Does anyone limit the number of tomatoes per truss?
 

Not on cherries or smaller verities, but on larger slicers.

Situation:
I have a Genuwine F1 (brandywine/cosotluto) which I have pruned to three branches. On one branch, the first truss has 6 tomatoes with 4 more that look like they are developing. The truss above it has 4 tomatoes set. The truss above that is still in bloom.

I would like to keep my tomatoes up around 12 oz or so. Can the plant really develop 6-10 12oz fruits on a single truss while developing more fruit on subsequent trusses? Or should I limit the number of fruit per truss to keep the size up?

I typically grow brandywine, cherokee purple, german striped, and german queen. I will be trying new big dwarf and stump of the world this fall.

I've had a few trusses break and the large green tomatoes fell to the ground. If bloom size is an indicator of fruit size, I will have some green tomatoes falling this year

[QUOTE=DonDuck;734946]I've had a few trusses break and the large green tomatoes fell to the ground. If bloom size is an indicator of fruit size, I will have some green tomatoes falling this year[/QUOTE]

Now that sounds like an ad for "Fried Green Tomatoes" if I've ever heard one. :))

Heck no, I'll take whatever the plant gives.

[QUOTE=PaulF;734961]Heck no, I'll take whatever the plant gives.[/QUOTE]

And I'll agree with PaulF. Take whatever the plant gives you. That plant has enough intelligence to point its leaves to the sun, and abort fruits when the soil it's in is too dry. It's a part of nature most of us have no clue as to what's going on. So, I yield to the intelligence of the plants.

Many tomato growers end up killing plants and destroying the plant's ability to produce more fruits. I think that's wrong and not for me. Let the plants tell us what's going on and we can learn from it.

[QUOTE=PaulF;734961]Heck no, I'll take whatever the plant gives.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=ContainerTed;734965]And I'll agree with PaulF. Take whatever the plant gives you. That plant has enough intelligence to point its leaves to the sun, and abort fruits when the soil it's in is too dry. It's a part of nature most of us have no clue as to what's going on. So, I yield to the intelligence of the plants.

Many tomato growers end up killing plants and destroying the plant's ability to produce more fruits. I think that's wrong and not for me. Let the plants tell us what's going on and we can learn from it.[/QUOTE]

We prune the vegetative growth of our plants to fit our environment instead of letting it go wild. Why would pruning the number fruit to fit what we want be so wrong?

I read where some limit the number of Big Beef to 3-4 per truss or they get lots of small tomatoes. That is kind of what I am asking.

I grow Big Beef every year. I have ten plants this year. I've never had one break a truss. My KBX and Limbaughes Potato top break trusses when they become over loaded. I don't prune my plants except to keep lower branches from touching the soil. My Big Beef plants always have a mixture of large and smaller tomatoes. I let them produce whatever they want to produce and use what they provide.

I have never done it. Some people are doing it and based on what I have read it might be sensible at some point - if the plant is producing too much flowers. (the same applies for an apple tree, where it is advisable to remove the early fruits..)
However, don't the fruits on the tomato plant grow humongous if only a few select are left? That might also pose a risk of overloading the branch.

It can help, yes, especially with OP varieties, mostly in overall production and to some degree with fruit size. Most of them will have some badly catfaced fruit anyway, so you shouldn't feel too bad for removing those.

Many older OP's tend to overproduce on the first trusses and the plant stops growing until the fruit is removed, how many times have we heard 'Oh, my cherokee purple produced lots in the beginning but then nothing'.
One must keep in balance the plant growth and fruit growth which will lead to consistent production through the season and to better overall yield.

I grow really big beef spanish tomatoes. I grow on one stalk. I cut out all the suckers. For those I use Missouring prunning for the better whirling little fruit on the vijan over it (five leafs compared to three in full prunning of sucker). At the inflorescence, I immediately cut off megablooms and when the small fruit develops I limit the number of fruits to three. This ensures further plant growth and also reduces the BER risk.
Vladimír

I have been doing some limited culling of fruit on OPs for years. Unless you have a way to support huge trusses of tomatoes to stop them pulling off the plants then some of them need fewer tomatoes than they sometimes produce on that first fruit cluster. There are some varieties that have super strong stems for the trusses that rarely break or peel off despite the weight they are supporting. It takes some experience to learn which ones can support large trusses and which can't. I have a Limbaugh's Legacy out there with nine little tomatoes on it and there is no way the stem will support that much when they start getting large so I will have to remove some. And I'm sure in the next few weeks I will find some others that need thinning. It is far better to thin some than to find your whole cluster of green fruit laying on the ground after it breaks from the plant.

Bill

I don't prune and I don't cull fruit trusses. If needed, I add support for the plant. Most of the time, I'll simply add extra stakes or even a T-pole. But adding this extra support is the easiest solution. Last season, I had to do this with German Johnson and Grandma Oliver's Chocolate. I also had to add support for Cheste when it had the "almost" 4 pounder which wrapped around the oak stake.

So, my message is this. Do whatever you wish in your garden and I hope your harvest is the best ever. I'm doing the same thing here. It's my garden and I want it my way. I may comment that I don't want to do things your way here at my garden, but don't ever think I am ever saying that your way in your garden is wrong. We all have methods that allow us to feel comfortable in our garden. But, discussing the differences sometimes makes us think and maybe there is something valid in the discussion to try in our garden. Or NOT!!!

Tale care and I hope everyone has the best harvest ever.

Old nylon pantyhose makes such cute little hammocks ... a great support system which is gentle to the fruits.

[QUOTE=ContainerTed;735035]I don't prune and I don't cull fruit trusses. If needed, I add support for the plant. Most of the time, I'll simply add extra stakes or even a T-pole. But adding this extra support is the easiest solution. Last season, I had to do this with German Johnson and Grandma Oliver's Chocolate. I also had to add support for Cheste when it had the "almost" 4 pounder which wrapped around the oak stake.

So, my message is this. Do whatever you wish in your garden and I hope your harvest is the best ever. I'm doing the same thing here. It's my garden and I want it my way. I may comment that I don't want to do things your way here at my garden, but don't ever think I am ever saying that your way in your garden is wrong. We all have methods that allow us to feel comfortable in our garden. But, discussing the differences sometimes makes us think and maybe there is something valid in the discussion to try in our garden. Or NOT!!!

Tale care and I hope everyone has the best harvest ever.[/QUOTE]

Ditto. I do what I do and 'bank' others suggestions and follow or not. What I do does not translate to
others climate/zones/disease. If trouble happens right out of the gate...as early as seed starting, it
helps to intervene. Or at least suggest options.