[Shaney D]

Hi everyone,

I have some tomato plants in my greenhouse which have gone all limp at the top. The rest of the plant seems quite healthy and is starting to produce some nice fruit. They all seem to have got to the third lot of flowers/trusses then just stopped growing. I have attached a few pics. All the plants seem to have stopped developing top leaves but continue to develop flowers. It almost seems as though they have had the tops nipped out too early. All the plants are in growbags i have been feeding weekly with liquid tomato food and watering as neccessary. At first i thought it was due to the heat but even in the evening or after a good drink they still dont perk up. I have removed a couple of the lower leaves on each plant which were starting to yellow to try and push some energy up but still no change.

Any ideas anyone

[nemie]

Hi, First of all take what I say with a pinch of salt, as I am new to growing but your plants look under fed to me.

I have 6 plants in 2 grow bags "won't do that again" and due to this mistake I'm having to water twice daily, once around 7am then I water around 10pm, the 7am water is around a litre a bag, then 10pm or evening about 2 litres, I feed once a week with Tomatorite two and half liters a bag.

Once a week I spray the leaves with a few drops fairy liquid to 4 liters of water.

[DD.]

It could simply be under-watering.

Growbags are notorious for drying out as nemie says and often need watering 2 or 3 times a day. Don't wait until they look dry.

Many folk try growbags once and once only!

I use them, but only for the contents which I tip into large pots and stand in old washing up bowls. It's easier to stake the plants as well.

[lisa80]

I agree, i wont be using grow bags next year!!!! i too am having to water 3 times a day .a couple of my beefsteak plants are looking a bit limp also so im just going to keep feeding and watering and bug clearing!!! and hope  for the best , am definatley going to use large pots next year.

[home made pie]

Hi Shaney D
I have exactly the same happening so at least you know it's not just you, it's only happened on my 'moneymaker' variety and only on the ones on the greenhouse shelf which get more direct heat, the ones in growbags on the floor are fine so I'm guessing it's a heat/water problem
Jan

[mad mark]

More water as grow bags dry out in hours not days, so if you leave them for more than 12 hours you will be dehydrating them, in human speak.  Water morniing and night....

[hamstergbert]

Been fairly successful with growbags in a sometimes painfully hot greenhouse but I always use growpot thingies - tall inner pot where the tom goes and the feeding is done and an outer ring that drops the water in.   Seems to have worked thus far with three in a bag (although spaced differently so the gropots fit in right) presumably because of the significantly limited exposed surface for evaporation to happen from.   Main downside is that it gets sort of crowded with three toms all vigorously doing their stuff so close together!

S*ds law says that this year they will all probably commit hara kiri just to spite me, particularly since the other half bought me the extra thick growbags instead of my usual pennypinching brand X.

[Howard]

Been fairly successful with growbags in a sometimes painfully hot greenhouse but I always use growpot thingies - tall inner pot where the tom goes and the feeding is done and an outer ring that drops the water in.   Seems to have worked thus far with three in a bag (although spaced differently so the gropots fit in right) presumably because of the significantly limited exposed surface for evaporation to happen from.   Main downside is that it gets sort of crowded with three toms all vigorously doing their stuff so close together!

S*ds law says that this year they will all probably commit hara kiri just to spite me, particularly since the other half bought me the extra thick growbags instead of my usual pennypinching brand X.

I've had pretty decent success using them too, but I'm always looking to try something different and consequently have a small experiment going on...

I discovered that the tomato growpots fit quite neatly inside the top of a florist's bucket. So, this year I have four toms growing this way, three more in an a 'large' growbag and the last two in buckets with no growpots.

At the moment, the toms in the buckets with growpots are 'winning' and I've no doubt this is how I shall be growing toms from now on.

[hamstergbert]

Growpots onto the (8 for 99p) florist buckets!  Sheer genius!   Definitely interested to see how that pans out, although the gut feel is that it may well be a real winner.

(What a super site this is.  Technical know-how, creative ideas, sharing experience and advice.  Amid all the dross that clags up the interweb thingie, sites like this go a long way to justify it all.)
 

[Shaney D]

Thanks everyone,

I will up my watering regime, gave them a good drink tonight. Do you think i should give them some extra feed? i normally feed every saturday, maybe slip another one in tuesday or wednesday or just double the strength of the saturday feed? Dunno if that would do more harm than good. 

[Yorkie]

I wouldn't increase the strength of the feed, and probably once a week is ok.

[peapod]

Feeding once a week is fine

The rule with toms is pretty simple
Water on a regular basis - dont over or under water and dont chage the watering routine, if on hols then get someone to water or lose to blossom end rot or other
Feed as per instructions - most tom feed is half a cap to a full watering can - give each pot a full soaking once a week

[mumofstig]

I discovered that the tomato growpots fit quite neatly inside the top of a florist's bucket.

Wow!!! Brill idea that would make sure that my cucumber stems would stay dry ..They'd have to think of another way to go

[peterjf]

our local radio humberside says , "when the head of tom plants start to flop and leaves start to curl its time to lay off the feeding until they pick up" ,

then start again but at a reduced rate

[peapod]

our local radio humberside says , "when the head of tom plants start to flop and leaves start to curl its time to lay off the feeding until they pick up" ,

then start again but at a reduced rate

Ive found this to be a watering problem, in fact today was the best (or worst!) example. Ive been out all day and didnt water this morning. Once I watered this tea time they picked up within half an hour