomatoes. A grow light also doesn't seem to make that much difference.
I have had indoor tomatoes in past and they have done well (producing more tomatoes than I can use) but I don't recall if they were the same variety.
There must be some definite reason why a lot of the tomatoes ripen when they are still very small and, why branches and leaves grow so well but the fruit does not.
I will certainly take a look at the links provided and hope for better results as IMO there is nothing better, and unique, than the taste of vine ripened tomatoes!
NRaleighLiberal
(60,044 posts)It's about sun. Happy, fruit setting tomato plants need direct sun ..cherry tomatoes will do ok with a few hours, but that, combined perhaps with too much nitrogen (it may be best to be really lean with plant food if indoor growing). Augmenting with LED lighting would also help.
Disaffected
(4,588 posts)They do get a few hours direct albeit through a double glazed window.
Will stop the fertilization but, an still wondering why some of the fruit, such as it is, ripens when they are very small (as mentioned before, about the size of a small pea).
Are some varieties better suited for indoor growing?
Thanks again......
NRaleighLiberal
(60,044 posts)tonight
Disaffected
(4,588 posts)to your reply and, more tomatoes.
NRaleighLiberal
(60,044 posts)The one exception could be the microdwarf varieties. Look for Tiny Tim or Red Robin - some companies sell the seeds - or I can put you in touch with someone leading a project to breed new microdwarf varieties - they will grow and fruit reasonably well in a sunny window, and the plants end up about 12 inches wide and 12 inches tall, with some variation.
Tomatoes are self pollinating - typically they pollinate as the flower opens - wind likely helps with outdoor plants, so if you can get your plants to flower indoors, give them a gentle flick a few times a day.
Disaffected
(4,588 posts)on advice, I also posted this query to the Recreation/Gardening forum. It might be better to post any further info there (maybe I should have moved the topic - can you do that?).
Response to Disaffected (Original post)
Laelth This message was self-deleted by its author.
Kick in to the DU tip jar?
This week we're running a special pop-up mini fund drive. From Monday through Friday we're going ad-free for all registered members, and we're asking you to kick in to the DU tip jar to support the site and keep us financially healthy.
As a bonus, making a contribution will allow you to leave kudos for another DU member, and at the end of the week we'll recognize the DUers who you think make this community great.