Are your tomatoes not producing fruit? Read our helpful guide to learn how to fix this common problem when you grow your own tomatoes.
As a tomato grower few things are more frustrating than lush green tomato plants that just won’t flower. Without blossoms, those tasty tomatoes won’t develop. But don’t despair – with a few troubleshooting tips, you can get your tomato plant growing AND flowering.
Why Won’t My Tomato Plant Flower?
There’s a few key reasons your tomato may be growing vegetation but no flowers:
Insufficient Light
Tomatoes need at least 8 hours of sunlight per day to flower and fruit. If your plant lacks light, focus more energy goes into leaf and stem growth instead of blossoms.
Improper Day/Night Temperatures
Tomatoes thrive when daytime temps are 70-85°F and nighttime temps are around 65°F. Too hot or cold, and blossom drop occurs.
Inadequate Pollination
Outdoors, wind and bees spread pollen. Indoors, flowers need help shaking pollen loose to pollinate.
Poor Nutrition
Lack of nutrients like phosphorus and potassium hinders flowering. Ensure fertilizer provides these nutrients.
Too Much Nitrogen
An overabundance of nitrogen leads to lush foliage instead of flowers. Ease up on high-nitrogen fertilizers.
Water Stress
Too much or too little water prevents plants from flowering. Aim to keep soil evenly moist but not saturated.
Root Bound
When roots fill a container, flowering is inhibited. Transplant root-bound plants to a larger pot.
Pruning Mistakes
Over-pruning removes flowering stems. Take care not to over-prune indeterminate varieties.
7 Tips to Get Tomato Plants Blooming
If your tomato plant has plenty of leaves but zero blooms, try these troubleshooting tips:
1. Increase Light Exposure
Place plants in a sunny south-facing window or under grow lights providing 14-16 hours of daily light. Outdoor plants may need a sunnier location.
2. Optimize Temperature
Keep indoor plants around 70°F during the day, and allow to drop to 65°F at night. Move outdoor plants to a sheltered area during heat waves.
3. Improve Pollination
Gently shake plants daily or use an oscillating fan to dislodge pollen. Touching unopened flowers with an electric toothbrush can also work.
4. Apply Tomato Fertilizer
Look for formulas with more phosphorus and potassium than nitrogen. Fish emulsion is a good organic choice.
5. Avoid Over-Pruning
Prune only to remove suckers and shape indeterminate varieties. Remove 1/4 growth at a time to avoid flower loss.
6. Water Thoroughly
Water when the top few inches of soil become dry. Add mulch to retain moisture. Drip irrigation works well.
7. Check Root Boundness
Carefully remove the plant and inspect roots. Transplant into a larger container if densely filled with roots.
Be patient and tackle one factor at a time. With a few tweaks, your plant should be flowering and fruiting tomatoes in no time!
When do Tomato Plants Flower?
Tomato flowering time depends on the variety and growing conditions:
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Seedlings – 4-8 weeks after germination
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Transplants – 2-4 weeks after planting outdoors
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Potted Plants – 6-8 weeks after planting
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Optimized Conditions – As little as 4-6 weeks!
Look for the first flower buds 6-8 weeks after planting seedlings or transplants. Optimizing conditions like light, warmth, and fertility speeds up flowering.
What do Tomato Flower Buds Look Like?
Tomato blooms start as tiny flower buds along the stems where leaf branches meet the main vine. Buds eventually open into star-shaped yellow flowers.
Typical development pattern:
- Tiny green nub
- Swells into green bulb
- Yellow petals become visible
- Flower opens exposing stamen
Well-formed buds soon burst into bright blossoms ready for pollination. Celebrate each new open bloom that brings you one step closer to ripe tomatoes!
How Long do Tomato Flowers Last?
An individual tomato flower lasts only 1-2 days before dropping off. But the plant continually produces new buds as long as growing conditions are favorable.
