Indeterminate Tomato Plant Spacing with a Trellis

sbauer 5/30/2013, 6:30 pm

I've been reading online about indeterminate tomato spacing and some suggest one plant every two feet or so, while others (like Mel's book) say you can get away with doing one per square foot. Is there a verdict on what works best if you're using a trellis? I'm trying to maximize my crop without hurting it. I just don't know what to do. Should I just stick with the additional spacing or try to squeeze an additional plant or two in there?

ArkansasSFGardener 5/30/2013, 6:36 pm

I would follow the book and put one in each sf.. Just have to stay on top of the plant and prune it, and it will do just fine.

Roseinarosecity 5/30/2013, 6:49 pm

Last year I planted 4 plants at the rear of my 4x4 box and 1/3 through the season decided it was too much because I could not tell which vine was which. I was trying to do one-stem pruning but it simply grew too fast and one particular tomato at the corner just didn't grow well so I yanked it out. Having 3 tomato plants was still a lot of work and difficult to watch for bugs. This year I placed two trellises in a V-shape pattern to face the sun and planted in the middle of the 4x4 box 2 tomato plants per trellis. I also planted basil around the tomato plants. There's better air circulation, I can prune to a one stem much easier, and I can circle around the bed to check all sides of the both trellises to check for bugs much easier. Spraying water to knock out aphids is so much easier. It looks like it's working out for me this year.

**camprn** 5/30/2013, 7:30 pm

With my indeterminate tomatoes I have planted them every square and every other square. I found that I had healthier plants with the every other square planting. It increased airflow between the plants which helps to keep disease at bay, but it is also easier to manage the plants with more room. Yields were better with every other foot spacing.
FYI, there are numerous back threads on how to go about pruning tomato plants.

boffer 5/30/2013, 8:29 pm

Gardner, know thyself!

Tom plants will do fine in 1 sf IF you are absolutely ruthless when you prune, and prune on a very frequent basis.

If that doesn't sound appealing to you, then 1 per 2sq is more easily managed.

(you could do a little of both Wink

)

JustMe 6/22/2013, 10:26 pm

I have planted every other square with tomatoes alternating with something else. Last year, cucumbers were placed between the tomatoes. It was a rough year with heat and drought, so nothing really grew well.

This year, the tomatoes have peas in between them. So far, so good. I haven't pruned, but once the peas are done, those squares will be empty, so it will end up as an every other planting.

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Indeterminate Tomato Plant Spacing with a Trellis

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Re: Indeterminate Tomato Plant Spacing with a Trellis


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