I blinded the main stem late this summer on a Rutgers Indeterminate and it stopped it in its tracks. Everything else I beheaded (all indeterminates) in my limited tomato growing experience, has increased sucker growth so I could pick my own new main stem.

Had I not had the main stem break on the Rutgers Indet., it would have continued to climb up the string I trained it to. It had sucker shoots, but none really came out once she lost her head.

I only offer that data point because Rutgers is usually a determinate, and it didn't grow exactly as the indets. do in my limited experience.

Although I've grown celebrity in the past, I always just caged the plants not wanting to try different methods. However, since I'm greowing tomatoes in high tunnels for the last 8 years I've tried training a few of the Florida varieties and although most were almost impossible to keep trained to a stringline support, FL7514 was one determinate variety that I still grow yearly and it can be prunned somewhat like an INDT variety.

The important thing to remember when suckering the FL7514 plants is to stay away from the tip of the plant. You need to allow an upper lateral branch to become the growing tip and if you remove them all by mistake you may be left with a dwarf plant. Otherwise, I'm still harvesting a good crop from these plants.

I'm not saying that Celebrity can be managed this way. It may react like the other Florida Det varieties, all of which I like, and spread with lateral branch growth at a unmanagable level for single support training.

I wouldn't prune a semi-determinate variety. But then, like many others, I don't agree with pruning in general - regardless of variety. ;)

Pruning tomatoes is a purely optional practice and has equally established schools of thought on both sides of the question. So, each grower can experiment and do what works best for them in their particular growing situation.

See link below to many of the previous discussions on pruning.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Previous discussions on pruning or not to prune

I like to prune the very bottom set(s) of leaves on my determinates once they get a nice top canopy going. They're unproductive and I've been under the impression that it helps lessen the chance of soil-borne "splash" infections.

I have no idea if the plant responds negatively to the shock, but it's worked for me in the past. It's been so long since i haven't done it that I can't recall anything to compare production/time to, really.

Im with you I also prune the lower branches and also the non productive stems if the the bush gets too bushy. I think it allows better air circulation.