Tomato plant question

That plant looks too young to support/grow tomatoes.

I pinch off the flowers when the plant is young. Right now, you need to focus on green growth. Feed with nitrogen heavy fertilizer. First number. Miracle grow green box

Once the plant is established and healthy, feed with a fertilizer that is heavy in Phosphorus. (Second number) Miracle grow purple box for flowers.

quote:

---

I pinch off the flowers when the plant is young. Right now, you need to focus on green growth. Feed with nitrogen heavy fertilizer. First number. Miracle grow green box

---

When do I know it is ready for fruit? I have only put down osmocote and water.

quote:

---

When do I know it is ready for fruit? I have only put down osmocote and water.

---

It's hard to say. You want a nice thick middle stalk. The plant will also let you know. those flowers are yellowing and falling off, because the plant isn't ready.

Also, if you didn't bury the plant when you planted it, build up the dirt around the base of the plant. tomatoes can grow advantageous roots out of any part of the plant.

quote:

---

What is causing my flowers to dry up like this?

---

Blossom drop could be from a number of factors. To little or too much nitrogen. Nutrient deficiency. The flowers may not have been pollinated, so the plant is aborting them. High temps and humidity. Not enough sun. Or the plant is stressed.

The miracle grow bloom booster that has already been mentioned can be used and should help if it’s nutrient deficiency. Sometimes if it’s too humid or rainy the pollen can be bound up and cannot attach to the stigma. High nighttime temps like we’ve been having can play a factor. Once nighttime temps get into the mid 70’s and daytime temps in the 90’s, tomato plants will have a hard time setting fruit (unless it’s a heat tolerant variety).

Feed them a bloom booster fert like already mentioned. Looks like the forecast is calling for a few cooler and dryer nights later this week. Hopefully that’ll help some fruit set. You could also help them with pollination with an electric toothbrush. Google dat.

quote:

---

You could also help them with pollination with an electric toothbrush.

---

That is crazy. I wonder if my daughter would get pissed if I use her toothbrush.

quote:

---

What she don’t know won’t hurt her.

I started using a 4-26-26 fertilizer on my tomatoes. After just a couple of days after feeding they are loaded with flowers. Once they start blooming, find something higher in P and K, lower on the N. High N while they’re fruiting can cause blossom end rot.

---

I've always just sprayed calcium on them once every week or 2, is that not enough? I do my initial fertilizer when planting, MG stuff for vegetable plants and after that, just calcium

quote:

---

The biggest thing is to back off on the Nitrogen, which you are doing. If it works, no reason to change.

BER is a caused by calcium deficiency, but normally it’s not because there isn’t enough calcium in the soil. Nitrogen causes rapid growth which can stretch the cell walls thin. Calcium can’t get taken up fast enough. You get BER.

Also, inconsistent watering can have a similar effect. Usually those two things are the cause and not insufficient calcium in the soil.

---

Thanks for sharing your info and knowledge here, I wasn't sure how all that worked, good to know. Very much makes sense

quote:

---

Wait until fall.

---

well shite.