Pruden's Purple ? Need advice please

jillian · June 18, 2017

I have one PP plant. At some point the main stem split into two....I don't know how I missed it but when I noticed I decided to leave it. I haven't let any suckers grow. As of now the two stems are above the 6ft. cage, both healthy with flowers. However, as of now I only have one tomato at bottom of plant. I know I need to do something but not sure what. Maybe I should cut one of the stems off? Ouch that will hurt.

Any advice much appreciated.

Labradors2 · June 18, 2017

If you can support them you could keep them both. You'll only be cutting off your future fruit if you prune one of the stems!

PP is delicious

Linda

ginger2778 · June 18, 2017

PP will get you some more fruits, have patience, she can be a laggard at first, but she'll make up for it. No more pruning please.

Gardeneer · June 18, 2017

Lack of fruit is not because of 2 stems. there must be oher reasons. I have an Esterina F2 with zillions of stems and they are all loaded. That was just an example.

On PP , I find it not very productive. My IS-PL is 5 times more productive . I won't grow PP again.

b54red · June 19, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gardeneer

Lack of fruit is not because of 2 stems. there must be oher reasons. I have an Esterina F2 with zillions of stems and they are all loaded. That was just an example.

On PP , I find it not very productive. My IS-PL is 5 times more productive . I won't grow PP again.

If I only grew tomatoes that produced like ISPL then it would be the only plant in my garden. I just planted a new bed this morning and included 2 PP and 2 ISPL since they are two of the best at setting in the heat. All the other varieties only got one spot and some are just experiments to see if they can do anything in the mid and late summer heat.

Bill

Gerardo · June 18, 2017

PP for me was LAGGARD of the year. got seeds from Fedco and have grown it 3 times now. Pruden's Purple is officially in the retired column.

ginger2778 · June 18, 2017

Mine produced it's head off this year. Maybe 25-30 fruit. Delicious.

Redbaron · June 18, 2017

PPP's are a late producer. If you have time to wait then they are great. But if you get diseases or early/late frosts, then they won't yield for you.

JosephineRose · August 8, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by Redbaron

PPP's are a late producer. If you have time to wait then they are great. But if you get diseases or early/late frosts, then they won't yield for you.

That certainly has been my experience. This is my first year growing it, and 97 days from transplant I am now getting massive fruit production on two stems. I had some pest trouble early, and I thought I would lose the plant because nothing was producing, and all of a sudden, I have multiple trusses of huge fruit approaching what must be 2 lbs each. This one alone has four enormous fruits that are just starting to blush.

Really looking forward to these.

b54red · August 8, 2017

I really think PP likes the heat. One of the plants I set out on June 19th has already produced a nice medium sized ripe fruit early last week even ahead of ISPL. The ISPL plant has more fruit but PP is second only to it in the number of fruits set so far on those plants set out past mid June. Nothing else has produced a ripe fruit but it won't be long for some of them. It and Limbaugh's Legacy and Frank's Large Red are the only pink beefsteak varieties that I can usually count on to produce in the mid and late summer heat down here. There are a lot of reds and blacks that do fine to great in the summer heat but finding a dependable pink is a trick. I actually set out a small bed of tomatoes this past weekend for fall production. I don't know if they will have time to produce much but I like trying and continuing to experiment with different varieties at different set out dates.

Bill

jtjmartin · June 18, 2017

My Pruden's Purple plants are producing really well. One is planted in a fairly low light area and I'm amazed at how much fruit it is producing. We'll see if that repeats next year.

Jillian, the tomato vines will eventually fold over the top of the cage and grow down. If I have space, I'll extend a horizontal pole to another support and train the vine along it. My pathways between raised beds are usually covered by tomato trellises!

Gerardo · June 18, 2017

what a great result Marsha. I sure wish mine did that, no worries, Elgin Pink will be a monster pinch hitter. here's to Blue purple orbs!!

Hope the hanging part produces well Jillian.

jillian · June 18, 2017

Thanks so much everyone! I will leave both stems, the plant is healthy so I will hold out. Would topping the stems help the plant to produce more fruit in the middle? I am not sure how much taller I want it to get, I am only 5'1. I usually let them go, but they become a bit unruly.

I have also been very impressed with Indian Stripe pl. It is 3 stems and producing like crazy.

Gardeneer · June 18, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by jillian

Thanks so much everyone! I will leave both stems, the plant is healthy so I will hold out. Would topping the stems help the plant to produce more fruit in the middle? I am not sure how much taller I want it to get, I am only 5'1. I usually let them go, but they become a bit unruly.

I have also been very impressed with Indian Stripe pl. It is 3 stems and producing like crazy.

You can let it drape .

