Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: Turnba on August 09, 2013, 00:05

Title: Leggy greenhouse tomatoes
Post by: Turnba on August 09, 2013, 00:05

Hi all

Questions about leggy tomatoes are frequent, but almost always about seedlings. I have 6 very mature plants with very healthy fruits coming on nicely. I kept up a good watering regime after I lost half a dozen fruits to blossom end rot, which isn't a problem now. This last week has seen remarkable legginess develop, on one plant in particular.

I trimmed off a few lower branches about three weeks ago, to help with watering more than anything else, and I've been fertilising with comfrey  goo every other day (30ml in 6L water). I thought this might be excessive so I've not done it in the last few waterings. I've also nipped out the growing tips, but the plants are getting bigger in the stems instead now!

Is this a problem, or am I over-reacting? Happy to receive any feedback :-D

Title: Re: Leggy greenhouse tomatoes
Post by: Headgardener22 on August 09, 2013, 00:22

Sounds to me like you've overfed them and they've decided to grow rather than crop. I doubt if there's much you can do to recover the situation. Maybe you could encourage another leader from low down to get more trusses.