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You grew tomato plants with great effort and with a lot of heart and soul - and then they just don't bloom. Apart from the fact that it takes a lot of patience for tomatoes to flower anyway, their lack of bloom could be due to the wrong location or wrong care. The only measures that help in the short term are to change the conditions. The causes must therefore be tackled consistently so that the tomatoes may still bloom.
Tomatoes don't bloom
Solanum lycopersicum, the botanical name of the tomato, can sometimes be a real diva - a very bitchy one, mind you. This is reflected in their flowering behavior, among other things. It is not possible to say exactly when it should actually produce flowers. Rather, it depends on a whole range of factors that can influence the flowering time and later also the flowering period. This includes, for example, the weather, the location or the time at which the seeds were sown and transported outdoors. If you are waiting for your tomato plants to flower, you should definitely bring a lot of patience with you. There is not always a problem when it takes a little longer. In general it can be said: If there is still no flowering in mid-June, then something is wrong.
tip: If you want to grow tomatoes, you should be very careful from the start that the site conditions and care are right. This is the only way to clarify whether there really is a problem if there is no flowering.
causes
As already mentioned, in most cases a lack of flowering has to do with something wrong with the young tomato plants. Typical defects are:
- wrong location
- watered too much or too little
- poured over the leaves from above
- too much or too little fertilized
- Plants thinned too little
In some cases, there may also be a virus or bacterial infection. Finally, animal pests can also be the cause of the problem. Solanum lycopersicum very often has to contend with the following pests:
- spider mites
- aphids
- caterpillars
- thrips
- tomato miner moth
- white flies
In the event of a virus or bacterial infestation, the plants can usually no longer be saved and you should dispose of them immediately in the household waste. Animal pests, on the other hand, can be controlled. To do this, however, it is necessary to discover them as early as possible.
tip: Tomato plants should be regularly checked for pests from a very early stage. To do this, it is imperative to take a close look at the plant and, above all, to check the undersides of the leaves.
immediate measures
Since tomatoes are relatively flexible in their flowering period, it is possible to get a plant to flower with short-term measures. To do this, the existing deficiencies simply have to be remedied as quickly as possible. The flowering and thus also the harvest are then postponed, but this is usually not a problem. The most important immediate measures that should be taken in the short term are:
change nutrient supply
Too much or too little nutrients in the soil are the most common reasons why tomatoes don't flower. Consequently, you have to check the fertilization once. There is something of a rule of thumb: Plants need less nutrients on loamy, heavy soil than on soil that is sandy, well-drained and relatively dry. So if flowering does not occur on a sandy substrate, simply give an additional dose of fertilizer. On clay soil, the only thing that helps is to wait until the nutrient potential has been used up.
tip: Nettle or comfrey manure are the ideal fertilizers to quickly stimulate flowering in sandy soils when there is a lack of nutrients.
change water supply
Tomatoes need a lot of water in order to be able to develop the flowers first and then the fruit later. Therefore, you should definitely check the watering and change it if necessary. The following applies: The soil around the root area should always be moist, but never soaking wet. It is also very important that you never water from above, but only directly in the area of the roots. The leaves of the plant must not get wet - neither from watering nor from rain. It may therefore be necessary to provide the plants with a roof if they are unfavorably positioned outdoors.
change location
If the tomatoes don't bloom, the wrong location can also be the trigger. Light is an essential factor for the formation of the flowers. Without enough light, flowering will inevitably fail. It is therefore advisable to check the light supply and change it if possible. Often the location does not even have to be changed. The shoots that form between the stem and leaf base often cause the plant to become very bushy. Large parts are then inevitably in the dark or are not supplied with sufficient light. Therefore, in such a case, the intermediate shoots should be removed immediately and thoroughly. However, it is even better to thin out the plant from time to time.
Start pest control
If you have discovered pests on the leaves or stems of the tomato plant, you must of course fight them immediately. A very proven and also very effective means is spraying with nettle manure, which is relatively easy to set up. However, you should spray very cautiously, because the leaves hardly tolerate it when they get really wet. Alternatively, biological pest control agents can also be used. However, chemicals should be avoided, after all, the tomato plants should not only flower, but also produce fruit that can be eaten without hesitation.