Here’s the typical life cycle of a tomato blossom:
- Day 1 – Flower opens, pollination occurs
- Day 2 – Petals start shriveling, flower fades
- Day 3 – Flower drops off, baby tomato starts forming behind it
So while each bloom is ephemeral, new ones constantly form to deliver the pollination needed for your tomato crop. Just make sure to attend to your plants to keep flowers coming!
Why Are My Tomato Flowers Not Producing Fruit?
Lack of fruit set after flowering is frustrating but common. Causes include:
- Poor pollination – Without fertilization, blossoms wither.
- Hot temps – Most varieties don’t set fruit above 85°F.
- Night temps too high – Cooler nights promote fruiting.
- Too many flowers – Excess blooms limit fruit set.
- Dry soil – Blossoms abort if moisture is inadequate.
- Low light – Insufficient sunlight inhibits fruiting.
Check all growing conditions and correct any deficiencies. Spraying plants with blossom set hormone can also encourage fruit formation.
Are Tomato Leaves More Important Than Flowers?
Tomato leaves and flowers are both vital. Leaves provide energy via photosynthesis. Flowers must be pollinated to create fruit. Damaging either will reduce productivity.
However, tomatoes often abort some flowers naturally as the plant limits fruit production to what it can support. Don’t panic if you see some dropped blossoms – focus on keeping foliage healthy.
Robust leaf growth fuels larger harvests. But don’t discount those flowers – ample blossoms ensure tomatoes can size up. Aim for balance between the two for best results!
Can Tomato Plants Rebloom After Pruning?
Yes! In fact, pruning tomato plants promotes prolific flowering and fruiting. Removing suckers and older growth causes hormones that inhibit blooming to decline, spurring reblooming.
Follow these pruning tips to maximize flowers:
- Prune suckers and older growth regularly
- Cut 1/4 of plant at a time to avoid shock
- Time pruning for 1-2 weeks before desired bloom period
- Pruning determinate tomatoes is not advised
Some blossom loss may occur right after pruning. But stick to the schedule and you’ll soon see an abundance of revitalized blooms.
When to Worry About Lack of Tomato Flowers
While tomato flowering varies naturally, failure to blossom by these milestones warrants concern:
- No buds 6 weeks after seeding tomatoes indoors
- Still no flowers 2 months after transplanting seedlings
- Potted plants flowerless after 8 weeks
- Outdoor plants not blooming by midsummer
If flowering is still minimal by these markers, your plant needs troubleshooting. Review growing conditions and take corrective actions like supplementing light, adjusting temperature, or replacing depleted soil.
While waiting for blossoms can try one’s patience, a bit of tlc and optimizing your tomato’s environment should soon have those plants flowering and fruiting to their full potential. Don’t abandon hope – with a little work, you can get your tomato plants in bloom. Just take it step by step until you see those bright blossoms.
Why Aren’t My Tomato Plants Producing Fruit?
You chose your tomato seedlings carefully. You planted them. You waited for those first beautiful flowers—and waited. Eventually you found yourself googling some version of, “tomato plant growing but no flowers” and landed here.
While gardening can be incredibly rewarding, it can also feel frustrating when something doesnt grow as intended. Stop and take a deep breath. We have some easy ways to help your tomatoes stay healthy.
Whether youre dealing with determinate or indeterminate tomatoes, its not unusual to have a tomato plant not flowering. We’ll talk about four reasons why your tomatoes might not be flowering so you can learn how to get them to flower more. With a few small changes to their growing environment, you could have flourishing tomatoes soon.
Your tomatoes might have trouble flowering if they’re not pollinating enough. While tomatoes are self-fertile—meaning, the flowers can pollinate themselves—bees can help improve pollination.
When a bee nudges a flower, it can dislodge the pollen from the stems. Thus, if you grow tomatoes inside, the plant might have trouble pollinating if a bee doesn’t come by and shake things up.
To help your tomato plants pollinate indoors, you could try:
- Putting your plant outside—If it’s the right time of year for tomatoes, you can put your tomato plants outside to attract bees and other bugs that might help move the pollen around. All you have to do with an AeroGarden is pull the bowl around. To move the bowl outside, just unplug the pump and lift it off the base.
