This is all going to sound really naive - but here goes -
I am totally new to gardening and have a new ploytunnel set up this year - I would live in it as I have 4 very young children and the peace and quiet is amazing - we all got busy and planted lots os seeds and these all grew then we transplanted them in to the tunnel - 3 varieties of tomatoes - I know I am guilty of over planting all too close and cramped - I have thinned out some, and now all the plants are full of fruit - BUT -
all the tomatoes are going from full green to brownish then sark brown - nothing is turning red at all -
PLease HELP - I have about 150 tomatoes looking very sad and not at al inviting -
very grateful for any advice as I am at a loss -
thanks:(
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MichelleBoley
- Newly Registered
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- Joined: Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:58 am
- Location: Northern Ireland
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rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
I don't have any good answers for you, but since no one else responded, I'll do what I can. I have never grown in polytunnel, so I don't know how that changes things, and I'm not very familiar with your climate there in Ireland (on the cool and damp side?). This is probably why you didn't get a response, because others were having the same difficulty.
The first thing that strikes me is that you were brave to the point of possibly a little foolhardy with 4 small children and never having gardened before to plunge right in large scale and lots of technical set up... Did you mean 150 tomato fruits (how many plants is that?) or (OMG!) 150 tomato plants?
Anyway all the tomatoes that have turned brown are probably a dead loss. Sorry, but pitch them. Are they turning brown on the blossom end (away from the attachment to the stem)? That would be blossom end rot. It's a calcium deficiency caused by stress making the plant unable to uptake calcium. Type blossom end rot into the search box on upper left of most pages and there's been lots written here about it. Here's a link to a fact sheet with a picture of what it looks like:
https://www.uri.edu/ce/factsheets/sheets/blossendrot.html
If you don't think this is it, then think about posting a picture of what your tomatoes look like and give us a little more information about what your weather and conditions have been and how you've been treating the plants (ie fertilizer, etc).
The first thing that strikes me is that you were brave to the point of possibly a little foolhardy with 4 small children and never having gardened before to plunge right in large scale and lots of technical set up... Did you mean 150 tomato fruits (how many plants is that?) or (OMG!) 150 tomato plants?
Anyway all the tomatoes that have turned brown are probably a dead loss. Sorry, but pitch them. Are they turning brown on the blossom end (away from the attachment to the stem)? That would be blossom end rot. It's a calcium deficiency caused by stress making the plant unable to uptake calcium. Type blossom end rot into the search box on upper left of most pages and there's been lots written here about it. Here's a link to a fact sheet with a picture of what it looks like:
https://www.uri.edu/ce/factsheets/sheets/blossendrot.html
If you don't think this is it, then think about posting a picture of what your tomatoes look like and give us a little more information about what your weather and conditions have been and how you've been treating the plants (ie fertilizer, etc).
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MichelleBoley
- Newly Registered
- Posts: 3
- Joined: Thu Aug 27, 2009 5:58 am
- Location: Northern Ireland
Thanks so much for being brave enough to reply to my desperate email - no I am not quite that mad - 150 fruits on about 28 plants in total -
I will get out to the tunnel at wee ones rest time this PM and check but I do believe that this si what you describe as blossom end rot - I have not fed them anything trying for the totally natural approach - but I am learning - will get back with an update if it is blossom end rot - thanks again - MUCH appreciated