Rebel Alliance won't grow

ChefBert · November 13, 2017

I have two Rebel Alliance plants that don't seem to grow. All my other plants are are nice and strong, putting out lots of flowers and plenty of fruits forming. but these guys just are not doing their job. Any ideas? Its the little guy on the right

KarenO · November 13, 2017

Half size pot = half size plant?
KarenO

ChefBert · November 13, 2017

Its a 5 gal pot and and I have other plants that are in 5 gal containers that are going like gangbusters. They are all being fed MasterBlend twice a week

ddsack · November 13, 2017

My Rebel Alliance was not a very tall plant, maybe 4 1/2 - 5 ft by the end of the season. It seemed to concentrate on putting it's energy into those multiflora branches, instead of putting on the long vine growth like a lot of cherry tomatoes. So you may be ok on the shorter size. No flowers on it yet?

ChefBert · November 13, 2017

Yeah, I know that it doesn't grow very tall, but why no flowers? Everything else is doing great.

ddsack · November 13, 2017

If you're using the same soil mix as your other larger plants, I can't tell you why it appears to be much smaller. Mine were no fussier as to conditions, but were grown in ground. I remember that a plant that I gave to someone took a longer time to set fruit than mine did. The stem that has to support the multi fruit production ultimately ends up looking more like a thick branch than a normal sized cluster stem. I think the plant may have slowed down other upward growth as it prepared to send out the massive blossom branch, so maybe that is what is happening with yours.
As long as your plant looks healthy otherwise, I would just be patient and give it more time.

Maybe Marsha knows more, since she has grown it longer than the rest of us and also grows in the south like you.

Patihum · November 14, 2017

I'd cut the fertilizer to once a week at most!

ChefBert · November 14, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patihum

I'd cut the fertilizer to once a week at most!

I still don’t know how much to feed at one time .... a quart a gal two gal?

ginger2778 · November 14, 2017

Bert, Did you get them at the swap? I have one growing from the same seeds and plants started at the same time,it's doing great so far. Tell us about what it's potted in and what you mixed into the potting mix, what fertilizer you are using, what you put down the hole before planting or if it was just mixed throughout. Let us help you problem solve.

ginger2778 · November 14, 2017

Here's my RA as of 5 minutes ago ( its 7:45 am). There are 2 plants in the Earthbox, it's the left one. The other is Rebel Yell. The cage around the Earthbox is about 48 inches tall.

ginger2778 · November 14, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by ddsack

My Rebel Alliance was not a very tall plant, maybe 4 1/2 - 5 ft by the end of the season. It seemed to concentrate on putting it's energy into those multiflora branches, instead of putting on the long vine growth like a lot of cherry tomatoes. So you may be ok on the shorter size. No flowers on it yet?

I still love these photos. You do a great job, Dee.

ChefBert · November 14, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by ginger2778

Here's my RA as of 5 minutes ago ( its 7:45 am). There are 2 plants in the Earthbox, it's the left one. The other is Rebel Yell. The cage around the Earthbox is about 48 inches tall.

Marsha, your plants are gorgeous! No, these are seeds I got from you during your trade.

I have 3 parts ProMix HP, 2 parts pine bark fines, 1 part perlite, some added lime and epsom salts. I added in Osmocote and I put in the hole a few pinches of mycorrhizal.

I started out feeding with TTF but switched to MasterBlend. I was feeding every 5 to 7 days. All my plants are getting treated the same. My Lithium Sunset and GGWT are killing it!

This is the sister plant. It doesn't look right

Lasairfion · November 14, 2017

Are there any Empire tomatoes nearby? The Rebel Alliance always struggles when in the presence of large amounts of Empire...

**carolyn137** · November 14, 2017

It looks like maybe there was a stray seed or an unintended cross in the seeds that Bert got from Marsha as shown in that last picture.It happens, and has happened for me in the past as well.

My experience with Rebel Alliance here in Easter NYS,roughly zone 5 was as follows.I grew it not this past summer ,which was a wipe out,but the summer before.

My seeds were from Russ directly,who asked that I not share any seeds or plants with anyone else, and of course I agreed with that.

It was grown outside in a 10 gal pot that had a mixture of Promix and composted sterile cow manure,and was fertilized according to the way I always did so.

