Pin-head size tomatoes

[Crosbie]

I've got about 9 trusses on a tomato plant...and each tomato is the size of a very small pin-head. But they've been like this for over a week.

How long do tomatoes stay pin-head size for?

Crosbie

[Tomatoking]

If they have not set in the right conditions they might not swell a lot more. But I am sure some of them will, give it another week.

Mr TK

[Crosbie]

Thanks Tomato King...

I think I might be out with the magnifying glass...they're really tiny...

Aren't they supposed to swell every day tho'?

Cheers
Crosbie

[Tomatoking]

Sometimes if your plant is really leggy, the fruits do develop more slowly and the plant gets more vigorous. A stong potash feed might help in that situation, i,e, a tomato feed.

[zazen999]

Is this on the first truss?

[Crosbie]

Are you talking to me or to Tomato King?

[Tomatoking]

I think zaz meant you crosbie, and if you have a bush/ determinate type of plant, then they all tend to swell at the same time and ripen together over a shorter period.

If it is a tall Indeterminate plant them with nine trusses then some should be a lot bigger unless like I said they have not set.

[Crosbie]

Oh right - thanks...

I'm pretty sure it's indeterminate - there's one solitary fruit the size of a gobstopper on a lower truss - and all the rest are miniscule pinheads, lots of them...no movement.

Crosbie

[Tomatoking]

Ok, If you have one large one, the others probably have not set.

[King Carrot]

I thought the whole flower drops off at the knuckle if they fail to set?

[Tomatoking]

I thought the whole flower drops off at the knuckle if they fail to set?

Not always, sometimes they stay on and even turn red. I think it is that these are not 100% set so stay tiny. I did read somewhere about the cell structure not being totally formed, but do not quote me on this, as I cannot remember what it actually said.

[Crosbie]

Ok, If you have one large one, the others probably have not set.

Thanks Tomato King...

When you say, "probably have not set", does that mean they never will...like is it a do or die sort of thing with tomatoes setting - or could they set gradually?

I'm not sure what set/setting means in fact.

Cheers
Crosbie

[Tomatoking]

Thanks Tomato King...

When you say, "probably have not set", does that mean they never will...like is it a do or die sort of thing with tomatoes setting - or could they set gradually?

I'm not sure what set/setting means in fact.

Cheers
Crosbie

Setting is when fetilisation occures inside the flower. if conditions are not right the flowers will not 'set' as I call it.
The conditions are light, heat, and the right nutrients. and this includes the time when the flowers are forming.


They will never set, if they didnt first time around.
There are ways to help friut set, buy tapping the truss at the right time, but usually most tomatoes will set ok if conditoins are right.

Early setting problems even occour for commercial growers if there has been poor winter light.

The other problem caused by unset fruit is that the plants tends to grow more leggy, as developing fruit on a plants helps keep it compact.

Without getting too technical, thats the basics.

Mr TK

[zazen999]

Are you talking to me or to Tomato King?

You, as it's you that has the problem.

I was asking to see if all 9 trusses had the problem, or just the first truss. As it has got to the stage of all 9 trusses having the problem, then they are just not getting pollinated...where are they? Have insects got access to them?

As you'd said they had been like this for a week, I thought that it might just be the first truss as it takes more than a week to grow 8 more trusses....

Do you mean 9 trusses, or 9 flowers that have dropped off on one truss?

If you'd said it was just the first truss and the rest were flowers, then I'd say just make sure that the plant is getting pollinated. As it is all 9 trusses, then I'd say you might need another plant. Was it grown from a seed from an F1 type tomato or did you buy the seeds/plant?

[Crosbie]

Thank you Tomato King, Zazen

Re: Zazen - All 9 trusses have flowers or pin-head sized tomatoes. There is one gob-stopper size tomato. Inflatable greenhouse, too hot at times, no insects really apart from one bee, a few small flies, ants on the floor. I bought the seeds - Maribel F1

Here you go:

Like I said pin-head size...