When growing tomatoes, it is recommended to regularly feed the soil with various mineral fertilizers. This has a positive effect on the amount of harvest. However, fertilizing also contributes to the appearance of a large number of branches, which can interfere with the formation of large fruits. To get rid of shoots, it is necessary to plant tomatoes in open ground. For beginners, this procedure may seem quite complicated and therefore it is recommended to familiarize yourself in advance with how to properly pinch tomatoes and whether it is necessary to do this at all.
general information
Before you figure out how to plant tomatoes, you need to familiarize yourself with the basic information about this procedure.
The main task of the root system of bushes is the uniform distribution of all nutrients. During growth, most of the substances are spent not on fruits, but on the growth of tops. In order to somehow reduce the cost of elements on tops, tomatoes are planted.
Pruning tomatoes in open ground involves pruning unnecessary shoots that are formed only for the growth of the plant. Quite often, stepsons of tomato seedlings appear in the leaf axil. They grow between the main stem of the plant and the leaf. To properly get rid of these shoots, you need to know how to properly pick off the shoots of a tomato.
You will have to remove the shoots from the bushes throughout the entire growing period. This is the only way to get a good and large harvest.
Appearance of stepsons
To figure out how to pinch tomatoes, you need to understand what stepsons look like and where they most often begin to form. After all, not everyone knows which shoots need to be removed in order to improve productivity.
The stepson is a shoot that begins to form from a bud located between the stem of the bush and its leaves. The growth of this shoot is not limited in any way. Over time, flowers, leaves and even fruits will begin to form on it. It is imperative to pinch out tomato seedlings with such extra shoots, since a bush that is too thick does not bear fruit well. Leaf pruning is also sometimes done. However, this will not help to completely stop plant thickening. Only completely pinching the tomatoes will help stop the thickening.It is recommended to do this when the plant grows to 50 cm and the length of the shoots reaches 5-8 cm.
When to remove shoots
Before pruning shoots, you should figure out when to do it. The first time the procedure is carried out while growing seedlings. Quite often, unnecessary shoots begin to form on very young bushes.
At the same time, when pinching tomato seedlings, stepsons that are more than one centimeter are removed.
Next time, pinching tomatoes in the greenhouse and on the plot should be done after planting them in the ground. It is during this period that new shoots begin to appear intensively on the bushes. Therefore, you need to periodically get rid of them and plant tomatoes in the open ground once a week.
Basic recommendations
It's a good idea to review basic de-sprouting tips to understand how to properly prune tomatoes.
Quite often, the removal of stepsons is carried out without any additional tools. Many vegetable growers simply remove them by hand. This kind of pruning of tomatoes in a greenhouse must be done with gloves. It is recommended to manually break off the shoots before lunch, since in the morning they are juicy and because of this they break much easier.
Figuring out how to pinch tomatoes is quite simple. During this procedure, the shoots are pinched tightly with the index finger and thumb. After this, they should be rocked in different directions until they break. After pinching, a small wound appears on the bush. It should not be touched until it is completely dry.
You can also cut tomatoes in open ground using scissors or an ordinary kitchen knife.This method is more complicated than the previous one and therefore it is worth familiarizing yourself with how to pinch tomatoes in a greenhouse with cutting tools:
- You need to trim a tomato in a greenhouse only with well-sharpened tools so that when pinching, there is minimal damage to the stem.
- Removing shoots from tomatoes requires certain skills from a person. After all, hand movements must be precise and very fast for the procedure to be painless for the bushes.
- Before picking off the shoots on the next plant, all tools used must be disinfected in a solution of potassium and bleach.
- To prevent the emergence of new shoots, after removal you should leave a small piece of the stepson.
- A broken shoot must be disposed of immediately. If they are left on the site, they can become a source of various infectious diseases.
Working with indeterminate bushes
The scheme for planting such tomatoes is quite simple. However, you should still familiarize yourself with how to properly plant tomatoes in open ground and greenhouses.
The main difference between all indeterminate plants is that they can grow continuously. If you do not promptly remove excess shoots, then in the future the bushes may take up all the free space of the greenhouse.
Form such tomato bushes possible in various ways. It all depends on the variety of tomatoes grown. During formation into one stem, you will have to get rid of all the shoots located in the leaf axils. If the bushes have a garter, then before pinching the tomatoes in the greenhouse, the garter will need to be removed in order to lay the stem on the ground.
During the formation of several stems, the required number of shoots will have to be left on the plant. Over time, they turn into additional stems, which require a mandatory garter so that they do not break. All other shoots should be removed.
Working with determinate bushes
Quite often, determinate varieties include low-growing tomatoes. Their distinctive feature is that they stop growing when a brush appears at the top. After removing additional shoots, the plant will stop forming stepsons with new leaves and brushes. Therefore, the yield of such varieties is limited by fruits formed earlier.
There are several basic recommendations that will help you understand how to properly trim tomatoes in a greenhouse and on the plot:
- it is necessary to remove only those stepsons from tomatoes whose length is more than 5 cm;
- before starting work, you should select the main sprout shoot;
- sometimes the garter interferes with removing the stepsons, so it is better to remove it while working;
- It is not necessary to remove all excess shoots, as you can simply pinch the tomatoes to stop their development.
There are also super-determinant varieties that have their own principle for pruning tomatoes in a greenhouse. Some of them greatly simplify growing tomatoes, since they are planted only once. The fact is that if the stepsons are removed before the brush is formed, then they will not appear in the future. These include Rocket tomatoes, Yamal, Moskvich and Vershok.
Removing sheets
It's no secret that leaves are an important element of any plant. After all, they are responsible for nutrition and gas exchange. Therefore, you need to remove them very carefully so as not to accidentally get rid of a healthy and young leaf.
It is recommended to get rid of only those leaves that negatively affect the development of the fruit. For example, these include leaves that shade tomatoes. If you get rid of them in a timely manner, this will improve the air exchange of the plant and speed up the ripening process of tomatoes.
You also need to tear off the leaves that grow near the plant’s brush. It is recommended to remove no more than four leaves per week. However, if the bush is well looked after and is not sick with anything, then you can get rid of six leaves at once.
At the end of the season, you can get rid of almost all the leaves, except for a few that are at the very top of the bushes. This procedure helps protect the bushes from various diseases.
Conclusion
When growing tomatoes, it is imperative to plant them. Before this, it is recommended to figure out how to plant tomatoes in order to improve the yield. A video will help you understand how to plant tomatoes in open ground, which will provide a step-by-step explanation of this process.
