Growing semi-determinate tomatoes

Blue Onion

This year, for the first time, I am growing a variety of tomato called Hamson (DX-52-12).  It was developed by a local state university to grow well in Utah (short season, high altitude, arid summer, low humidity, blazing sun, etc), and produced by an instate seed company.  I've always had good success with cherry type tomatoes, but never cutting varieties.. so I gave these a try this year.  

It says it's a semi-determinate variety.  The internet explains that 'semi-determinate' means an indeterminate with bushing habits.  

Mine are stocky and healthy, and I put them each in a tomato cage when planting outside in a raised bed two weeks ago.  

What I can't figure out though.. do I pinch out the suckers?  Or let them grow?  What do you do with your semi-determinate tomatoes?

BobTheGardener

You can do either, but if you want to grow them as a cordon, don't be too hasty in removing every single sideshoot (sucker) you see as the growing tip on these types somtimes terminates in a flower truss, so if you have removed all of the sideshoots below, that truss will be the last one you will get from the plant as there will be no new vegetative growing points left on the plant.

In general, if you let it grow as a bush, you'll probably get a larger crop but they may all ripen more-or-less at once.  If grown as a cordon, probably less fruit overall, but produced over a longer period.

Blue Onion

Thanks, good to know about their ability for self-termination of growing tips.  I have a ton of cherry tomatoes I am growing up a wire trellis type thing as cordon.. so these I will leave as bush style.  I plan to use them as salsa, sauce, and for slicing on sandwiches.  A bunch at once will be fine.  

BobTheGardener

No problem - I've been caught out like that with Marmande, another semi-determinate.  Make sure you provide plenty of support when growing as a bush or they can tear themselves apart with the weight of the fruit!

Blue Onion

I've got them in some heavy duty wire tomato cages (not those flimsy kind), but maybe I'll add a cane next to the plant to tie them on for extra support.  We have some high winds that tear through occasion with summer storms, and one year I came back from holiday to discover all my bush tomatoes blown over - cage and all - and growing in their new direction!  We were away for three weeks, so they just made do with their new direction and I had to leave them like that for the rest of the season as it was too late by then to upright them.  I now have much stronger cages.  ☺️