• Proper pruning helps produce large tomatoes.tomato plants image by JLycke from Fotolia.com
  
  Many tomatoes grow on vine-like plants that require support to remain upright. Along with cages, stakes are a popular way to keep the your tomatoes off the ground, but the vines will require pruning. Proper pruning encourages the plant to produce large fruits and makes harvesting easier because the foliage will be less dense and the tomatoes easier to see.
  
  

Stake Training

• Indeterminate tomatoes, a type of plant that continues to grow in height throughout the gardening season, work best when trained to stakes. These plants produce several main stems if they aren't pruned early in the season. All main stems near the base of the plant should be removed, leaving only the strongest and thickest one in place. This stem is then tied to the stake every 8 inches along its length as it grows.
  
  

Sucker Removal

• Suckers form in the juncture between the main stem and a leaf branch. These suckers grow into new main stems if left in place. Suckers on indeterminate tomato plants should be removed as they form throughout the gardening season. Determinate tomatoes, which grow as more compact bushes, only require sucker removal if you want to thin out the plant to allow better air circulation to the interior. Suckers can be pinched off with your forefinger and thumb as they begin to form.
  
  

Topping

• In areas with long summers, indeterminate tomatoes often grow taller than their supporting stake. Control the height of the plant and encourage it to grow full and bushy by topping it. The top 1/2 inch of the main stem should be pinched off when the plant reaches the desired height. Pinching encourages lateral branching and helps inhibit vertical growth.