Prevent tomato leaf rolling with good growing practices. This can affect all of the foliage on the plant, but fruit production is undiminished. Affected leaves retain their normal color, but might thicken and become leathery. ![]() The lower leaves cup and then roll inward lengthwise toward the midvein. Numerous types of stress can cause leaf roll to occur.Įnvironmental stresses like excessive moisture, nitrogen, heat, drought, severe pruning, root damage, and transplant shock are some of the factors that can cause leaf rolling. It is more prevalent in vining tomato plants than bush types. Tomato leaf roll is not a disease in the normal sense, but a physiological reaction to stress. ![]() In hot weather, or during drought, the leaves on tomato plants can begin to roll up. Photo: High temperatures and drought start a leaf roll. Treat infected plants with a fungicide labeled for tomato leaf mold. Always avoid wetting the foliage when watering tomato plants. Prevent tomato leaf mold by spacing out plants and pruning suckers to allow good airflow. ![]() Plant tomato leaf mold-resistant varieties. In a garden setting, overhead watering and crowded plants can create a microclimate that is ideal for growing and spreading this disease. Infected fruits develop smooth dark patches on top that eventually shrink and turn leathery. Leaf spots grow together before the leaves turn yellow and die, but remain attached to the plant. It begins on older foliage that exhibits pale greenish-yellow spots on the upper leaf surface and green-brown velvety mold on the lower surface. Tomato leaf mold is a fungal disease that affects tomato plants during high humidity and moderate temperatures. Watering the leaves directly can lead to leaf mold. Avoid cracked tomatoes by planting crack-resistant varieties, providing consistent soil moisture, and mulching with plastic. Dispose of any cracked tomatoes that smell sour or have oozing wounds. If they are partially ripe, they will finish ripening indoors. Unfortunately, the outer skin cannot grow quickly enough, and so it cracks and splits.Ĭracks might appear as concentric rings at the top of the fruit or as deep radial (top to bottom) cracks. When summer storms rain down extra moisture into the soil, developing tomatoes expand rapidly from the inside. Tomatoes grow best under consistent conditions. Photo: Hot and rainy weather causes fruit cracks. RELATED: The Best Fertilizers for Tomatoes Prevent blossom drop by planting tomato varieties that are suitable for your climate, avoiding over-fertilizing with nitrogen, watering consistently, and protecting the plants from bug damage. Gardeners can’t do much when the weather is working against them but wait for conditions to improve.Īccording to the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension County Offices, other contributors to blossom drop include lack of pollination, excess nitrogen in the soil, drought, insect damage, and heavy fruit-set. Outside that range, blossom drop becomes more prevalent. Between 40 and 70 percent relative humidity is best for tomato fruit-set. Similarly, tomato plants have a sweet spot for humidity. Hot days, warm overnight temperatures, or cool temperatures outside of the ideal range can lead to blossom drop. Tomato plants set fruit when daytime temperatures hover between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit during the day, and between 55 and 70 degrees Farhenheit for the overnight low. ![]() Several factors contribute to blossom drop and poor fruit-set.įirst, rule out excessively hot or cool temperatures. Again, the plant appears and flowers normally, but the flowers drop off without making tomatoes. Blossom drop comes from temperature fluctuations.Īnother frustrating tomato plant problem is blossom drop. To confirm that your plants are receiving adequate moisture, stick your finger into the soil about 3 inches deep-it should feel moist, like wet laundry before you put it in the dryer. Container plants dry out more quickly and need more frequent watering than in-ground tomato plants. The combined rainfall and irrigation to your garden should equal an inch or slightly more per week. To prevent blossom end rot, use a rain gauge to monitor how much water your garden is getting. The real culprit almost always turns out to be a lack of soil moisture for plants to metabolize the nutrients that are present in the soil. It is rare that soil actually lacks calcium. Suddenly, especially in hot weather, single round black patches appear on the very bottom of young green tomatoes, from where the flower blossoms have detached.īlossom end rot ultimately occurs from a lack of available calcium, but the solution is not as simple as adding lime or some other supplement. The plant might look healthy, flower normally, and begin to develop tomatoes. Photo: Blossom end rot might suggest a lack of calcium.Ī common tomato plant problem is blossom end rot, the Michigan State University Extension offices reports.
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