Cutting Down a Tomato Plant -Will it Grow Back? (Garden Experiment)

Have you ever had a tomato growing too far out of control? Or maybe it's looking very sickly due to mite damage. Would it be worth cutting it down and trying to get it to grow back? What if a wind storm snapped your tomato branches off? Should you just compost the plant and cut your losses?

This Summer I decided to test this out on my 2 determinate tomatoes, grown in a 30-gallon SIP self-watering tote. They were getting super tall and shading out my other plants. The lower leaves were drying out from mite damage. Meanwhile, I couldn't give the tomatoes away fast enough!

So I took a break from my tomato harvest and cut the plants down, pretty low. Watch the video to see if they grew back before the Fall frost set in! Also, I found a way to sustain a tomato branch in case it should snap off for some reason.

#Tomato #ContainerGarden #Horticulture

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[gotgoword]

After seeing this video, i went back out to my compost and retrieved the cut down tomato plants and put them back in their pots. Thanks sir!

[allenedvideo]

I love the fact that you actually do a video with the actual end results. I can't tell you how many videos I've watched when someone starts an experiment or comparison and they never finish it. So the viewer never knows what happened!
Thanks for being so thorough and thoughtful
Love your t shirts. I'm ordering a couple soon

Thanks Al

[Site]

When my tomato plant died I had 3 completely green tomatoes left. I broke the branch and planted it into the ground and they all turned red. Plants are amazing.

[brendaayala]

I woke up to 100+ degree weather in AZ this week and the leaves to my beautiful tomato plant completely dried up. I'm new to gardening and cried like a loser since it was my first grow. I was ready to say goodbye to it, then I came across this video. THANK YOU!! Hope it's not too late for my lil guy.

[JebGardener]

I did this on purpose this year and not for the reasons you mentioned. Here is southern California we have a very long growing season and my cherry tomato grew right off the top of the trellis. I cut right above a spot that had already re-suckered. I was worried if I cut below there the plant wouldn't put out new growth. The plant had enough time to grow to top and produce fruit again. Thanks for the video. Very informative.

[sg]

Oh my goodness. I just did this without knowing if I should. I'm a novice gardener and this is a GREAT video! Thank you for taking the time to make it and share. Happy Gardening!

[TooLittleInfo]

This is exactly what I needed to know! I live in the tropics and tomatoes can grow pretty much indefinitely here, so it's interesting to know that I could possibly keep the plant going as long as it's healthy

[parrotsandmore]

Yes! I have broken a few tomato branches with and without fruit! The one without fruit but with flowers I stuck in the dirt outside, it rooted itself and continued to make fruit. The one with tomatoes, I stuck in a milk jug with water and a tiny few pebbles of fertilizer. The tomatoes continued growing and it rooted in the water. So anything is possible with tomatoes!

[denisebrady]

Wow you are the first person to actually explain the Indeterminate & determinate theory.
I, after 18mths of growing now understand that the Indeterminate tomatoes have a indeterminate amount of life- sorry just couldn't get my head around it until NOW- Thank You so much- Great video Cheers Denise from Brisbane Australia

[mrunknown]

Thank you for making this video. I had to strip everything off one of mine because of how the leaves were all turning. Glad to know they grow back

[bowler]

Thank you for this, I was given some tomato plants by a neighbor and it was 102 degree heat when they were moved...I thought I had lost them, but followed your instructions and they were saved

[rorich]

Great video!! 1st year container grower here and I couldn't stress more about tinkering n trying things out in your garden. Only way to learn. Keep up the good info.

[lindamaclean]

I am in the process of cutting down my tomato plants that were in containers. Thank you for sharing your video, I hope it works .

[xljimmy]

I've been sticking my prunings of indeterminate tomatoes in the ground. Water real good. The seem to stress and wilt for a few days but about week later they come back and I have a new plant. It seems to work even with fruiting trimming. Thanks for video!

[you-tubejunkie]

Thumbs up for your video.
Straight to the point, no stupid elongated introduction.

[markcal]

Thanks for taking the time to do this analysis, it was helpful.

[pete]

Great experiment. I helps show the tomato plant's abilities, and how much it can take.

[GasNBullets]

This is what I call the DEER effect. Deer will eat a plant down to its bigger stalks... Then as if by design... The plant flourishes and starts pushing new dense growth. We have seen it in all kinds of plants.

[sparkyjones]

I'm doing exactly this with determinate tomatoes that flowered and stressed to early due to weather conditions and low yielded. The three plants I have produced 4 tomatoes total and started dying off as determinates do. I've done what you did and they are coming back and look beautiful again. Just really great to find your video and get the confirmation I needed to know this is going to work out in the long run and it's just a set back and that I don't have to start over from scratch.

By the way I'm doing Homestead Tomatoes for their heat tolerance because I'm zone 10. Just didn't know exactly what I was getting into with determinates as I'd always done indeterminate before this year and by July they are cooked and dead so I thought I'd try something different that might hold up to the heat.

Anywho. Thank you for the video and the time it took to record this whole process. You get a thumbs up from me!

[tthappyrock]

Good to know this! I had a couple indeterminate tomato plants snap. I cut the tops off and decided to plant them anyway. They look good so far! Also learned that the snapped off parts can be planted and develop roots--two plants from one, bonus!