Tomato plants grow into tall, thin vines?

Question

Last two years I"ve tried to grow tomato plants.  They get good sun and I water often (every 1-2 days depending on weather).  Each year they grow to 6+ feet and it looks like a spindly jungle of thin plants with branches all over and a bunch of stakes to support the weak structure.  They make tomatoes but teeny little ones, investing energy in the plant maybe.  How do I keep the plants at the appropriate height, so they invests energy on thickening the stem and making nice tomatos?  Plants are currently about 2 ft tall and the first set of flowers are out.  Thanks!

? · Accepted Answer

Are you removing the suckers ?
These are are on the main stem and sit in between shoots 
that will hold the tomatoes 
These take all the goodness out of the plant and need pinching off 
If you do this and feed them once a week they should thrive

Anonymous · Answer

Tomatoes and pea are fine, but I'm having a hard time imagining cantaloupe doing very well. Cantaloupe roots will grow deeper and spread wider than I think you'd want in a box. If you're really sure you want to do this though you will need a box that is at least 24" deep for the cantaloupe. The vines can spread about twelve feet, when it's fully grown, so you'll need a strong "ladder" for it to climb. The "ladder" should stick out of the dirt or better yet, be attached to the sides and should be 6 feet tall. A box that is 24"tall x 48"wide x 48" would probably work for one cantaloupe plant if you wrap the vines a bit as it grows and put the plant in the center. Peas will be fine in a box if you give it something to climb on. I guess what I would do is make a box 12"High x 36"Long x 12"Wide with a lattice or posts 5 feet tall for 3-5 pea plants. Pea plants should be about 10" apart and 6" from each side. A box that is 18" high x 18"Wide x 5"Long would fit 3-4 tomato plants. I'd put them 12" apart and 9" from each side. Also, if you want to plant "toms", you may want to buy starter plants instead of planting seeds or you might not get any since they take so long to grow. It sure sounds like a lot of work. Be sure to put a hole in the bottom of each box so water can drain out and not rot the roots. I'd put a couple hole under the cantaloupe. Make sure also that wherever you put the boxes gets at least 8 hours of direct sunlight and water it every 2 days without rain. Water it in the early morning or after dust though or the sun can burn the leaves. Well good luck.

Organman · Answer

Well this is a really poor forum for this. If it were a radio call-in show I'd ask you how much sun you call "good sun" and what kind of soil you are growing in. It sounds like either not enough light or poor nitrogen absorption. Nitrogen is what builds plant structures. Fertilizer might help but sometimes dumping fertilizers on a plant (particularly chemical fertilizers) without doing soil testing can be a catastrophic mistake. Perhaps get a soil test kit, they aren't expensive, and get an accurate reading on how much DIRECT sunlight your plants get. Tomatoes need a bare minimum of six hours. I also do not know what kind of variety you are growing. Perhaps they are supposed to do that. Remember, the original tomato plant was a vine with small fruits from South America.

persinger · Answer

Tall Thin Plants

jean ann j · Answer

Tomatoes need sun, water, heat and air flow.  They can not be crowded because the air and wind need to blow them.  The movement makes them better plants.   Shaking, gently,  them help them.   The roots are long and need deep soil.  
The lower leaves need to be cut off.  They usually turn yellow anyway and get splattered with soil too.  The suckers need to come off too.   If there are too many leaves cut some off.

? · Answer

Are you growing it in a pot? You need a pot about the size of a 5 gallon pail or it will get root-bound and do what you describe.

Tomato plants grow into tall, thin vines?

6 Answers