In the middle of stem, if there some flower trusses or smaller fruit, that might work. Bur older part of the stem won't grow new flower trusses. It can only happen if side branches grow off of it and then flower/fruit.

b54red · June 19, 2017

I'm beginning to wonder if some of ya'll have the right plant. Pruden's Purple is always one of the most prolific plants in my garden. It is also one of the few pink beefsteaks that will set fruit in the hottest summer weather when almost nothing else will. My biggest problem with PP is that it is a relatively small vine with sparser foliage and yet frequently will set so many fruits that they will be too small. It is one of those plants that sometimes has to be culled in order to make decent sized fruit. It is also one of the earliest plants to produce ripe fruit out of all the varieties I have grown. I actually picked a ripe fruit off a PP either last year or the year before in less than 45 days after setting it out in May. The only plant the last few years that outproduces PP almost every time in the midsummer heat is ISPL. During the spring and early summer it is a good producer but when it gets a bit hotter it is a champ.

I will be setting out more PP plants this week for mid and late summer production along with ISPL and a few others that do well in the heat. I will also be grafting more of them for fall production but it is not the best plant for fall unless the fall is unusually hot which sometimes happens down here.

Bill

June 18, 2017	#1
jillian Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: North Carolina Posts: 880	Pruden's Purple ? Need advice please I have one PP plant. At some point the main stem split into two....I don't know how I missed it but when I noticed I decided to leave it. I haven't let any suckers grow. As of now the two stems are above the 6ft. cage, both healthy with flowers. However, as of now I only have one tomato at bottom of plant. I know I need to do something but not sure what. Maybe I should cut one of the stems off? Ouch that will hurt. Any advice much appreciated.

June 18, 2017	#4
Gardeneer Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: NC - zone 8a - heat zone 7 Posts: 4,920	Lack of fruit is not because of 2 stems. there must be oher reasons. I have an Esterina F2 with zillions of stems and they are all loaded. That was just an example. On PP , I find it not very productive. My IS-PL is 5 times more productive . I won't grow PP again. __________________ Gardeneer Happy Gardening !

June 18, 2017	#8
Redbaron Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 4,488	PPP's are a late producer. If you have time to wait then they are great. But if you get diseases or early/late frosts, then they won't yield for you. __________________ Scott AKA The Redbaron "Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system." Bill Mollison co-founder of permaculture

June 18, 2017	#12
Gerardo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: San Diego-Tijuana Posts: 2,598	what a great result Marsha. I sure wish mine did that, no worries, Elgin Pink will be a monster pinch hitter. here's to Blue purple orbs!! Hope the hanging part produces well Jillian. Last edited by Gerardo; June 18, 2017 at 09:37 PM.

June 18, 2017	#2
Labradors2 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Ontario Posts: 3,898	If you can support them you could keep them both. You'll only be cutting off your future fruit if you prune one of the stems! PP is delicious Linda

June 18, 2017	#3
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	PP will get you some more fruits, have patience, she can be a laggard at first, but she'll make up for it. No more pruning please.

August 8, 2017	#10
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	I really think PP likes the heat. One of the plants I set out on June 19th has already produced a nice medium sized ripe fruit early last week even ahead of ISPL. The ISPL plant has more fruit but PP is second only to it in the number of fruits set so far on those plants set out past mid June. Nothing else has produced a ripe fruit but it won't be long for some of them. It and Limbaugh's Legacy and Frank's Large Red are the only pink beefsteak varieties that I can usually count on to produce in the mid and late summer heat down here. There are a lot of reds and blacks that do fine to great in the summer heat but finding a dependable pink is a trick. I actually set out a small bed of tomatoes this past weekend for fall production. I don't know if they will have time to produce much but I like trying and continuing to experiment with different varieties at different set out dates. Bill

June 18, 2017	#11
jtjmartin Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2016 Location: Williamsburg VA Zone 7b Posts: 1,110	My Pruden's Purple plants are producing really well. One is planted in a fairly low light area and I'm amazed at how much fruit it is producing. We'll see if that repeats next year. Jillian, the tomato vines will eventually fold over the top of the cage and grow down. If I have space, I'll extend a horizontal pole to another support and train the vine along it. My pathways between raised beds are usually covered by tomato trellises!

June 19, 2017	#15
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	I'm beginning to wonder if some of ya'll have the right plant. Pruden's Purple is always one of the most prolific plants in my garden. It is also one of the few pink beefsteaks that will set fruit in the hottest summer weather when almost nothing else will. My biggest problem with PP is that it is a relatively small vine with sparser foliage and yet frequently will set so many fruits that they will be too small. It is one of those plants that sometimes has to be culled in order to make decent sized fruit. It is also one of the earliest plants to produce ripe fruit out of all the varieties I have grown. I actually picked a ripe fruit off a PP either last year or the year before in less than 45 days after setting it out in May. The only plant the last few years that outproduces PP almost every time in the midsummer heat is ISPL. During the spring and early summer it is a good producer but when it gets a bit hotter it is a champ. I will be setting out more PP plants this week for mid and late summer production along with ISPL and a few others that do well in the heat. I will also be grafting more of them for fall production but it is not the best plant for fall unless the fall is unusually hot which sometimes happens down here. Bill