Tomatillo Advice

[northepaul]

I am completely stumped by them!

This is the 2nd year I have tried to grow them. The 1st year, I managed to get two plants, but they got eaten by slugs!
This year, after doing some research and with a determined attitude I grew 4 plants, planted them out in a lovely sunny location, (sought facing sunshine nearly all day) fed (sometimes) and watered well. They got to around 2 ft tall, covered in flowers, loads of bees all over them, but not a single fruit on any of the plants....!!
I have been told they are relatively easy to fruit...so can anyone give me any clues?
Thanks
x

[Pineberry]

I grew loads of plants about 12 in total. 5 on the allotment, the rest in the garden.

Out of 5 on the allotment I had 3 plants that gave a good amount of fruit, the 2 loads of flowers and only few fruits. Even the colour of those 2 that were not productive were yellow green not bright green. But these are all in same soil full sun - same conditions.

The ones in the garden are part shade, grew huge I am lost in them, cannot get in the middle, fruited now like crazy but not ripe yet.

So go figure out what conditions they like to fruit better.

[taff]

Can't help either. The first time I grew them I had 2 plants they each got to over a meter wide and tall and had loads and loads of fruit. The second time, nothing much happened to them. They didn 't grow very well at all.

The first time they were in a sheltered sunny spot with loads of feed, the second time, in a not so sheltered spot with not so much feed.

[Alison]

I find they can be difficult to germinate and often get leggy at the drop of a hat! I start off late March then gradually pot on into 5" pots for planting in outdoor beds on the lottie in early June. They usually get planted with some chicken manure. I then just ignore them, no extra food or water but they usually need lots of support. I don't really understand the point about ripening though as I've always just picked when big enough and this year have far more than I know what to do with from 3 plants. The only thing I can think of is soil type. Mine is quite acidic and a little bit silty. Maybe they don't like chalk if that's what you have?

[muddyfeet]

Could it be that they are not close enough together to pollinate each other?
Mine germinated no bother, I ended up with 4 plants and 16 insurance plants They don't need support outside, my instructions said let them fall over and they will put out extra roots. You might not be able to do this in a greenhouse, of course. I planted them in a row and they grew really well, I have had lots of fruit but not as much as a tomato plant, and that is in north-east England so they are not tender plants.

[BionicBarb]

I grow my tomatillos planted in the greenhouse border but with the foliage trained out of the louvre vents. I have tried them in a raised bed but found that the slightest hint of cold knocks them back.
I got my growing instructions here ; How to Grow Tomatillos: Organic Gardening , . There are 2 types of tomatillo green and purple, the green are the bigger fruit, used mailnly for salsa (but I've found they make a good addition to chutnies instead of green tomatoes), they should be harvested once at about 1 to 1/2 inch diameter, before they start turning yellow. You can still use them then but they get a bit seedy. The purple fruiting ones are much smaller, but some mexican recipes use them. I've been taking all the extra shoots and flowers off of mine this week and putting empty tubs under the sprawling 'branches' to keep the fruits away from slugs and so that the fruit that are there will swell and ripen.

[northepaul]

Thanks for the ideas and suggestions everyone!
My soil is neutral to acidic and they were around 2 metres apart, well supported (although they didnt need that much). Maybe they need a more shady area? I thought being as they're from South America they would prefer heat and sunshine....

[Alison]

I find that they really benefit from support and also plenty of space. My three plants have filled a 4' x 6' bed with the plants producing way more fruits than a standard tomato but obviously you can grow closer together at the expense of fruit per plant. I tried the purple ones once and found them more picky re conditions and the yield was much lower. It might be worth considering planting out bigger and later so they can withstand the slugs and weather. I broke a major branch off one of mine this year as I planted out. Was sure it had had it but it was strong enough to pick up.

[northepaul]

Hmmm I started them off in March, planted the out in June when they were around a foot high, no probs with slugs as it was too hot and dry down here, They had similar support to tomatoes, (bamboo canes, and wire) and I would have thought 2m between them was enough, and they were the green ones?
As I didnt get ANY fruit at all, its a bit strange.....A puzzler for me?
Do they cross pollinate with other plants? Maybe the seed I had wasnt true... (It was from a seed parcel)

[muddyfeet]

You are right, it is strange that there was no fruit at all. And to me that makes it a pollination problem. Mine were only about 2 feet apart in a row of 4, but I would have thought that 2 metres was close enough. Mind you, this is my first time growing them so what do I know?

My timings are the same as yours for planting etc, the only difference being I didn't support them as they were in the side of my hugelkultur bed and they just leaned back into the slope and could've rooted in further up if they had wanted.
Sorry no help

[northepaul]

Thanks Muddyfeet, Of course your comments are helpful

I wondered about pollination but the flowers were always covered with bees! A true mystery!