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weedsgrower

Tomatoes have fallen

weedsgrower
9 years ago

Hello
I thought I supported my tomatoes well enough with a 2m stick stuck 30cm into the ground. The tomatoes grew to about 2m tall and some of them have just fallen down. toppled. Any tips on how to lift them back into place without breaking them?
I need to lift them because they have fallen onto some other plants.

Comments (7)

  • hudson___wy
    9 years ago

    Your plants look awesome! What variety do you plant in the Netherlands? I think I would pound several 1/2" x 4' rebar in the ground by the main stems and lift them carefully up and tie the main stems to the rebar - some help would probably prevent the stems from breaking - then tie the smaller stems to rebar after you have secured the main stems. The plants appear to large and foliage too thick to use any cages at this point. What ever you end up doing - let us know how it turns out. Good luck !

  • weedsgrower
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks!
    Wouldn't pounding stakes into the root damage the plant? There are already many little green tomatoes.
    They are of the moneymaker variety and it's my first time doing this. They overgrew the 'greenhouse' i built for them. I put a rope to hold them up until I got an answer.

  • labradors_gw
    9 years ago

    Can you tie some strings to the fence? If so, you could at least tie the closest tomatoes to the fence.

    Linda

  • missingtheobvious
    9 years ago

    Since you already have the stakes in place, you might consider using a tomato support method called "Florida weave" with future growth (once you have the current vines tied to the stakes).

    Here's an article which shows many tomato support methods. Their "Post and Twine Method" is what many here refer to as "Florida weave."
    http://www.mastergardeners.org/picks/tomato_staking.html

  • weedsgrower
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thank you!
    Tying some to the fence is a great idea! So that sorts out the 4 at the back.
    the plants are really bushy and whenever I try to move them in any way, I break something :(

    The florida-weaving sounds great and easy enough to do. I doubt I'll be able to find a stake long and sturdy enough to support the weight of these plants, but I could attach the twine to the ex-greenhouse shell The problem is that the stakes I placed just toppled with the plants. Some of the stakes even broke (and I don't really have enough money to buy more).

    For future reference: Don't put 12 tomato plants in a tiny (1.5 square meter) spot (who knew they would grow like this?!).

  • seysonn
    9 years ago

    For future reference: Don't put 12 tomato plants in a tiny (1.5 square meter) spot (who knew they would grow like this?!)

    %%%%%%%%%%%%

    Yeah, right. If you do, you have to keep them trimmed/pruned.
    I do very tight planting myself but in 1.5 meter square I would plant 6. Max 8 smaller ones. Even then, I keep my plants pruned. Here is a picture of one.

    One main doubled. Then each of them doubled. Now there are 4 branches growing upright ; no side branches/suckers are allowed to grow. This one is the one with maximum branches, Four, NO More.

    I realize that there are those who do not prune. That is their choice and style. But in small space gardening it will be a tough task.
    .

    This post was edited by seysonn on Sat, Jul 5, 14 at 2:48

  • weedsgrower
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Nice plant. I'll definitely prune them next time. I did look it up earlier and came to the conclusion that it was not necessary (which suited me, naturally). Then they grew and grew and grew: I put up a greenhouse and within a month they went from 30cm dying plants to 2m dying plants.
    Upon your recommendation, last week, I hacked away some of the smaller suckers, but it's heartbreaking to do anymore. I copied your frame-style supports because it fit into the existing structure without having to put stakes through the roots. I also did a bit of florida-weave around the central ones and some fence-tying on the far ones. Much effort put into rescuing these 12 falling plants; and now I've left them in the hands of my housemates for a month. I'll let you know how the tomatoes turn out, if any do come out.