In "Steve Peek"
wrote:


"George" wrote in message
...
I've read that "... about a month before frost, cut back the growing
tips of [indeterminate?] tomatoes ...", so as not to waste the
plants' energy on fruits that won't have time to mature. We have
Cherokee Purples, and it's getting close to that time.

But, simply put, I'm not clear on where to cut. The tip of every
stem/stalk/vine? What about flowers? What about leaves - are all
leaves an asset at the end of the season, or just those on
fruit-bearing stems?

Any insight/experience would be appreciated. Thanks.

G-

I just can't imagine cutting back a tomato.

I -think he's talking about a situation where you have some tomatoes
which will probably be ripe before the first frost and a number of
tomatoes and blossoms that don't have any chance, and the suggestion is
to cut off the ones that you know won't make it to force the plant to
put its resources into the ones you expect to survive.

This suggestion would appear to apply only to cases where you have no
use for tomatoes that aren't completely ripe, although without knowing
what [indeterminate?] means, I can't be sure.

The night before frost is predicted I pick everything. The ones that
will ripen sit on a shelf where they can be watched. The others go
into pickles, relish or just fried. This time of year my plants start
dying from the bottom up, so, if you must cut something just cut the
blossoms, leave the leaves and growing tips to sustain the plant.
Just my $.02 worth,
Steve

--
Bert Hyman St. Paul, MN