Number of trusses?

Sorry JJB, I meant I have to cut back the leaves by half.

Scarlet, have you compared a single stem with a double or a triple stem plants for size/total weight?

I do wonder if multistem tomatoes would be like apples or grapes in that if you want a good size yield you have to diminish the crop.

I often do double stemmed cordons in the GH, they will usually grow similar amount of trusses as the main one, though I start it as low down as possible.

I don't stop my plants either.

If the fruit yield is similar, why do you intentionally go for double stems?

Similar on each stem - so double the fruit per plant? Each stem will still make the same number of trusses and if I'm really daring and prepared to feed well and have 3 stems I get 3 times the fruit from the same plant without using up a huge amount of space - much better use of space than growing 3 plants.

Understood.  Sounds like a great plan.  Note to self: feed the dual stemmed plants well.

Some photos - I know I 'll be hoping for 2 or 3 stems per plant so early on I'll look out for a small armpit, those stay. When I plant in they go really deep so that both stems are under ground - so I can't really tell which one was the main stem.

   

As I plant deep the first truss will generally be just half a dozen so inches off the ground - helps with height restrictions in the GH, but also all the stems underground will push out more roots.

   

Each stem has grown the first truss at similar heights.

The 2nd truss on both stems are again in a similar position.

   

So on this plant at the moment each stem has already got 5 trusses each - so 10 trusses on the plant have already set.

Do you suffer with blight at all Scarlet?

No, but I'm pretty ruthless with getting rid of lower leaves. I try to water into milk bottles to keep the place dry. But I'm up there most mornings as I love pottering in the GH so any leave that are dying etc will get binned quickly.

I like that idea Scarlet. Having planted your 2 or 3 stemmed toms, what distance to you plant the next one? And how many per 8'?
And how deep is deep?

Scarlet, do you grow tomatoes in the same border every year? Currently we grow out greenhouse tomatoes in pots, with the borders being pebbles over weed membrane instead of soil, but I would like to grow in the ground next year for a few reasons. Just slightly concerned about the potential of disease.

Scarlet, do you grow tomatoes in the same border every year? Currently we grow out greenhouse tomatoes in pots, with the borders being pebbles over weed membrane instead of soil, but I would like to grow in the ground next year for a few reasons. Just slightly concerned about the potential of disease.

I've been growing toms in both GH border soil for decades.  Every couple or three years I dig out, say, 8" or more soil and replace with sieved veg patch soil.  Only one year had disease problem but that was a fungus due to poor ventilation not the soil.  Mind you it's only an 8x6 GH so it's not that much work to change the soil, anything bigger could be a chore.

I dig out my borders like JJB, water into pots and take all leaves off below the first truss. I do get blight but it’s generally late in the year, October normally when everything is dying back anyway.

I must be lucky never had blight in the GH only in the outside patch late in the season, not too badly as I and no one around grows spuds.

JJB - I try not to cram them too close. So about 18 inches apart in a double staggered row.
The back ones are trained on strings so they fan out a bit?
The front ones I can't reach anywhere to tie them in so I train those on a cane.

I plant very deep - will try to find a photo. I start most of my tomatoes early March or last few day of feb. so they are quite big plants by the time I plant them in the borders end of May/beginning June.

TMT - I was worried about that when I got my GHs. My big GH I've had 10 years and I've planted tomatoes in the borders every year. The pots are pretty big so I also chuck a shovel of earth out and add some compost and chicken manure pellets along with each pot. I add BFB a few weeks before planting ( after I've weeded!)Then I often mulch the top with compost from my bins if I've got it.