This is an important consideration when looking into tomato companion planting. If you are short on space in your vegetable garden, pruning tomato plants will help to keep them under control, creating more space for other plants. In addition, removing leaves allows better air flow around the plant, so reducing the chance of diseases developing when leaves remain wet, and also allows more sunlight to reach the ripening tomatoes. 'You may have fewer fruit on a pruned plant, but they will be bigger,' explains Amy Enfield. Pruning – or pinching out side shoots – should result in the tomato plants producing larger fruit and earlier in the season. Pruning tomato plants helps them to put their energy into producing fruits rather than producing more foliage. 'When I first started growing tomatoes, I largely left them to their own devices, occasionally tying them to their supporting canes, not realizing that the cordon varieties need pinching out in order to thrive,' says keen grower and Period Living editor Melanie Griffiths. As the plant grows, prune out any crossing, crowded, damaged, or diseased stems and foliage to keep the plant. This will redirect the plant’s energy from flower formation to developing strong roots. Indeterminate tomato plants do benefit from being pruned for a number of reasons. When you first plant a determinate tomato, you should prune off any flower sets that form before the plant is 18-24 inches (45.5 to 61 cm.) tall. (Image credit: Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash) Do tomato plants need to be pruned?
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