I find it all very confusing, so I'm waiting to see what you get back. I understand planting deeper when potting up to get more root system, but I've read both strip them and leave them.

~ first sucker above vs. first sucker below ~ actually like so many things in tomato growing it is optional and it makes little difference.

Depends in part on variety, in part where the first sucker develops, how the plants were grown can affect first sucker location, how you are supporting the plants, how many branches you want to prune to (1-2-3-4), how much pruning you want to do vs. none at all, etc., etc.

Removing all the leaf branches and suckers below the first fruit cluster 'supposedly' speeds up ripening of that fruit. Can't say that I have found that to be true IME. But it also removes any branches that might come in soil contact or get splashed with soil and THAT is of benefit.

So, best way is to try it both ways with your plants and see which you think works better. Either way you'll get tomatoes. ;)

Dave

I would lean to the higher. As Dave said, higher means less likely to contact soil or be splashed and that does matter!

6 inches on the plant may not matter much in terms of fruit development, but those same 6 inches could mean a lot for disease transmission!

I'll just relate a few observations and let you make a choice. First, the suckers just below any flower cluster are always the fastest growing. Second, if you try to clip or otherwise secure the tomato stem it is best to provide that support just above the cluster to help secure the weight of developing fruit. It's also best to support the sucker within a moderate distance above the relatively weak junction with the stem. I've found that the sucker below the fruit cluster would tend to often conflict with the normal fruit development and harvest ease under those circumstances.

If you are planning to sucker with a goal of 2 stems you should aim to sucker to 1 stem and sure enough you'll come by your plants one day and you'll have 2-3 suckers on many plants that are too large to justify removing them. A month later you may have 2-3 suckers on the 2-3 previously developed lateral branches (suckers) and now you are wondering where they all came from.

One other point. My first tomatoes are almost worth their weight in gold. If your situation is similar, even if just to serve your palate, then you wouldn't want to hinder the fruit development of the first few flower clusters for the sake of an extra plant branch. Johnnys doesn't see it that way and thousands of others think that any form of suckering is plant abuse. Draw your own conclusions.