If you have young tomato plants, cutting them back may seem counterintuitive, but it can lead to more fruit in the long run. Tiffany Selvey, Onions Australia’s Garden Editor and in-house Master Gardener, suggests pruning some varieties into a two-leader system to make the plant easier to trellis and promote better airflow for a healthier plant. Make sure you are pruning indeterminate tomato varieties, as determinate types are bushes and will not benefit from this method.
To prune your tomatoes for two leaders, locate the first flower cluster on the main stem and keep it, then find the first sucker below the flower cluster to be the second leader. Remove any suckers forming below that point or on your two leaders. Maintaining this double-leader system throughout the season is crucial for the best results in tomato production, as it helps the plant focus more on fruit production.
Pruning tips for your two-leader tomato plant
Pruning tomato plants is essential to promote fruit production over foliage growth. Support systems like trellises are important for indeterminate tomatoes that can grow up to 20 feet long in a season. Regular pruning and removing suckers can prevent the plants from becoming too big or heavy for the support system. Trimming lower leaves is also important for airflow and ensuring the plant puts energy into fruit production.
Indeterminate tomato varieties will continue to grow until the weather changes, but topping the plants about six weeks before the first frost date can help divert energy into ripening existing fruit. Pinch back the growing leader on each vine to signal the plant to focus on maturing the fruit.
