Tomato Plants Still Strong After Winter. Do I Replant?

Q. Last spring I planted two Early Girl tomatoes. In the middle of July, I cut them back to about 8 inches and they come back and give me a second crop in the fall. They usually die in the middle of December but not this year! Should I replant this spring with new plants?

Tomato fruit the day after a hard freeze. Tomato fruit are damaged at temperatures around 45F, an effect on tropical fruit called chilling injury. These temperatures were at freezing,,,below 32F for just 30 minutes.

A. Not necessary to replant. Tomatoes are a perennial crop that can get several years old in the tropics and are still productive. They will continue to be as productive as young plants if pruned back again this spring like you did before. The big advantage of existing plants is in their established root system. They don’t have to expend energy to reestablish roots. This means the tops will grow faster and be productive. Tomatoes prefer temperatures from about 65°F to 95°F. It’s just cold for these warm weather vegetables right now.

Chilling Injury

Chilling injury can happen to some tropical plants when temperatures drop below 45 to 50F. Think banana in a refrigerator. They dont freeze but they dont like it and the tissues are damaged. For banana, it turns brown. Never put tomatoes in the fridge unless you have to. They will get chilling injury. Not as as obvious as banana but it damages the fruit. Generally speaking, fruit is more sensitive to chilling injury than the plant but chilling injury can damage some plants. 

How to Prune Tomato

Clean and sanitize your garden shears and cut them back to about 8 inches again in late February or early March. Cut them about a quarter inch above a leaf. You can do it anytime you are confident temperatures are starting to warm up again. Add fresh compost, water and fertilizer, if needed, to get them back on track and flowering.