Should these be thinned out?

[Mom2PBJ]

Hi all. I'm a newbie here and I am trying container gardening. Last Spring (2015) I did I did my first container with a cherry tomato. I think I got too excited when I spotted the first blooms and then the first tomatoes. But that was last Spring. We were staying in our RV at the time and have since moved on so I no longer have it.

This year, the first (or maybe second) weekend in April I tried something different - growing from tomato slices. I used two slices and it didn't take long to have sprouts, just under two weeks. My question is this - do I need to thin the herd out? There are a lot of them close together and my cousin asked me if I had done it. I did pull about five from each side but I really have no idea what I'm doing here.

I have some pictures so you can see what I have and hopefully I can get some advice.

Thanks bunches.

[Gardeneer]

If you started on April 1st, then they must be big plants by now. You should've tried to separate theme after 2-3 weeks (say April 20th ) or plus/minus a week, depending on how close they were.

Now we don't where they are now (in pots ? in ground ??)
If you really really want more plants still you can separate some. Otherwise reducing them is a piece of cake: just cut them off above the roots.
If you post a few pictures, it can be helpful in helping you.

Gardeneer

[Labradors2]

Hi Terri,

Yes, you need to thin them out. How big are they now?

If you cannot easily separate them, pick the best looking one and cut the stems of the others right down to the ground so that there is only one plant in the pot. (If you have the room for more plants, you can root the cut stems in water to make more plants).

Good luck!
Linda

Ha ha! Gardeneer was typing at the same time as me.....

[Mom2PBJ]

Thanks for the reply. I did try to post pictures but they didn't appear. I think there was a message that the moderator had to approve or something like that. They really aren't very tall at all...not like I thought they would be by now. I'll try to do the pictures again and see if they show this time.

[Gardeneer]

Originally Posted by Mom2PBJ

Thanks for the reply. I did try to post pictures but they didn't appear. I think there was a message that the moderator had to approve or something like that. They really aren't very tall at all...not like I thought they would be by now. I'll try to do the pictures again and see if they show this time.

Yes, I remember that shortly after becoming member/user here I could not post pictures right away.
Try it again, in a few days.

Gardeneer

Wow ! What happened ?. After I posted above and came back, there were your pictures. That is good

[Mom2PBJ]

Originally Posted by Labradors2

Hi Terri,

Yes, you need to thin them out. How big are they now?

If you cannot easily separate them, pick the best looking one and cut the stems of the others right down to the ground so that there is only one plant in the pot. (If you have the room for more plants, you can root the cut stems in water to make more plants).

Good luck!
Linda

Ha ha! Gardeneer was typing at the same time as me.....

So just one plant per pot? There is one that is taller than the rest. I'll try to leave just that one. Hopefully I won't screw this up.

I don't even know what kind of tomatoes these are. I had gotten the ones that come four on a vine from the grocery store and used those slices. Next time I will be more aware of what I plant.

[Mom2PBJ]

Originally Posted by Mom2PBJ

So just one plant per pot? There is one that is taller than the rest. I'll try to leave just that one. Hopefully I won't screw this up.

I don't even know what kind of tomatoes these are. I had gotten the ones that come four on a vine from the grocery store and used those slices. Next time I will be more aware of what I plant.

So I thinned all but the tallest one. I felt so bad...I half expected them to scream like the plants did in the Harry Potter movie.

[Jonnyhat]

cool thing bout tomatoes is that even after you cut them you can replant them

[Bodhi Peace]

well, you are starting to learn the thing all gardeners learn eventually
it's your one plant against the world
the world of hungry bugs and opportunistic plants

[Mom2PBJ]

Originally Posted by Jonnyhat

cool thing bout tomatoes is that even after you cut them you can replant them

I did replant a couple of them. I only had two smaller containers so I used those. We shall see...

[Jonnyhat]

keep them misted and under light, whenever I am cloning I keep them under 24 hour light, warm and wet with high humidity