The problem gradually becomes apparent or becomes suddenly apparent to the hobby gardener: the tomatoes simply don't want to grow. Find out here what the causes are and how growth can be stimulated again.
Why aren't my tomatoes growing?
Why don't tomatoes grow? Common causes include a lack of hardening off, planting out too early, a lack of cold protection, an unsuitable location or excessive branching. To promote growth, tomatoes should be hardened off, planted correctly and, if necessary, pinched out.
Resolve growth arrest after planting
If sowing and pricking went as normal, young tomatoes don't seem to like the move to the bed at all. After planting outdoors, the tomato plants stop growing. The following triggers are usually behind the growth stop:
- Tomatoes are not hardy
- Planting took place too early
- no protection against ground frost
- unsuitable location
Tomato plants must be hardened off before moving outdoors. For this purpose, they spend every day for a week on the partially shaded balcony and then return to the house overnight. The sensitive plants will not be allowed to go outdoors until mid-May at the earliest. There they are protected from the cold under fleece (€34.00 on Amazon) or in a polytunnel. They can only grow in a sunny, warm location.
This is how tomato fruits become plump and stately
If a tomato plant stretches up mightily, the volume of the fruit may fall far short of expectations. Inexperienced hobby gardeners are faced with a puzzle here, because all aspects of care have been carefully considered. If the tomato fruits don't want to continue growing, the solution to the puzzle is to eliminate the problem.
If a tomato plant develops too many side shoots, it costs it a lot of energy. Instead of growing magnificent fruits, it constantly branches out in width. All that's left is energy for lots of small tomatoes. You can counteract this behavior by using your fingers to break out the miserliness several times a week. These barren side shoots outgrow the leaf axils and have to give way.
The situation is more differentiated when the plants grown are vine tomatoes. These tomato varieties are said to branch widely and develop a bushy habit. Therefore, there is no need for minimization here.
Tips & Tricks
It is a completely natural process when freshly planted tomatoes stop growing in the first two weeks. It is therefore advisable to first have a little patience and not immediately fall into hectic activism.