Hi, I live in Maine and have gone through 2 years of tomato blight. This year I have seen no signs of blight but quite a few of my tomato plants are..well..wilting? It's happening very slowly, the plants are still green, no signs of bacterial wilt ( I checked the stem for brown or hollow and did the water test off the main stem with a negative result) No yellowing of leaves but the plants have gone..soft? and kind of droopy...they have the right amount of water. the only other curious thing is the leaves seem to be starting to curl under...I have attached pics. There is also no sign of problems with the stem at or below the dirt line. This is happening to plants in the garden and in my greenhouse. Please help...I don't think I can do another year without my yummy tomatos! Thanks so much!
Salt build up from fertilizers is one possibility. Poor drainage (Muck soil) could lead to root rot. Also nematodes if you've reused soil from previous years.
Hi, thanks for the response. I only use compost and fish emulsion for fertilizer as I am an organic gardener. My soil sees no chemical fertilizers. Definitely not over watered, been growing for 25 years. Nematodes are possibility, looked at root mass, seemed fine...how else to tell if nematodes? Infected plants have now toppled over and gone very soft. thanks for help :)
Well a wilt disease or root problems are the only things I can think of so you'll have to check the soil. Wilt can carry over from year to year so out with ALL the old soil and start with new. BTW I never said you overwatered I said poor drainage which could be as simple as heavy rain or your compost has become a mucky airless mass due to complete decomposition. A common occurrence in a hot climate like Florida's. Don't have to throw it away just use it in another area and place fresh soil in your tomato growing area. Diseases of tomatoes are unlikely to affect non-solanaceous plants. Nematodes generally produce obvious swelling on roots so if your roots look normal I believe that you can discount that as a cause.
Thanks for the response :) Drainage is good...it is happening in my greenhouse plants and the ones in the garden. two completely different soil sources. the only common denominator is that I bought a new soil that I mixed into both. I think I will have to get that new soil tested then. :(
You might want to oven treat any of that remaining soil if you are having bad results. Stick it in the oven at 160 for about an hour or so in a big pan. If it is not dry and crumbly when you pull it out stick it back in until it is. You could try a bit hotter on the oven to shorten then time if you really want to, here's where i found this information: http://cru.cahe.wsu.edu/CEPublications/eb1158/eb1158.html. This won't fix pH imbalances but it will fix any parasite/mold issues that might be causing these problems.
