Gus wrote:
"songbird" wrote in message
...
Gus wrote:
I have 8 plants and 7 all have had a decent number of tomatoes, but
one
plant has not had any. It is the plant the has grown the best and
biggest and looks the healthiest. It's actually huge-- over 6 feet
tall, and filled out well. Has had lots of flowers, but not one
tomato.
It's in the same spot as I had one last year that produced many
tomatoes. I'm confused why this one plant is not growing any
tomatoes,
and it is the biggest and healthiest of the lot.

there are many possible reasons, but if the
plant is not in some way isolated from pollinators
or otherwise protected from the wind or the rain
then i would guess that it is a mutation that
affects self-pollination.

you could try to take pollen off another plant
and to hand pollinate a flower and see if that
works (using a small paint brush).

this year for us our cherry tomatoes are fairly
barren, the beefsteaks are doing fine. usually
we have more cherry tomatoes than we can eat.


songbird


Just checked and still no tomatoes on that one plant. I can't find my
little paintbrush but have a new 1.5 inch; I guess that will work if
careful?

Probably not.

The hand pollination is a long shot. Tomatoes are usually self-pollinating.
While bird's idea is not impossible it is far from likely.

By 'small' I would picture a brush of 3mm (1/8th in) not 1.5in. You have to
get the tip into the flower and on to the anther, the little spike in the
middle.



Another half eaten tomato from the plant next to it. I've come to the
conclusion the only way to deal with the squirrels here is just plant
so many tomato plants it can't eat them all.

Or perhaps yopu will produce a boom in their numbers.

They are very
territorial so I think it's just the one squirrel, maybe it's mate
too. Earlier this year, I harvested about a dozen tomatoes after it
started in on eating the green ones. A second crop is forming now
and should be ready for picking in a week or two.

Have you tried netting them? Bird net is cheap.

--
David

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A better world requires a daily struggle
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