No flowers on tomato vine.

7-15-08
I have been using a 10-10-10 liquid fertilizer. I don't think I have enough space around the roots to turn in the bone meal and kelp, but I will look for a soluble or liquid fertilizer high in phosporous.

7-16-08
I think the insect I mentioned might be damaging the flowers and flower buds. I am sure that the landlord or the property gardener is using insecticides: there are only a very few flies, ants, spiders, and crickets and no roaches. I have seen only one bee. I didn't get a good look at it. It was on the snapdragons, but it flew away before I could see if it was able to enter the flowers. If it was able, I suppose it was a bumblebee, carpenter bee, etc. Until now, I have used no insecticides. Now, I am spraying the flower buds and blossoms with Garden Safe insecticidal soap for Aphids, Mealybugs, Mites, Leafhoppers, Psyllids, Scale Insects, Thrips, Whiteflies, etc.

I am now fertilizing with Miracle-Gro Bloom Booster: analysis 15-30-15. It is the best soluble phosphorous formula I could find at the Home Depot. (As I already said, I don't have enough room to turn in bone meal.)

Yes I agree with Kat about the plant food. If you have a lot of nitrogen in the soil you will get lots of growth and probably not many (or no) blooms. So you need to find a plant food with very low nitrogen (or none) but high in phosphors and potash.
Example 2 - 10 - 10 "or something close". Go to a GARDEN CENTER or nursery, probably better choces, maybe more knowlege too. 15 - 30 - 15 might still be too high. It does not have to be 'exactly' like that, but something on that order. Just keep the nitrogen low. Warm nights should also help with the bloom. If you have the space this would also be a good time to start some new plants for a later crop of Tomatoes, if these kick in, they will produce like crazy, then peter out, and the new plants should be about ready to take their place. Just stay away from the very high nitrogen plant foods and you should be fine, but you do need some nitrogen in the soil for good growth just not a ton of it. Lots of warm weather ahead. I like the Kat faces she makes with the computer too. Pretty soon you will have so many tomatoes you will be giving them away.

Thank you! More, later.

ONE more thing about picking out your Tomatoes. Try to get the newer hybrids, they are more dependable then the Heirloom type, generally. If you want larger crops of 'regualr' type tomatoes I think you might have better luck. Heirloom types are more 'unusual' in form or color and are not maybe the best for a big crop. Also when the plans bloom there is a spray you can spray in the face of the blooms to insure a better "set". This usually works very well and also reduces the seed in the tomatoes.

Thank you!

These Cherokee Purples have a delicate skin, not like that on commercial varieties of tomato. I like that, very much.
I would look for that feature in any variety I plant.

I didn't know that some varieties of tomato don't require pollinating (or am I inferring something you did not imply?). Where did you get the spray you mentioned?

On Sept. 7, I threw away the Cherokee Purple vines. They had produced no blossoms, the last two months. I had drastically reduced the watering and had increased the phosphorus fertilizer, all to no avail.

As I said, earlier, the landlord is spraying for insects, but denies it. The whole season, I saw only one bee (Bumblebee? Carpenter Bee?) near the vines. The tuning fork method of pollinating had proven effective.