Kitchen Garden Forum

I understand trimming of vine tomatoes but what do you do if anything to bush tomatoes?

Seems mine have gone mad.

Mine are no where near as bushy as yours but generally I just start cutting leaves off so any fruit under them has sunlight to ripen. I start doing this rather gingerly but by end of season so many leaves are coming off in order to reserve energy for the plant to focus on the fruit they end up pretty bald.

I'm growing my bush tomatoes in inverted pop bottles hung up by wire , I'm trying it as an experiment I've already found my main mistake ,bringing the tomatoes out of the bottom were the water runs down the stem before dripping off causing the stem to turn black and the plant to die ,I've got six left out of around ten I started with, the other thing is I need bigger bottles as there is not enough soil on the roots next year I will use four litre milk bottles I will only cut the centre of the bottom out to feed the plant in then fill with compost also I will cut a hole in the side of the bottle about forty millimeter up from the bottom to bring the tomato out this will alleviate the problem with the stem turning black as the water can drain out of what was the top

Thanks for you comments I'll nip a few leaves off.

I'm also trimming the lower leaves, it's hard to see what's what as they are quite a jumble! They are in hanging baskets.

My bush tomatoes (Salt Spring Sunrise) has gone absolutely beserk in the greenhouse this year. It's overtaken my usual favourite (Gardeners Delight). I've trimmed off quite a few lower leaves but there are so many that I have to walk sideways once inside the greenhouse.

Mine are much bushier than last year too. Can hardly see the forming tomatoes which are xo poetess hidden by leaves. I remember the plants being much more "open" last year. The peculiarities of the weather perhaps ?