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Healthy looking plants but no tomatoes

AJBAJB Posts: 49
in Fruit & veg
Last year I grew from seed a few bushy cherry tomato plants,they were in big pots in a small lean- to, green house, they looked really strong and healthy but sadly they never flowered. Can anyone advise what went wrong and should I buy new seeds for this year.
Thanks for reading.

Posts

  • AJBAJB Posts: 49
    No :( I was told you fed them after they'd flowered not before.
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    That's the usual way to feed AJB, so maybe you started them too late (it was tricky last year with that very late cold spell) or perhaps that variety just wasn't suited to your particular growing conditions.  I would give it another shot but suggest trying an F1 variety as these are usually stronger, more reliable croppers but seeds are a fair bit more expensive.  If you like cherry types I would highly recommend Sungold F1 (orange coloured) or Suncherry premium F1 (red).  My Sungold are always the first to flower and set fruit as well as having one of the longest cropping seasons of all the varieties I have ever tried.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    I buy almost all my seeds from this company.
    the tomato seeds are expensive, but as Bob says, they’re good.
    https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VEGETABLE-TOMATO-CHERRY-SUNGOLD-F1-10-FINEST-SEEDS/281564017293?epid=1337755056&hash=item418e85f28d:g:kDEAAOxy6MBSTqvN
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,774
    edited January 2019
    Maybe there was too much nitrogen in the soil or compost you put them in so all you got was green growth. They need high potash to promote flowers & fruit. 
    Oddly although they need a lot of water (especially in last years heat) letting them nearly dry out to stress them a bit can stimulate flowering & fruiting, you have to be a bit careful of course. I found this out for myself  one year when using a self watering system, that kept them constantly supplied. I was getting masses of top growth & little flower & the few fruits not ripening. I accidentally let the feeder tank run low (too busy at work didn't check it for a week). The plants all suddenly flowered & fruited like mad. I think the plants reacted thinking "if we are going to die we need to fruit & produce seed now !"
    AB Still learning

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    But don't let them dry out or water irregularly after the fruit has started to form, or you could get split fruit and/or blossom end rot.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    I also don't plant mine into their final pot/position until I can see the 1st flower truss forming.  As AB says, the root (and hence nutrient and water) restrictions imposed by growing in a small pot seem to help nudge them into flowering.  It's likely an evolutionary thing to set seed asap if plant chemical changes caused by root restrictions indicate that it might soon die.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • AJBAJB Posts: 49
    Thank you for all your advice
     I will try the sungold variety,
     I perhaps watered them too well and put in big pots before they were ready, will have another try.
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