In that pot was one of those 3 tiered supports as well.

A very vigorous plant that cascaded over the top of the support and lots of fruits but I was surprised that they were brown,kind of like oblate mini beefsteaks. But they tasted great IMO.

Russ wanted to breed another multiflora and he told me what kind,and I was about to send him some seeds when it became apparent that my then current to do list was focused almost exclusively on getting the seeds out to the folks who do seed production for my seed offers.

So sometime soon I have to get back to him about his other idea for a multiflora and send him some seeds.

Carolyn, who loves multifloras and would like to see someone breed a GWRipe cherry one, not a dwarf.

ChefBert · November 14, 2017

So should I just pull the plants? Or just let nature take its course, and whatever pops up, pops up

PS Wasn't there some question on germination in that batch of seeds Marsha?

November 13, 2017	#4
ddsack Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3 Posts: 3,231	My Rebel Alliance was not a very tall plant, maybe 4 1/2 - 5 ft by the end of the season. It seemed to concentrate on putting it's energy into those multiflora branches, instead of putting on the long vine growth like a lot of cherry tomatoes. So you may be ok on the shorter size. No flowers on it yet? __________________ Dee **************

November 13, 2017	#6
ddsack Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3 Posts: 3,231	If you're using the same soil mix as your other larger plants, I can't tell you why it appears to be much smaller. Mine were no fussier as to conditions, but were grown in ground. I remember that a plant that I gave to someone took a longer time to set fruit than mine did. The stem that has to support the multi fruit production ultimately ends up looking more like a thick branch than a normal sized cluster stem. I think the plant may have slowed down other upward growth as it prepared to send out the massive blossom branch, so maybe that is what is happening with yours. As long as your plant looks healthy otherwise, I would just be patient and give it more time. Maybe Marsha knows more, since she has grown it longer than the rest of us and also grows in the south like you. __________________ Dee **************

November 14, 2017	#13
Lasairfion Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: UK Posts: 82	Are there any Empire tomatoes nearby? The Rebel Alliance always struggles when in the presence of large amounts of Empire... Last edited by Lasairfion; November 14, 2017 at 12:14 PM.

November 14, 2017	#14
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	It looks like maybe there was a stray seed or an unintended cross in the seeds that Bert got from Marsha as shown in that last picture.It happens, and has happened for me in the past as well. My experience with Rebel Alliance here in Easter NYS,roughly zone 5 was as follows.I grew it not this past summer ,which was a wipe out,but the summer before. My seeds were from Russ directly,who asked that I not share any seeds or plants with anyone else, and of course I agreed with that. It was grown outside in a 10 gal pot that had a mixture of Promix and composted sterile cow manure,and was fertilized according to the way I always did so. In that pot was one of those 3 tiered supports as well. A very vigorous plant that cascaded over the top of the support and lots of fruits but I was surprised that they were brown,kind of like oblate mini beefsteaks. But they tasted great IMO. Russ wanted to breed another multiflora and he told me what kind,and I was about to send him some seeds when it became apparent that my then current to do list was focused almost exclusively on getting the seeds out to the folks who do seed production for my seed offers. So sometime soon I have to get back to him about his other idea for a multiflora and send him some seeds. Carolyn, who loves multifloras and would like to see someone breed a GWRipe cherry one, not a dwarf. __________________ Carolyn

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November 13, 2017	#2
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,932	Half size pot = half size plant? KarenO

November 13, 2017	#3
ChefBert Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2014 Location: Boca Raton, FL Posts: 52	Its a 5 gal pot and and I have other plants that are in 5 gal containers that are going like gangbusters. They are all being fed MasterBlend twice a week

November 14, 2017	#7
Patihum Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Southeast Kansas Posts: 878	I'd cut the fertilizer to once a week at most!

November 14, 2017	#9
ginger2778 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Plantation, Florida zone 10 Posts: 9,283	Bert, Did you get them at the swap? I have one growing from the same seeds and plants started at the same time,it's doing great so far. Tell us about what it's potted in and what you mixed into the potting mix, what fertilizer you are using, what you put down the hole before planting or if it was just mixed throughout. Let us help you problem solve.