Moneymaker tomato plants very leggy

betterbargains4u

I have grown lots of moneymaker tomato plants from seed in one of those little plastic greenhouses (in my dining room) by the patio doors.
They are all absolutely huge in height..but are not getting bushy. I have staked them for support and am putting them outside for a few hours in the day when it is nice and warm.
How do I make them bush out and when can I plant them outdoors ? They are going to outgrow the greenhouse soon !!

mrbadexample

If you pinch out the growing tip then they'll stop growing upwards and should fill out a bit. I think. Best check with someone else though.

Lotus-eater

Tomato plants get too leggy when they don't have enough light, or even worse when they have too much heat and not enough light.
If they are inside they don't need to be in a greenhouse.
When they go outside they will grow normally, but depending on how they look, I'm not sure how they will grow out.
How many flower trusses do they have and how tall are they?

foxgloves

Yes, I agree this is probably due to not enough light. They perhaps need to be in a greenhouse outside or indoors just on a windowsill. I usually start all mine off on a windowsill (in a propagator just until they germinate) then leave for a week or so before moving to unheated greenhouse where they grow on until middle of May when I move them outside.

Lotus-eater

Beware that mine won't go into my unheated greenhouse until the middle of May, different areas need different times. Put them outside at your own risk.

midnightraven3

i wouldnt put them outside just yet either
but they are growing too quickly

take them out the greenhouse, but keep indoors
and put some more compost around them, thats what i have just had to do
same problem with mine
they seem fine now

evie451

how huge is huge? and whereabouts are you? I stopped growing moneymakers because they got so tall and took up so much room in the greenhouse! but i did miss that smell you get when you open the greenhouse door and i relented and am back growing a few tall varieties again.......keeping them cooler will slow them down a bit, i moved mine from the house into the unheated greenhouse when i went away on the 2nd April and they seem quite happy out there just not growing like a plant on steroids anymore!

tangojulie

To slow them down a bit you could repot them as deep as they will go in deeper pots. They will root from anywhere on the stem, so they will grow stronger for it, but they won't set fruit so early because they need to have their roots restricted in order to flower and fruit.