What is wrong with my tomatoes? I can't tell if I'm overwatering, underwatering or if they're diseased? One looks terrible, one looks half-bad and one looks good still.
The mulch around them is jute, in case it looks weird!
Wilty sad tomatoes?
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To me, it looks as if the plants have dried out from lack of water. However the soil looks quite wet...
It also may be too much light and very hot temperatures. How much direct light do they get? How hot is it?
As you predicted, another reason may be a disease or virus. But to determine what it really is, I'd need an image of one of the leaves.
Please update with a pic, and I'll try to help further!
It also may be too much light and very hot temperatures. How much direct light do they get? How hot is it?
As you predicted, another reason may be a disease or virus. But to determine what it really is, I'd need an image of one of the leaves.
Please update with a pic, and I'll try to help further!
Does it perk up after you water it? If it does then it needs to be watered more than once a day.
If it stays wilted and does not recover then it may be a root problem.
That strip where you planted it is very small, how deep is it. If it is only a few inches deep it is not enough to support a large tomato. Get a large pot 20 inches or 18 gallon bucket and put holes in it. Fill it with 2 cu ft of MG potting soil (not moisture control regular only) and 1/2 cup of tomato fertilizer. If you use tomato tone then use 1 cup. Mix it in the soil and moisten it thoroughly. Plant the tomatoe deep remove the lower leaves and plant the tomato so that only the top leaves and a couple of inches of stem are showing. Water well, You may have to add more potting mix as the soil settles. Water daily until the water comes out the drain holes. Cut open the potting soil bag and trim it to fit around the tomato in the pot with the white side up. Make a slit in the cut out to accommodate the stem and around the edges to fit inside the pot rim. It will reflect light and preserve moisture in the pot and will help to control the weeds. If you want to get a little fancier. You can get 1 inch pvc pipe and drill holes radomly in the sides every few inches. Put a cap on the end of the tube. Put the pvc tube next to the tomato at a slight angle and cut off the excess about 6 inches above a the pot. This will be your watering tube. Make sure your stake or cage is in place at the time of planting. I rather cage pots as pots fall over in the wind when they get top heavy. I use 7 x7 ft CRW wire rolled into a cage that I place around the pot. I stake the wire into the ground with rebar to keep it from falling if it gets windy. Do not use smaller wire. You will not be able to get your hand in to be able to pick any fruit. Concrete reinforcing wire is sold in the building material section of the hardware store. Sometimes they sell it by the foot but sometimes they only sell it by the roll. If you know some masons or construction guys they may be able to find scraps for you. Otherwise, you can always look for someone to split the cost.
If it stays wilted and does not recover then it may be a root problem.
That strip where you planted it is very small, how deep is it. If it is only a few inches deep it is not enough to support a large tomato. Get a large pot 20 inches or 18 gallon bucket and put holes in it. Fill it with 2 cu ft of MG potting soil (not moisture control regular only) and 1/2 cup of tomato fertilizer. If you use tomato tone then use 1 cup. Mix it in the soil and moisten it thoroughly. Plant the tomatoe deep remove the lower leaves and plant the tomato so that only the top leaves and a couple of inches of stem are showing. Water well, You may have to add more potting mix as the soil settles. Water daily until the water comes out the drain holes. Cut open the potting soil bag and trim it to fit around the tomato in the pot with the white side up. Make a slit in the cut out to accommodate the stem and around the edges to fit inside the pot rim. It will reflect light and preserve moisture in the pot and will help to control the weeds. If you want to get a little fancier. You can get 1 inch pvc pipe and drill holes radomly in the sides every few inches. Put a cap on the end of the tube. Put the pvc tube next to the tomato at a slight angle and cut off the excess about 6 inches above a the pot. This will be your watering tube. Make sure your stake or cage is in place at the time of planting. I rather cage pots as pots fall over in the wind when they get top heavy. I use 7 x7 ft CRW wire rolled into a cage that I place around the pot. I stake the wire into the ground with rebar to keep it from falling if it gets windy. Do not use smaller wire. You will not be able to get your hand in to be able to pick any fruit. Concrete reinforcing wire is sold in the building material section of the hardware store. Sometimes they sell it by the foot but sometimes they only sell it by the roll. If you know some masons or construction guys they may be able to find scraps for you. Otherwise, you can always look for someone to split the cost.
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rainbowgardener
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just a couple days ago, we had someone else write in with tomatoes looking just like yours.
