Is there any sort of condition that.......

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Posted by Tomatovator1 none (My Page) on

Thu, May 23, 13 at 21:02

would cause a tomato plant to not form blossoms? I have 16 plants in the ground and all have one or two blossom clusters formed except one plant. It is shorter and stouter than the others but it has zero blossoms on it. It does have a lot of suckers growing. The plants have all been planted outside for about 3 weeks and are about 18" tall. It is early enough to replace the one blossom-less plant with one of my spares but I don't know if I should. Ever hear about a plant that never produced blossoms?

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Posted by Kevinitis 5 (My Page) on
Thu, May 23, 13 at 23:40

Give it time.

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Posted by Ohiofem 6a Ohio (My Page) on
Fri, May 24, 13 at 9:50

I agree that you should give it time. You don't say where you live or what the temperatures are, or whether all the tomatoes are the same kind. Under some conditions, some cultivars may be slower to blossom than others. I had an Omar's Lebanese tomato last year that looked like it might have been a Siamese twin. It was thicker than any other plant, and covered with suckers. It didn't produce its first flower until mid July and only produced one tomato all summer. I think it was a mutant. So it is possible to have a "dud."

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Posted by Tomatovator1 none (My Page) on
Fri, May 24, 13 at 22:24

I'm in southwest PA near Pittsburgh. My plant in question is a Magnum Beefsteak. I bought the seeds a few years ago from Heirloom Seeds. Your description as "Siamese twin" is a perfect fit. I will replace it with a spare I have of the same variety. Thanks.

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Posted by seysonn 8 WA (My Page) on
Sat, May 25, 13 at 4:04

Have you been having lots of rain, cold snaps, cool nights? If yes then the answer is right there.

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Posted by Tomatovator1 none (My Page) on
Sat, May 25, 13 at 4:56

The weird thing about this one plant is that it looks completely different than the 2 plants of the same variety that are planted next to it. We are getting a cold night right now but for the last several weeks the night temps have been fine and rain fall has been light.

RE: Is there any sort of condition that.......

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Posted by carolyn137 z4/5 NY (My Page) on
Sat, May 25, 13 at 9:08

In general perhaps the main condition that will prevent plants from putting out blossomsand setting fruits is too much N whether it's added N, or growing in soil that has too much N in it. N will keep the plants in the vegetative state of forming roots and stems and foliage and prevent it from going into the sexual cycle of blossoms, etc.

But in your case described to us here, that's not the case b/c you just posted that of three plants of the same variety the one in question looks nothing like the other two.

Looks to me like it might be a sterile mutant which has mutated either female or male sexual structures and I've seen it before, and no sense keeping it if you have something else to put there since it is early in the season yet.

Hope that helps,

Carolyn

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Posted by Ohiofem 6a Ohio (My Page) on
Sat, May 25, 13 at 10:49

When I said I thought my plant was a Siamese twin or mutant, I was just speculating. I am delighted that Carolyn has confirmed that something like that can happen. I wish I'd pulled my "mutant" early in the season when I first noticed how odd it was. I didn't trust my own instincts and wasted valuable space in my tiny garden.

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Posted by Tomatovator1 none (My Page) on
Sun, May 26, 13 at 3:57

Thanks for the help Ohio and Carolyn. Enjoy the holiday and the summer.....

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