I thought that this would be interesting data to share. Two months ago, 8 straw bales were planted with seedlings for 16 indeterminate tomatoes, many of which our favorite eating varieties. Though all are indeterminate, there is distinct height variation between types.
The tomato seedlings went into straw bales that are 18 inches tall. The supporting rear stake, after hammering into the lawn, are 7 feet tall. On each plant the central stem is typically the tallest, and are being quickly joined by suckers that were allowed to develop. All growing stems are secured to the support stake using sisal twine. Following is plant height and a bit of explanatory text, along with observations on fruit set.
Egg Yolk - 6 feet tall, loaded with fruit - excellent set. I plan to not top this plant, or prune suckers (my custom with cherry tomatoes - they are not heavy so don't bend or break the stems as they bend over at the last tie point near the top of the stake)
Speckled Roman - 4 feet tall. I would tend to call this more of a semi-determinate variety, based on my observations. Fruit set is excellent.
Polish - 5.5 feet tall, excellent fruit set for a tomato of this potential size (one pound range) and considering the heat and humidity experienced thus far.
OTV Brandywine - 5.5 feet tall, poor lower fruit set but high hopes for upper blossoms.
Red Brandywine - 5 feet tall, excellent fruit set, just a stunning plant, lots of foliage cover to prevent sun scald.
Nepal - 4.5 feet tall, excellent fruit set, similarly excellent foliage cover.
Sun Gold - 6.5 feet tall, waving in the breeze, see decision to not prune cherries I described above with Egg Yolk. One simply can't have too many Sun Gold.
Cherokee Purple - 5 feet tall - excellent fruit set. One tomato with a touch of blossom end rot (the only one from all of the plants so far) that is coloring a bit prematurely.
Lillian's Yellow Heirloom - 4 feet tall, got off to a slower start and typically takes its time; will end up as a monster plant. Good fruit set so far.
Cherokee Chocolate - 5.5 feet, excellent fruit set
Cherokee Green - 5.5 feet, excellent fruit set
Ferris Wheel - 5.5 feet tall, poor lower fruit set, hopes for better with upper flowers. The weather is impacting this one, which is not surprising based on past experiences.
Brandywine - 5 feet tall, and delighted to note excellent fruit set.
Lucky Cross - 4.5 feet tall, started out life as a bit of a runt but catching on well now, will be a very tall plant, flowers just now open, so no assessment of fruit set yet; will be late.
Dester - 5 feet tall, excellent fruit set.
I plan on topping growth points as they near the top of the stake, and hope to do a brief how-to video when I do so. In the past I've been terrible at following through on topping, but this year I vow to do better!
Below is a carousel of pics of all plants above, two in a pic, starting with the first two, ending with the last. Just click on each picture to advance.
