Many gardeners heard that the lower leaves at tomatoes should be trimmed. Why is it done?
The reasons for removing the lower leaves are several.
Firstly, This technique allows to improve air circulation and facilitate its access to the first fruits.
Secondly, Due to constant ventilation on the surface of the soil, moisture is not delayed. It is the extra moisture that is often the cause of the development of mushroom diseases in tomatoes, and the lower leaves are first attacked by their pathogens. The most dangerous diseases for tomatoes - phytofluorosis and bright spottedness - occur just because of high humidity.
Thirdly, Trimming the lower leaves eliminates the thicance. After it, the fruits are better illuminated by the Sun, thanks to which they ripen faster and becoming tastier.
Delete the lower leaves follows when they start the first fruits. Previously, crop leaves are not recommended, because at the stage of flowering and formation, the fruit brush receives the necessary nutrients from the leaves. Further, the fruits begin to synthesize them themselves. Crop the leaves to the first fruit brush. In an adult plant, it is usually 30 cm of a stem under the first fruit branch of bare.
Pruning is better to carry out the sunny morning so that the tomatoes quickly dried and closed the locations of the sections. It is worth removing all the leaves right away. It is advisable to do it gradually, two sheets at a time.
Marina Kovalenko
A source