What's wrong with my tomato plants?
Mj
8 years ago
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redtartan
8 years agowormgirl_8a_WA
8 years agoRelated Discussions
What's wrong w/ my Tomato Plants?
Comments (5)After sighing in relief when I saw that the plants in question weren't potato-leafed :) I had a couple of thoughts... There's a small chance that it could be something like spotted wilt or bacterial speck, but I don't know enough to diagnose them. There's a master gardener's plant clinic at Talini's this weekend, and you could take one there to be looked at. Are there any signs of insect activity on them? They're almost definitely rootbound (they're way too big for those pots), and that's a lot of stress on them. At the very least, I think I'd pot them up into gallon pots or larger (buckets if you've got them and enough potting soil to fill them) and keep them away from the other plants for now. If there are any aphids or other small insects around, I'd want to hit them all with insecticidal soap so that you minimize the chance of insects spreading disease. I've had rootbound seedlings look like that and recover just fine... i have no idea what it was but they were happier when they had root space. I don't know if I recommnd that you take that risk though. I hope someone else has better advice!...See MoreWhats wrong with my tomato plant?
Comments (11)jean is right, that is *not* glyphosate damage, that looks like 2-4D damage. My first year of gardening I listened to my grandpa and he said "aw hell just spray roundup around the plants to keep the weeds down. Well, my tomatoes looked like this afterwards: 2-4D causes plants to basically grow themselves to death, it causes the plant to grow in all kinds of weird directions and shapes, it makes them curl. If it is herbicide damage, then My vote goes into the 2-4D type of chemicals. Are there any farm fields next to you that might have gotten sprayed? Another thing no one has mentioned yet is disease, I was scolded and scared by my dad and grandpa when getting advice "you never never never plant tomatoes in the same dirt year over year" they said. Eggplant, peppers, potatoes, tomatoes, and tobacco are all in the nightshade family. They will be vulnerable to the same sets of diseases. Here is a link that might be useful: My Garden...See MoreCan anyone tell me what's wrong with my tomato plant?
Comments (2)Unfortunately I think you're right, everything I've searched for so far points to herbicide damage. It's completely my own fault too I think. I thought I was careful and and was avoiding drift. Thanks for the sites though they're really helpful. I still can't figure out if my plants are salvageable or if I should tear them out and plant new. I don't want to keep growing them if they've been permanently damaged or unsafe to consume....See MoreWhat's wrong with my tomato plant?
Comments (3)It could possibly be Septoria Leaf Spot or Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus. Just like Jean said, could you post a picture of the entire plant and tell us which section of the plant you removed the leaf from? Septoria Leaf Spot: caused by the fungus Septoria lycopersici. Infection usually occurs on the lower leaves near the ground, after plants begin to set fruit. Numerous small, circular spots with dark borders surrounding a beige-colored center appear on the older leaves. Tiny black specks, which are spore-producing bodies, can be seen in the center of the spots. Severely spotted leaves turn yellow, die and fall off the plant. The fungus is most active when temperatures range from 68 to 77° F, the humidity is high, and rainfall or over-head irrigation wets the plants. The fungus is not soil-borne, but can overwinter on crop residue from previous crops, decaying vegetation and some wild hosts related to tomato. Prevention/Cure: Clean out any plant debris from the bed and give tomatoes repeated applications of fungicide with chlorothalonil (very good) or copper fungicide, or mancozeb (good) to keep the disease in check. Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus: spread by a tiny insect called thrips, which acquires the virus by feeding on one of many infected weed or ornamental hosts, and then spreads it to the developing tomato plants. Several weeks after transplanting the tomato plants into the garden, random plants may appear stunted, and younger leaves may be marked with bronze or dark spots, or have prominent purple veins. Often the upper foliage will become twisted and cupped as the bronze areas expand. Fruits may have yellow spots. Younger plants may wilt and die, but older plants may survive and bear discolored fruit that may not fully ripen. Prevention/Cure: Weeds in the garden area during the winter may harbor both the thrips and the virus. So, remove the old crop debris, till and mulch the garden for the winter to keep weeds and thrips down for the next year. There is no cure for a plant with TSWV. Removing infected plants immediately from the garden may help reduce the incidence of disease on additional plants. However, feeding by thrips can transmit the virus to plants within minutes. Because of this rapid infection time, insecticidal sprays may be of no use for the home gardener....See Moredigdirt2
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