Increasing Tomato Yield: How To Pollinate Your Tomatoes by Hand

How Temperature and Wind Impact Pollination

Tomatoes are self-pollinating, which means a single plant can pollinate itself (I’ll touch more on this below).

However, they still need the right conditions for pollen to transfer from the anther to the stigma. Unfortunately, hot weather can seriously interfere with this natural process.

When temperatures climb above 90°F (32°C) – especially during the day or if nighttime temps stay above 70°F (21°C) – tomato pollen becomes dry, sticky, and far less viable.

Instead of being light and powdery (ideal for wind or vibration to move it), the pollen tends to clump together, making it harder for the plant to fertilize itself.

This results in:

• Flowers dropping without setting fruit
• Fewer tomatoes per cluster
• Less effective pollination from wind or natural movement

In addition, a lack of wind or bees for even a couple days can decrease the number of flowers that turn into tomatoes. After all the effort I put into starting my tomatoes, I want to make sure that every viable flower sets a tomato. 

Plants organize their male and female parts (pollen and ovules) in different ways, which directly affects how pollination happens. Hand pollination is especially effective with tomatoes because each flower contains both male and female parts, making them well-suited for self-pollination.

Understanding the difference between what’s known as perfect and imperfect flowers is key when it comes to pollination, as it determines whether a single flower can pollinate itself or relies on other flowers—or even other plants—for reproduction.

1. Perfect Flowers: These flowers contain both the pollen-producing stamens (male parts) and the pistils (female parts that catch pollen) within the same bloom. This setup often allows the flower to pollinate itself without needing outside help.
   • Examples: Tomatoes, peas, peppers
     
2. Imperfect Flowers: Plants with imperfect flowers produce distinct male flowers (which release pollen) and female flowers (which receive pollen). These flowers are on the same individual plant in most cases. For successful pollination, pollen must be transferred from the male flowers to the female flowers, but this transfer can happen within the same plant.
   • Examples: Cucumbers, squash, corn, pumpkins

Tips for Transferring Pollen with Imperfect Flowers

With imperfect flowers, success depends on transferring pollen from male to female flowers. For cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, and corn, gently shake the plant or tap male flowers near female flowers to help pollen fall. Some gardeners also use a small brush or cotton swab to move pollen directly. When you gently shake a squash plant here’s how pollen transfer works:

Tomatoes have perfect flowers that require vibration to release pollen, a process called buzz pollination.

When vibrated, tomato flowers visibly shoot out pollen in small puffs, making it very clear that pollination is happening. This unique trait makes tomatoes especially responsive to techniques like the electric toothbrush trick.

Other Plants That Can Be Buzz Pollinated

While tomatoes are the best-known plants for buzz pollination, other crops also rely on this process, though their pollen release is usually less dramatic:

• Eggplants
• Potatoes
• Some peppers
• Blueberries
• Cranberries
• Other members of the Solanaceae family

In these plants, vibration loosens and releases pollen but without the visible “puff” effect seen in tomatoes.

Here’s a breakdown of common traditional techniques and which plant types they work best for:

• Hand shaking or tapping flowers: Works well for perfect-flowered plants (tomatoes, peas, beans) and monoecious plants (cucumbers, squash). Shaking helps pollen fall or transfer naturally.
• Using a small brush or cotton swab: Effective for plants where you can manually transfer pollen from male to female parts.
• Blowing on flowers: An old-school method mostly useful for perfect-flowered plants but less reliable overall.

My Go-To Trick: Electric Toothbrush Pollination

To get ahead of the heat and lack of wind, I use an electric toothbrush to mimic the vibration of a buzzing bee (a technique called “buzz pollination”).

In reality, most tomato pollination happens from wind and not bees, but the buzzing of a toothbrush really does remind me a bee. Here’s why the electric toothbrush method works so well for me:

• Immediate feedback: I often see a little cloud of pollen puff out from the flower – proof that it’s working!
• Set fruit early: By pollinating flowers in the cooler part of the season, I get fruit developing before summer stress kicks in. Even though the heat will affect the pollination, once the tomatoes set, I haven’t had problems with their development. 

1. Set the vibration setting as high as possible. This will help pollination happen with a light touch of the toothbrush.
2. Touch the toothbrush to the back of the flower (the green bell shape) where it connects to the stem. I avoid touching on the front part of the flower, or else the vibration can tear off the flower! Be careful!
3. Ideally hand pollinate in the morning before noon because that is when the pollen is most viable. 

Using the electric toothbrush trick has dramatically increased my tomato yields. It helps set fruit early (crucial before the intense Utah heat hits) giving my plants a strong head start. Plus, it’s incredibly gratifying to see the pollen visibly shoot out with each vibration, making it easy to know when pollination is working.

Thanks for reading along, guys! If you enjoyed this blog post, check out my other gardening blog posts:

• How to Start a Garden on a Budget for Under $100
• Essential and Nice-to-Have Garden Products for Your Perfect Setup
• My Garden Setup: 3 Best Garden Containers for Every Gardener
• Understanding Garden Light and Shade: A Simple Guide
• How to Build a Homemade Trellis Using Cattle Panel

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