The Best Time to Prune Tomato Plants During Hot Dry Spells

Reasons to Prune Tomato Plants

• Remove suckers (small offshoots close to the main stem) to avoid the introduction of diseases and pests. Put diseased leaves and branches in the garbage (not the compost) to prevent spreading disease. Remove the entire plant if evidence of disease is on over half of its leaves or fruit. Disease can easily spread between plants, causing a total crop loss. Avoid pruning when the plant is stressed. During hot dry spells, water the previous day and prune the next morning.

Tomatoes That Don't Need Pruning

• Not all tomatoes need pruning. The dwarf tomatoes (also called patio and midget) are compact and typically grow in hanging baskets. They produce small cherry-sized tomatoes and are usually in no need of pruning. The compact (also called determinate) variety grows to a certain size, produces most of its fruit all at once, then declines significantly. Compact tomatoes are not usually pruned. Caged tomatoes (even indeterminate varietals) need much less pruning than those that are staked.

Hygiene in the Garden

• Tomato plants are susceptible to a host of diseases. Sterilize pruners between plants to avoid spreading disease. Additionally, tobacco users can carry a virus called Tobacco Mosaic which can be transmitted from your hands or other infected plants. Ensure that smokers wash their hands before handling plants. Due to the many diseases that tomatoes are susceptible to, plant varieties with disease resistance (hybrids) to offset some of the problems tomato plants can face. Choose varieties that perform well in the microclimate of your garden.

Dangers of Overpruning

• Overpruning carries its own host of problems. Sun scald and leaf roll are common symptoms of overpruning. Fruits from an overpruned tomato may also become cracked. Irregular soil moisture can result in the removal of too many leaves from a growing plant. To avoid overpruning, many gardeners use wire cages to allow the tomato to grow in its natural manner while keeping fruits and leaves off of the ground. If a tomato is properly caged, then one pruning (if any) should be enough. The fewer wounds on the plant (from pruning) the more likely the plant will thrive until frost. Leaf roll, cracked fruit and sun scald can also be caused by dry spells. During dry spells, water as close to the base of the plant as possible. Watering foliage increases the likelihood of disease.