I would not, in general, and would concentrate on getting the plants growing as well.

I read a scholarly article which said that we should try to balance tomatoes between reproductive growth and vegetative. This differs a bit from the garden advice you sometimes hear - to get them to grow big first, then put them into "reproductive mode."

Pictures might help. What is your feeding schedule?

Update: Found my link

steering your tomatoes toward profit - University of Arizona

This post was edited by johns.coastal.patio on Tue, May 27, 14 at 10:19

Are they determinate or indeterminate varieties?

Josh

I could also say that taking green tomatoes off is fine ... if you eat them ;-)

They are all determinate varieties.

Here is a picture of one of them. On the other 2 the tomatoes are a tad larger.

Thanks!

They look good for their size.

You didn't say how you feed them. Remember, 5-1-1 is a neutral medium, and NEEDS fertigation

Sorry, I missed your question. I fertilize weekly with:
2 Tbsp Tomatotone
1 tsp/gal of water of Foliage pro

Well, determinate tomatoes produce one crop, ripen, and then they're done. I'm not sure how well it works to remove the green fruit....hopefully other determinate growers will chime in.

The question is: will removing the first fruits from a determinate prolong the vegetative cycle and allow for a full crop to develop when the plant is of greater size.

Josh

I would not remove those tomatoes. Your plant is well into its reproductive stage and you should just encourage it to do its thing. It is possible that it might have grown larger if you had removed the blossoms before they were fertilized, but we don't know how large this plant would have become in ideal circumstances. It might have been very compact. In any case, determinate tomato plants produce one crop of a "determinate" amount. So discarding tomatoes now might just cut your final harvest.

Edit: Doh, I am assuming these are older plants. If they are just in their new pots for a few weeks, everything is probably fine, and they are busy rooting in.

---- for older plants ----

That is kind of a mystery, given the 2 Tbsp Tomatotone. I see that it is right in line with their recommendations for potted plants: "Apply 1.5 teaspoons per 4" of pot diameter (1.5 tablespoon per 12 inch pot diameter)."

It might be about the variety, but less than 1 foot is small.

MiracleGro says that you can use 1/4 tsp per gallon "every time you water." Maybe I'd try that, to see if some extra nitrogen would kick them into new growth.

(Or figure out the right rate to use Tomato-tone every time you water.)

or foliar feeding.

This post was edited by johns.coastal.patio on Wed, May 28, 14 at 11:43

I bought the plants at a nursery 4 weeks ago when they were about half the size and a couple of them had tomatoes that were marble sized. I moved them into the large pots a few days before i took the picture.

So I will keep the fertigation going and not pluck them till they ripen. Ive grown determinate varieties before and never seen it set fruit this large this soon. Ah well.

Thanks for your replies!

Tomato Tone may be an adequate fertilizer in soil. In sterile potting mix, in a container...I think its a waste of time and money. I have heard that it was once an excellent product some years ago, before they changed the formulation.

"Tomato Tone may be an adequate fertilizer in soil. In sterile potting mix, in a container...I think its a waste of time "

I would disagree, as they product contains the bacteria to break it down. My biggest complaint about 5-1-1 is it is a dead media, I would never use a dead media. Response to organics is so great I would never not use them. The mix can easily be made alive with the addition of some compost. Results will be extremely better. And small amounts do not really make it a mud, or slow draining. I find my pots drain quite well with compost in the proper proportions. Never more than 20-25%

To each his own Drew but growing nutritional hogs like tomatoes in a container and relying or orgainics leaves lots of opportunity for disappointment to my way of thinking. And those microherds can be pretty finicky, here today, gone tomorrow.....

5-1-1 is 85% organic components and typically has micro-organisms throughout within a few weeks - even when the mix is fertilized exclusively with synthetics. In a larger container, organics work very well....such as Fish Emulsion. However, as Linda mentioned, those microherds go through boom and bust cycles if the containers become too hot and dry between waterings.

Josh

My Brother actually wrote a good book on growing organically in containers. A different crop but same principals. Although he lives in the Pacific North West so he does not deal with my heat. He is partially disabled and grows very successfully in 4 gallon pots. So yes, certainly possible! I just decided, for me, it was too much extra effort and $$$. I'm pretty careful about what I spray, but I have decided synthetics work best for me.

Whats in 5-1-1 anyways, cant remember, is it bark, peat and perlite?

I have to lean towards Linda's points. Unless I'm dissolving the Tomato Tone in water first, it kind of defeats the purpose. I want my container tomatoes to feed immediately, so I use a liquid or water soluble fertilizer when I water. I do use some CRF at the beginning of the season as a precaution, but I don't depend on it. To me an organic fertilizer in a container is more like a CRF.

mdgirl, I'm sure you could up the Foliage Pro dose but that might get expensive. The suggestion of MiracleGro is a good one. If you want to see something amazing, go over to the 'Ville and check out the lady that grows huge plants in small containers with the help of a little calcium nitrate snack :-) The thread is near the top in the 'Growing in Containers' forum, and is called "Just showing off." I tried to link you directly, but this site would let me.

If hydroponics is a 1 and permaculture is a 10, I guess I am a 7.

That means I use compost in large outdoor containers AND mild chemical fertilizers.

(I don't see the point of demanding that compost users not use liquid fertilizer. It is braces and suspenders.)