Pretty sure four of my eleven tomato plants have contracted curly top. The really disappointing thing is that both of my San Marzanos are victims. Both of them, along with the Amish Paste, were the most vigorous of all my plants, and they were filled with nice large tomatoes. Now the growth has come to a virtual halt, although a couple new trusses have a few images on them.
Add to that the fact that my Brandywines and Cherokee Purples aren't producing much of anything, and I'm looking at easily the worst tomato season I've had since I really started gardening a few years ago. Thank God for a couple of my volunteers, otherwise I'd be SOL!
Ugh...
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applestar
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Sorry to hear that. 
Do you mind posting some photos? I am still unfamiliar with curly top.
I think I finally have a good grasp of hwo to recognize herbicide damage causing curly shoots, and the longitudinal leaf roll due to eneven water stress. I recently learned that when there is a large difference in daytime and night time temperatures, developing tomato tops will curl into loops.
Do you mind posting some photos? I am still unfamiliar with curly top.
I think I finally have a good grasp of hwo to recognize herbicide damage causing curly shoots, and the longitudinal leaf roll due to eneven water stress. I recently learned that when there is a large difference in daytime and night time temperatures, developing tomato tops will curl into loops.
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gixxerific
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Are you speaking of curly top the virus as spread by leafhoppers?
I had this last year and it wiped out 2 whole rows like a truck drove through my garden. They did nothing from than on I should have pulled them way earlier but I had hope. It is not contagious though so don't worry about spreading. Like I said you could have take a section out of my garden and everything else was fine. Even on the back fence row where I had an infected plant sitting 32 inches from it's neighbor, yet the neighbor and all the rest on that line did fabulous. Not a thing you can do either.
I am sorry to hear this, it was very disheartening for me. It took out my earliest plants, meaning my most anticipated plants.
About 16 or 18 of them.
Good luck.
I had this last year and it wiped out 2 whole rows like a truck drove through my garden. They did nothing from than on I should have pulled them way earlier but I had hope. It is not contagious though so don't worry about spreading. Like I said you could have take a section out of my garden and everything else was fine. Even on the back fence row where I had an infected plant sitting 32 inches from it's neighbor, yet the neighbor and all the rest on that line did fabulous. Not a thing you can do either.
I am sorry to hear this, it was very disheartening for me. It took out my earliest plants, meaning my most anticipated plants.
About 16 or 18 of them.Good luck.
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mattie g
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Yup...that's what I think it is, gixx. Here are a few pictures. Maybe someone can confirm whether it is, in fact, curly top virus.
This one is an in-ground San Marzano. The perspective is a little off because I didn't get a great contrasting background, but I think you can see the situation - really healthy leaves about 8-10" from the top of the plant, but stunted growth up top.
The second is a containered San Marzano. You get a much better perspective from this picture. Interestingly enough, a few new tomatoes have fruited from a truss that formed after first indications of curly top - you can see one of the new fruits just to the left of the stake above the top-most healthy truss.
This one is a volunteer that I transplanted early in the season. I think it might be seed from a store-bought paste tomato because the fruits on it are massive paste-looking tomatoes - much bigger than any Roma I've ever grown and they look different than San Marzanos. I was really excited about this one because of the promise they showed (I much prefer paste tomatoes), but this was the first to exhibit signs of a problem (close to a month ago). Again...tough to see clearly, but I think you can get the gist of it.
Anyone think it might not be curly top virus?
This one is an in-ground San Marzano. The perspective is a little off because I didn't get a great contrasting background, but I think you can see the situation - really healthy leaves about 8-10" from the top of the plant, but stunted growth up top.
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mattie g
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To add...
I can't imagine this would be the result of herbicide damage unless there were some sort of drift that came from a neighbor who may have had herbicide sprayed at some point. However, none of my neighbors use herbicides that I know of, and even if they did I can't see how the damage would occur in such a pattern given the layout of my yard and the orientation of the trees in relation to prevailing winds, etc.
The more I think about it, the more upset I get about those San Marzanos!
I can't imagine this would be the result of herbicide damage unless there were some sort of drift that came from a neighbor who may have had herbicide sprayed at some point. However, none of my neighbors use herbicides that I know of, and even if they did I can't see how the damage would occur in such a pattern given the layout of my yard and the orientation of the trees in relation to prevailing winds, etc.
The more I think about it, the more upset I get about those San Marzanos!