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Australia

Hey guys,
I've got a hydroponic tomato going inside, and its come out with a strange mega bloom, it kind of seems like a branch started growing out with only a flower on the end of it and now there are flowers and branches coming out of the base of the flower itself.
I've cut off a couple of branches and flowers coming out of it. Should I keep cutting them off?
I'm not sure if this thing is going to turn into a viable flower or not.
[IMG]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y290/Rollux/P1050062_zps2zjj10xc.jpg[/IMG]

The little branch and flowers are coming out of the base of the flower.
[IMG]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y290/Rollux/P1050061_zps0x7kgru7.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y290/Rollux/P1050054_zpsiv3ahglf.jpg[/IMG]

2/22/2015 5:09:05 AM

Allentown, PA

I've had this happen a couple of times from a similar thick stemmed megabloom.

My 4.46 LB Big Zac came from the same type of branched megabloom. I counted six blooms fused from that one.

The thickness of the stem is needed in order to provide nutrients to the potential tomato that would grow from a megabloom of this size.

Remove all other blooms from the same stalk and pollinate when ready. A very large megabloom like this most likely will need additional pollen in order to be fully pollinated.

When the megabloom is fully open first vibrate the bloom with an electric toothbrush in order to pollinate it as much as possible next take a black plastic spoon and an electric toothbrush and gather additional pollen from other flowers from the plant. The spoon should be black so you can easily see the pollen your gathering.

Once you have a decent amount of pollen take a very small artists brush with a pointed end and use it to pull pollen from the spoon.

Carefully insert the brush into the stamin and carefully brush the pollen against the sides of the stamin and carpels.

Repeat as necessary in order to cover the entire stamin and carpel areas of the megabloom.

That's a nice bloom forming there!

2/22/2015 6:52:14 AM

Australia

Thanks for that! Very good advice! I will clear off the blooms!

I'm looking forward to this monster opening up!!

I realised recently that my EC meter was wildly inaccurate, and was reading much lower than it should have. turns out I had an ec of 4.5 instead of 3, and my new growth was curling in on its self and this is when that flower formed, since then I've reduced the ec to just under 3 and all the growth has straightened out.

I wonder if massive doses of nutrients is whats needed to make really big mega blooms?

2/22/2015 7:45:08 AM

Australia

I just realised my pictures weren't clickable links...I'd change it but I can't see a way to edit! Sorry to anyone that has to copy and paste.

2/22/2015 7:46:39 AM

Allentown, PA

David, in the blooming stage of my plants I will feed them 10-52-10 Miracle Grow Bloom Booster. This is the fertilizer with the highest phosphorus load out of any commercial fertilizer currently available. I feed it weekly via foliar as well as a bit of a root drench.

Here's the tricky part David; Miracle Grow Bloom Booster comes in two different strengths. The lower strength one is sold by big box retailers like Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart, menards, etc.

The higher phosphorus mix is sold by upper tier garden centers. THE IS THE ONE TO GET.

2/22/2015 8:42:49 AM

Australia

are your plants hydroponic?
Originally I used 3/4 MaxiBloom which is 5-15-14 and 1/4 MaxiGro which is 10-5-14.
The thing is, I went to an ec of 4.5, from what I've read for tomatoes and ec of 2 to 3 is normal, so I was wayy too high.
So maybe that much higher strength is what got me what you've had before with the megabloom.
Do you think I should run with bloom 5-15-14 now or a mix of the grow as well?
I've got dutch master too and thats a weaker solution in general and the ratios are a bit weird, I think the micro nutrients are different because the npk is similar, bloom is 4-3-10 and the grow is 4-3-11. Which actually makes no sense to me.

In Perth Western Australia they have had a big crack down on fertlizers with phosphorus because of our major river, the Swan River, the run off from farmers along the river with high phosphorus makes algal blooms in the river. The only way to get high phosphorus fertilizers in WA is to buy hydroponic. Which is fine since my tomato is hydroponic.
I might go the maxibloom with no grow, and add a touch of pk booster which is 0-15-16

2/22/2015 11:06:20 AM

Australia

that miracle booster will cost me $80 from the US, I'll probably stick with my maxi bloom and keep a high EC.

2/22/2015 11:16:56 AM

Allentown, PA

I see. Your outside the U.S. I would use the 5-15-14 at the flowering phase of each plant, then, when you have megablooms successfully growing a tomato I would then switch back over to the mixture of MaxBloom and MaxGrow.Your plants with a tomato growing will need more of a balanced fertilizer at that point.


I till my soil each spring and fall and plant in ground around the first week in May.

2/22/2015 1:19:23 PM

Australia

sounds good! Thanks!

2/22/2015 9:32:05 PM

Allentown, PA

Your welcome!

2/23/2015 9:13:52 AM

Cumming,Ga

Great information thanks

6/21/2015 10:11:03 PM