Stunted plants

springerrr · July 7, 2019

Strange problem: my Better Boy plants seem stunted this year, but the cherry tomato plants seem to be growing normally. I have some pictures with a coke can for illustration. Please forgive me that they are not clearer. I am not sure why the pictures do not embed here, but what follows is a link to them:

https://imgur.com/a/oniwv2n

The first is the healthy cherry tomatoes. The second is the stunted plant.

Worth1 · July 7, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by springerrr

Strange problem: my Better Boy plants seem stunted this year, but the cherry tomato plants seem to be growing normally. I have some pictures with a coke can for illustration. Please forgive me that they are not clearer. I am not sure why the pictures do not embed here, but what follows is a link to them:

https://imgur.com/a/oniwv2n

The first is the healthy cherry tomatoes. The second is the stunted plant.

This is easy that tomato on the bottom stunted it.
Pull it off.
The plant was too small when that fruit was set.
No BS here just the facts.

AlittleSalt · July 7, 2019

I agree, It is the tomato drawing the energy. Pick it and the plant should grow. If it were my plant, I would water using some nitrogen like 15.5-0-0.

edweather · July 7, 2019

Yeah, looks a bit under fed. How much sun are they getting?

Solanum315 · July 8, 2019

Pee in old gallon milk jug, fill rest of jug with water and apply to stunted plant. Repeat process after one week and post results. I have a throwaway plot on the side of my house. My neighbor gave me some sickly seedlings about three weeks ago. The one on the right was the worst off by far to the point that I was unsure if it would survive. I used the aforementioned protocol with the attached results. Urine is nitrogen heavy but there appears to be no shortage of blossoms on that plant either...

GoDawgs · July 8, 2019

Quote:

Originally Posted by springerrr

I have some pictures with a coke can for illustration. Please forgive me that they are not clearer. I am not sure why the pictures do not embed here, but what follows is a link to them:

Are you clicking in the right place to copy the photo link? Please forgive me if you already know this and it's a different problem:

Hover your mouse pointer over the top right hand corner of your Imgur photo and the down arrow that appears.

Click on Get Share Links

Find BBCCode (Forums) and click on Copy.

Come back in here to your post, right click where you want the photo and right click Paste.

To make sure your photo appears, go to the bottom of your post and click "Preview Post" . Your post with imbedded photo should appear in that. If it's what you want, click "Submit Reply".

Hope that helps!

July 10, 2019

Yeah, I agree with Worth and AlittleSalt. You can probably let the fruit ripen indoors, anyway. Sometimes I'm tempted to take off the first fruits just so a more productive wave of them will come sooner.

A trick I've discovered is that if the stunted plant has experienced weather changes that cause leaves to curl, if you prune off the curled leaves, the plant recovers from being stunted. New leaves do tend to curl when you do it, though, but it still seems to help. It's possible that pruning generally would help, however, but it's hard to say.

Tormato · July 10, 2019

And, I agree with Shule, Worth and ALittleSalt.

I've very rarely had a large tomato form early, way down at the bottom of a small plant. But, being desperate to save seed of the variety, and with a bird in hand worth more than two on a bush, I let the large one grow, and the plant stayed stunted.

July 7, 2019	#1
springerrr Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: St. Louis, MO Posts: 4	Stunted plants Strange problem: my Better Boy plants seem stunted this year, but the cherry tomato plants seem to be growing normally. I have some pictures with a coke can for illustration. Please forgive me that they are not clearer. I am not sure why the pictures do not embed here, but what follows is a link to them: https://imgur.com/a/oniwv2n The first is the healthy cherry tomatoes. The second is the stunted plant. Last edited by springerrr; July 7, 2019 at 03:52 PM.

July 7, 2019	#4
edweather Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Southeast GA, USDA 9a, HZ9, Sunset Z28 Posts: 396	Yeah, looks a bit under fed. How much sun are they getting? __________________ You'll be surprised what you'll never have to do, if you put it off long enough.

July 10, 2019	#7
shule1 Guest Posts: n/a	Yeah, I agree with Worth and AlittleSalt. You can probably let the fruit ripen indoors, anyway. Sometimes I'm tempted to take off the first fruits just so a more productive wave of them will come sooner. A trick I've discovered is that if the stunted plant has experienced weather changes that cause leaves to curl, if you prune off the curled leaves, the plant recovers from being stunted. New leaves do tend to curl when you do it, though, but it still seems to help. It's possible that pruning generally would help, however, but it's hard to say. Last edited by shule1; July 10, 2019 at 07:20 AM.

July 7, 2019	#3
AlittleSalt BANNED FOR LIFE Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 13,333	I agree, It is the tomato drawing the energy. Pick it and the plant should grow. If it were my plant, I would water using some nitrogen like 15.5-0-0.

July 10, 2019	#8
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	And, I agree with Shule, Worth and ALittleSalt. I've very rarely had a large tomato form early, way down at the bottom of a small plant. But, being desperate to save seed of the variety, and with a bird in hand worth more than two on a bush, I let the large one grow, and the plant stayed stunted.