Advice on this tomato

Discussion in 'Fruit and Veg Gardening' started by CardinalJester, May 12, 2019.

  1. CardinalJester

    CardinalJester New Seed

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    So this tomato is in its second year; it made it through the California winter just barely. He both vigorous on one side and sad a dead on the other. Could this be a root problem? I’ve been monitoring the moisture, and is consistently in the 15-20§% range, so I’m hoping it’s not a fungus problem. Any ideas?
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  3. mart

    mart Strong Ash

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    What variety is this tomato ? Have you fertilized it ? Tomatoes are usually a single season plant but some do prune the branches back and let them re-grow for late season tomatoes !
     
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  4. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    looks like weather damage and needs some fertilizer. if you look at the new growth at the bottom of the photo you will see it appears pale .. that is a sign of "feed me". that leaf next to the tomatoes at the very bottom looks like it had powdery mildew on it. get that off there. trim off all the dead stuff. anything that is dead will start decaying as it gets wet or damp causing more problems. heap some mulch up around the stem and let new roots form and support the plant especially where I see that U of new growth. you might even see a huge difference in the rest of the plant.

    if you are organic or not... matters not to me, I would find a spray for fungus and spray it just because that leaf at the bottom appears to have PM. copper, neem, daconil, milk, baking soda water, a stiff spray of plain water to wash it off early in the day. your choice you need to do it not me so do what suits you. do not get the foliage wet in the evenings if you can help it. that will lead to more fungal issues.
     
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  5. CardinalJester

    CardinalJester New Seed

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    Unfortunately I don’t remember the type, all I remember is that it is a determinant cultivar. I wanted one that won’t outgrow the cage. I’ve had the problem that the nice springs here in Santa Monica would cause the nondeterminant tomato plants to quickly to like 8 or 9 feet tall, and fall over. I’m thinking that the smaller plant didn’t grow too much letting it live through the winter.

    I know you’re not supposed to plant nightshades in the same places year after year, so I’m wondering if being in the same place is causing problems.

    As for the pruning, that’s what I was asking about. I prune off the dead parts, and two days later, there are like three or four new parts that are withered and dead. The plant is barely keeping ahead of the withering. I have another tomato about 15 away, and it’s going gang busters, though it is new this year.
     
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  6. CardinalJester

    CardinalJester New Seed

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    I’ve been fertilizing it with Jack’s at 1 tablespoon per gallon every two weeks. The only thing is that I’ve been using a sensor to monitor the soil conductance (in uS/cm) and the conductance goes up after I fertilize, but it rapidly drops down in a day or two. I wonder if my soils is too sandy and it’s running straight down and out.

    I was going to say that I didn’t think weather was the problem, but the it rained here for the first time in three months today; a Pineapple Express just nicked us.

    I’ll try adding more much around it, I have some need oil left over from when I was trying to grown curcurbits. I lost all of the to powdery mildew every time.
     
  7. Odif

    Odif Young Pine

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    You can grow tomatoes year after year in the same place.
     
  8. carolyn

    carolyn Strong Ash

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    feed it more often. and if you have sandy soil add compost. have any friends with rabbits or horses? rabbit manure can be applied fresh and won't hurt the plants. Horse manure needs to be composted (or dry) before adding, I fertilize every time I water my plants. I have 3 greenhouses and 3 high tunnels of which one is mainly tomatoes and I feed them, a lot. also don't let a cycle of dry then well watered happen. that will set you up for blossom end rot. thats a lot of disappointment. this occurs usually because of the too dry then wet when the cells of the blossom are just forming deep in the tissue of the plant... not when you see the fruit.

    look for cukes that are more resistant to mildew to grow. that might help you. it is always disappointing to put in the work for no return.
     
  9. CardinalJester

    CardinalJester New Seed

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    BE8FAA0D-DA89-480C-9E36-AAC1BDA7103C.jpeg
    The plant hasn’t been getting dry. This data is from April, and it doesn’t dip below 15%.

    I’ve trimmed the PM, but every day I’m getting more withered stems, even while the rest of the stems are OK (for the moment). Are there any diseases that affect tomatoes that do this? The PM stems don’t seem to be the ones that wither.
     
  10. mart

    mart Strong Ash

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    Have you checked the leaves closely for aphids and other microscopic critters ! They are hard to see ! I see some holes and leaf curl on some of the green leaves ! Its also possible that since this is a determinate variety and is in its second year its ready to quit ! I mean the purpose of the determinate variety is to grow and produce its fruit all at once and then its cycle is over !
    You can also take some stem cuttings and root new plants that will be the same as the original ! That would be better than trying to keep the old plant going !
     
    Last edited: May 21, 2019
  11. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    I am fearing that it may be a Phytophthora (blight) infection. For now, I would keep it isolated completely from other Solanum plant sorts that you may be growing.
    For now, I would suggest that you remove all "sick-looking" leaves and carefully destroy them...or throw them away in your garbage bin.
     

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