Moneymaker tomatoes - how tall?

[Jon B]

Hi there,

Hoping someone can offer a bit of expert advice - I'm currently growing some moneymaker tomatoes in pots inside, and they're doing very nicely. So much so, in fact, that I fear they may rapidly outgrow the space available for them, and shortly take over the whole flat. I know that the usual advice is to pinch out the growing tip after the flowers have developed, to stop the plants growing, but my problem is that they're already about 1 metre tall and flowers have only just started appearing at the very top of the plants.

What I need to know is - if I pinch out the tips before flowers have formed then will flowers eventually appear on the lower shoots, or will the plants just remain as attractive but fruitless bushes? I have considered stopping the plants at the height they are now, but allowing one or two of the side shoots that I've been diligently removing to develop in the hope that they might flower if I've stopped the plant growing upwards - would that work?

Or am I just going to have to accept that they need to grow to gigantic-beanstalk like proportions before producing enough flowers, and allow them to coil up the wall and along the ceiling?

Advice appreciated - thanks!

[Adam Moran]

I'm no expert but i'm also growing moneymakers.

Mine are about the same height as yours and dont seem to be getting any taller.

I've been pinching out the shoots that appear from the stem.

At the moment i have 2 sets of flowers but i'm hoping for more!

I would think they will not grow any taller but as i say, im no expert.

[Livebait]

Here's what i found out about the variety.

"Extremely nice European selection for Fresh Market Sales and Home Garden Bliss! Early, indeterminate, round slightly ribbed fruit. The standard in European open market varieties. Very refined and most likely the most popular Open Pollinated tomato by the University research departments due to all this attributes. 69 days"

My advice would be to look into growing a determinate variety for your container tomatoes and leave the indeterminate varietys for the ground!

[malcolmx]

money maker are a good old variety and i have grown them for about 40 years allow 4 trusses to develop and then pinch out tops remove all side shoots and feed with tomorite as soon as fist flowers set to form fruit pollinate with a brush if in an insect free environment water at base of pot or in ground with plain water water from top of pot with feed

[SmileySue]

Malcolm, I often see you talk about pollinating with a brush - I haven't

How is this done?! And is it necessary? I do leave the greenhouse open all day and have seen a few bees and things flying in there..

[Jon B]

Hi,

thanks for the tips. I'm actually growing 2 sets of plants at the moment - one lot at home and the others in the office at work, and looking at them, I seem to have created a tortoise and hare situation with the faster growing ones (at home) becoming ridiculously tall and only just beginning to flower, and the slower growing ones (at work) just reaching the tops of their canes and flowering all over the place.

The tallest one is about 1.10 metres tall but is now beginning to form flowers, so I'm hoping it will begin to slow down a bit; I guess I'll just leave them alone to get on with it.

As for pollination, I'm not sure about this either - there aren't many insects buzzing around the office but I've grown cherry tomatoes there very successfully for the last couple of years. Do the plants require pollination before flowers will form, and will they self-pollinate?