Root Causes

• Struggling tomato planttomatoe plant image by Coralie Palmeri from Fotolia.com
  
  A tall, spindly, tomato plant is a stressed tomato plant that has gone into survival mode. It is not setting fruit buds because it is just trying to maintain basic life functions for itself, before it even thinks about reproduction. There are many causes of the stress, such as inconsistent water/feeding, inconsistent sunlight, and/or poor soil conditions and pests.
  
  

Too Much? Too Little? Just Right?

• Roma tomatoes ripening in sunTomatoes Closeup image by John Walsh from Fotolia.com
  
  Whenever a tomato plant grows too tall, relative to a healthy width, it is reaching for the sun. Even if your plants are in full sun for most of the day, they may be reaching for more to compensate for poor soil or irregular watering. They are trying to make up for circumstances beyond their control (soil, water) with something they can control: access to maximum photosynthesis.
  
  

How Much Water?

• Just-watered tomatoesRipening Tomatoes covered in water droplets image by Chris Lofty from Fotolia.com
  
  With tomatoes, inconsistent watering can be fatal. Any plant gets stressed quickly with an undependable amount of irrigation, and tomatoes are especially sensitive to water stress. Whether it's two drops a day or two gallons, tomatoes depend on a reliable amount of water, otherwise they may experience spindly development.
  
  

How Much Fertilizer?

• Healthy heirloom tomatoesfresh vine tomatoes in a greek garden in santorini image by Antony McAulay from Fotolia.com
  
  Usually the golden rule with fertilizing tomatoes is "feed, feed, feed, feed, and feed some more." Feeding inconsistent amounts makes tomatoes grow tall and spindly. Tomato plants need nutrients they can rely on to grow lush and full, and set out rich, wonderful fruit.
  
  

The Elements

• Wind is another bugaboo of tomatoes that can result in tall, spindly, non-fruiting stalks. Unfortunately there's not a lot we can do about sun and wind. If your area is plagued by wind, planting tomatoes inside rows of vegetables such as corn and beans, which act as windbreaks, could help.
  
  

Consistency

• Luscious cherry tomatoes on the vinetomato vine image by Horticulture from Fotolia.com
  
  Whether we're talking about sunlight, water or nutrients, tomatoes are particularly sensitive to fluctuations in the amount of each. Because the cause of lanky, fruitless tomato plants is likely inconsistency, then the cure is being consistent in your tomato-growing practices.