Best way to stake cherry tomatoes (Care for cherry tomato plant) – Growing cherry tomatoes
Grow cherry tomatoes at home. Last time, I planted the cherry tomato seedlings and put up temporary stakes. (Cherry tomato support.) About a month has passed since then. The cherry tomatoes have grown taller, so I will replace the stakes with thicker and longer ones. (Taking care of cherry tomato plants, support for cherry tomato.)
I planted the cherry tomato seedlings in late April.
https://www.vege-try.net/en/plant-cherry-tomato-2022-enStaking cherry tomato plant (Use 2 stakes) – Support for cherry tomato plants
I will use stakes that are 2cm (0.8 inches) in diameter and 210cm (7 feet) long to support the cherry tomato plants. I will prepare two stakes.
In outdoor growing, cherry tomatoes can grow up to about 180cm (6 feet) tall. To support these cherry tomato plants, you need thick and long stakes.
I will explain how to set up stakes for cherry tomato. (Best way to stake cherry tomatoes.)
Of the two cherry tomato stakes, the first one supports the main stem in the center of the cherry tomato plant, so place it next to the main stem.
The other stake supports the side shoot (cherry tomato sucker) just below the flower cluster. So, place this stake next to the side shoot. (This is the only side shoot we keep; all other side shoots are removed.)
Side shoots (suckers) on cherry tomatoes grow not only below the flower cluster but also from the base of all the leaves. However, the strongest and healthiest sucker is the one just below the flower cluster, so we will grow this one as the side stem.
If, by accident, a side shoot (sucker) breaks, it’s okay. Cherry tomatoes will produce many flower clusters and side shoots. If one breaks, just grow a new side shoot.
How to support stakes for cherry tomato plants? To set up the stakes, first, push the stakes into the ground by hands. It’s okay if the stake goes into the ground about 30cm (1 foot) deep. If the soil is too compact and the stake doesn’t go in easily, just push it in as far as it will go for now.
If the soil is too hard and the stake can’t go in 30cm (1 foot), use a hammer. Hammer the stake 10cm (4 inches) deeper from where it stops.
When driving in stakes, be careful not to go too deep. If you drive the stakes in too deep, they will be hard to remove when you clean up the cherry tomatoes.
After setting up the two stakes, tie the cherry tomato stem to the stakes with twine to support it. Right now, the stake and the stem are far apart, but once the stem grows a bit more, we will tie the stake and stem together with a twine.
Finally, pinch off the side shoots (suckers) of the cherry tomatoes. When using two stakes, keep only one side shoot as a side stem. Remove all other side shoots.
To pinch off side shoots (suckers) of cherry tomatoes, use your fingers to pinch and remove the base of the side shoot. Be careful not to let them grow too big, or it will be hard to tell which is the stem and which is the side shoot.
If you leave side shoots (suckers) on cherry tomatoes, the nutrients will be spread out, and the plant and fruit won’t develop well. To harvest tasty cherry tomatoes, it’s better to pinch off the side shoots. They will grow not only on the main stem but also on the side stem, so be sure to remove them regularly.
Following is the video for how-to. English subtitles are available.