It sounds like it could be tomato rust, but you didn't get any kind of definitive answer because there's not enough information to do any more than make a guess. Do a search - maybe even go to Google Pics to see if that's it. If not, come back with more info. You usually find rust if/when the plants are over-watered, foliage is watered, they are in less than full sun, or after periods of cool weather - especially nights. Al

Gee, isn't that a lot of, well we can't say in polite company, can we? (I'm referring to what's being said about UCGs in the quote in the post above this one.) Used coffee grounds are free for the asking from many Starbucks. Free stuff are perhaps not a favorite of some businesses, that rely on sales of pest controls and soil amendments. Or perhaps what's quoted is based on ignorance. Who knows, and who cares? Caffeine has been studied by the USDA together with the US Fish and Wild Life and found to be effective against certain pests, and repelling other pests. Look at USDA, Hilo, Hawaii. UCGs are a great soil amendment; earthworms love the grounds, and plants seem to love them too. Grunds preserve soil moisture (when used as mulch), but if they form a crust, just poke them and break the crust up, and they're as good as new. They are supposed to add a little nitrogen, which isn't such a bad thing, especially around greens, i.e., Swiss chard, kale, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, etc., and around young plants that are growing up. I no longer dish leftover brewed coffee, but spray it on the soil around young plants, plus on the leaves. Nothing has croaked yet. (I'm fighting a huge battle with slugs) If you have more grounds than you can use around your plants, add them to your compost. They're considered a green, though they're brown :>) Here is a link that might be useful: More about the uses of UCGs

I suspect your bitter leaf crop had more to do with approaching a bolt than anything else. That makes both lettuce and spinach bitter. When the weather starts to warm up, crops like lettuce often do that and are best suspended until fall when it the heat subsides somewhat. No, to the best of my knowledge nobody has ever been poisoned by inter-planting tagetes species in their gardens. However, I am a bit skeptical about it's effectiveness, other than as a rotation crop for root nematode control. The practise might help, but doesn't hurt anything and make a garden a cheerful place to be. Certain oils of marigold does cause skin sensitivity in a small group of people, however.

Thanks - I did put a cup of brown sugar in, added 2 Tbsp of RealLime (just for a little kick), and then 2 Tbsp of ACV (to mellow things out?). I put some in a jar and brought over to my cousin and uncle, they both agreed it would be good with cream cheese or goat cheese. My cousin suggested that next time I zest the lemons and peel the pith off b4 slicing. I did discard the ends that were all pith, no flesh but I think these were pretty pithy lemons. I will also skip the allspice next time and make sure I use some brown sugar from the beginning (may skip lime and OJ, but I think ACV is good). Can't really discard the water if I follow Ball recipe since lemon is boiled in simple syrup. But is the Farm Journal recipe safe to use as-is? There is a big difference in the processing time - 5 minutes (sterilized jars - I would do 10) in FJ vs 20 min in Ball. I just realized that as soon as I took the last jar out of the canner (following 5-min cool-down), so just stuck them back in. Farm Journal 2 lbs tomatoes 4C sugar 2 lemons, thinly sliced 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp whole cloves (I used 10) 1/2 tsp whole allspice (omit?) 1 stick cinnamon 1/2 tsp ground ginger (sub gingerroot as in Ball?) Scald, skin and weigh small firm red tomatoes. Cover with sugar and let stand overnight in a cool place. Next morning, drain juice into large saucepan, add lemon (seeds discarded), salt and spices tied in a bg. Boil 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook, stirring frequently, until they are clear and the syrup fairly thick. Remove spices. Ladle into sterilized jars to within 1/8" of rim (I used 1/4"), Wipe rim and adjust lids. Process in BWB 5 minutes (I would do 10 if jars not sterile). Remove from canner and complete seals unless closures are self-sealing type.