Check out the thread here: https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... lt#p390584
for responses
(If nothing else, maybe the two of you can start a wilted tomatoes support group! )
Check out the thread here: https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... lt#p390584
for responses
(If nothing else, maybe the two of you can start a wilted tomatoes support group!
)Thanks all! They perk up a little after watering but not much. It's definitely been hot and sunny but my other tomato is doing well. It is in a raised vegetable garden with lots of good soil and depth. I planted them really deep when I first put the seedlings in. Here ar a few close-ups of the leaves.
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Looks an awful lot like Walnut Toxicity. I have not had the problem affect me or my crop ever, but I have heard about it.
So basically, walnut toxicity is when Juglone, which is a liquid produced by walnut or pecan trees. It is produced on the bark, the leaves, and the roots. When it rains, the Juglone gets sprayed onto nearly plants. Eggplants are just as delicate as tomatoes when it comes to walnut toxicity and Juglone. It can also affect your plants if the roots of the tree are close to the roots of your tomato plants.
Do you have a walnut or pecan tree close by? If yes, this is probably the reason why they are wilting.
Have you grown tomatoes last year in this exact spot where this year's tomatoes are growing?
Potted tomatoes are will most likely not be affected by Juglone.
Do a bit of research to decide if it is indeed Walnut Toxicity, a good info site js this: https://www.tomatodirt.com/walnut-wilt.html and if you are sure about this, you can save them by potting them and placing them farther away from the walnut tree.
Good luck and keep us posted!
So basically, walnut toxicity is when Juglone, which is a liquid produced by walnut or pecan trees. It is produced on the bark, the leaves, and the roots. When it rains, the Juglone gets sprayed onto nearly plants. Eggplants are just as delicate as tomatoes when it comes to walnut toxicity and Juglone. It can also affect your plants if the roots of the tree are close to the roots of your tomato plants.
Do you have a walnut or pecan tree close by? If yes, this is probably the reason why they are wilting.
Have you grown tomatoes last year in this exact spot where this year's tomatoes are growing?
Potted tomatoes are will most likely not be affected by Juglone.
Do a bit of research to decide if it is indeed Walnut Toxicity, a good info site js this: https://www.tomatodirt.com/walnut-wilt.html and if you are sure about this, you can save them by potting them and placing them farther away from the walnut tree.
Good luck and keep us posted!
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rainbowgardener
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If there is a walnut tree tree very near by, that is a possibility. But that would be a pretty big coincidence and personally I've always thought the juglone thing has been a bit over-sold. I have grown a number of things directly under a big old black walnut (at my previous location). The main issue was the shade of the tree at that point.
The thread I linked to suggests looking for stem borers (hole at the base of the stem with sawdusty stuff coming out of it) or root problems. Often when a plant wilts in the presence of plenty of water, it is a root problem. The damaged roots can't take up the water, so the leaves wilt, just as if there were no roots. That can be due to root rot disease, or some pest chewing up the roots.
The thread I linked to suggests looking for stem borers (hole at the base of the stem with sawdusty stuff coming out of it) or root problems. Often when a plant wilts in the presence of plenty of water, it is a root problem. The damaged roots can't take up the water, so the leaves wilt, just as if there were no roots. That can be due to root rot disease, or some pest chewing up the roots.
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Gary350
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When I lived at a different house I had 3 pecan trees next to the west edge of my garden for 20 years they were never a problem with garden plants so that must be an old wives tale. I planted everything within 2 feet of the pecan trees. I never planted the same thing in the same place often. I kept a map of each years crop and rotated. There were, tomatoes, potatoes, beans, peas, squash, corn, chard, turnip greens okra, garlic, bell peppers, all planted next to the pecan trees at one time of the other.
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Lindsaylew82
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JC's Garden
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The next time you think you need to water, grab a shovel and dig down a foot or so between a few plants. If the soil is still moist, you're probably over watering. If it's way to dry, you're not watering enough. If you find a mass of roots that don't belong to tomatoes, you have a tree root problem. If that doesn't work, it sounds like insects or disease.
What kind of tomatoes have you planted? How hot is it where you are? If they perk up the roots must be absorbing some water. Try shading and see if it helps with the midday wilting. At this time of year tomatoes will need to be deeply watered and may even need midday misting to cool it off. Shading from the midday sun might help if the problem is heat stress.