- Moving your tomato plant close to an open window with no screen is another way to bring “outside” inside. Bees will be able to find it. (Be aware that this could let more bugs into your home, so keep that in mind when choosing your preferred ways to increase pollination.) ).
- Shaking your plant gently—If you don’t want to put your plants near bees, you can make them buzz by shaking your tomato plant gently. You can also use our “Be the Bee Pollinator” tool to do the job better.
This is a common challenge for tomato gardeners growing their plants indoors, so don’t feel discouraged. Your plant could be pollinating again soon with a little help from you.
2. High Heat Levels
The same heat that makes you sweat during a heat wave could make it harder for your plant to make pollen. For most tomatoes to pollinate and bear fruit, the temperature during the day must stay below 87 degrees Fahrenheit and at night it must drop below 76 degrees Fahrenheit.
Luckily, if you water and take care of your tomato plant during the heat wave, it should start flowering and then produce tomatoes when the weather cools down.
Here’s how to take care of your tomatoes during a heat wave:
- Water plants outside and, if you can, move them to a shady spot.
- If your home has central air conditioning, you might want to bring tomato plants in pots inside.
- Move your plants to a cooler part of your house if they already live there.
- If you live in a place where heat waves happen often, switching to indoor gardening methods like hydroponic gardening can help keep your plants safe.
If you’re wondering how to increase flowering in tomatoes, try increasing how much light they receive. Tomatoes need eight hours of daylight to flower. Because tomato plants need sunlight to make fruit, if your plant doesn’t get enough sunlight, you won’t see as many tomatoes fruiting.
To increase sunlight, try:
- Moving your potted plant—If you have a tomato plant in a pot, try moving it somewhere with more sun.
- Moving anything that is blocking the sun from your plants—If you can’t move your tomato plants, see if you can move anything that is blocking the sun from your plants.
- Adding a grow light—If you’re growing your plant inside, you might want to add a grow light. These can help your tomato get the energy it needs to bloom. If you already have a grow light, you might want to leave it on for longer during the day.
To flower and fruit, tomato plants need sunlight (or a grow light). But to ripen, tomatoes don’t need sunlight. In fact, once the plant has grown all of its tomatoes, they will ripen most quickly at night and in the shade.
4. Fertilizer and Nutrient Issues
People who grow tomatoes hydroponically can give their plants extra nutrients by using 3 oz. plant food. or 1 liter sizes. The Easy Feed Plant Food (Nutrients) Dispensers are the best choice if this is your first time using plant food made for hydroponic gardening.
Here’s why we love dispensers:
- It’s easy to give your plant the right amount of food with the syringes.
- It dispenses easily into your garden.
- It works well with all hydroponic garden models.
If you’re not sure when or how much to use plant food, read the directions on the package or call customer service for more information.
Tomato Blooms But No Fruit | Gardening 101
Why do tomato plants not flower?
Several nutritional and environmental factors may cause healthy tomato plants not to flower. It may further affect the fruit yield. It is frustrating to have big and luscious tomato plants but no flowers. Flowering is the crucial stage in the life of tomato plants. If there is no flowering, the chances of seeing juicy tomato fruits are minimal.
Why is my tomato flowering so bad?
If you’re looking for the cause of your flowering problems, look around your plant for signs of pests or diseases. Tomato plants require a lot of energy to produce flowers and fruit, and many pests or diseases sap this energy from the plant. Blight diseases and Septoria leaf spot affect leaves to such an extent that defoliation occurs.
Can Tomato plants grow without sunlight?
Producing flowers. Without sunlight, the tomato plants cannot develop flowers and will exhibit general weak growth in leaves and stems. Depending on your region, lack of sunlight is difficult to fix. You may use grow lights to speed up the flowering process, but this is often difficult for outdoor home gardeners.
Do Tomatoes bloom in summer?
For instance, some tomato plants will not bloom during summer, when it’s too hot. Research the type you have before deciding on how to make them bloom. Tomato plants require 6-8 hours of sunlight every day to thrive and bloom. If your tomatoes are outside, you will notice them being leggy and weak.
