Clemery76
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New grower - what am I doing wrong?

Hi everyone... hoping you can help me here.

I am a fairly new gardener, as have tried growing Cherry Tomato plants a few times now. While they start out strong, they invariably end up dying in the same fashion.

It starts with a few greying leaves after a couple of months, which then spreads to a few branches before finally the whole plant.

Each attempt has been in a different location, but they all get at least 5 hours of sun pet day. I thought perhaps I was overwatering, so left this current crop to regular irrigation and winter rains. Our winter has been pretty mild this year too (Perth WA).

Have you any idea what's going on?

Thanks in advance for any advice!
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Gary350
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Your tomato problem looks like blight to me. I have the same problem with blight. I keep blight under control by mixing 1 tablespoon baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon dish soap in 1 gallon of water then put the mixture in a weed sprayer then stray my tomato plants. Be sure to spray the whole plant, both sides of all the leaves and stem from the soil all the way up to all the leaves. Pull or cut off all the dead leaves. If it rains an washes baking soda off the tomato plants you will need to spray plants again. I spray my plants 2 times every week to prevent blight from returning. 5 hours of full sun is all tomato plants need I plant my plants so they get cool early morning sun then full shade from a 50 ft tree 12 noon to dark.

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applestar
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Welcome to the forum. I’m still just rubbing sleep outa my eyes so here are some food for thoughts. (I’ll check back later :wink: )

Main point being cherry tomatoes grow like vines and need to be supported to keep off the ground (I see some slug damage there) and for good air flow (helps to prevent fungal disease)
applestar wrote:
Wed Jun 29, 2016 5:03 am
2 m cherry tomatoes will be better off with a stake. Are you in Europe or Canada? If you do, tall spiral tomato stakes are more easily obtainable than in the US for some reason. Bamboo, wood, or metal rods will work as well but you need to pound the bottom 30 - 40 cm or more into the ground. Bunch and tie up with string every 15 cm or so, tying securely to the stake first, then the bundle of vines. Limit side shoots (pinch or clip off) so there are only maximum 4-6 vines.


Subject: Cargo Netting as Tomato Support???

Subject: Tomato Support Methods

Vanisle_BC
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Hi & welcome Clemery76. I don't have the knowledge to answer your question but I'm wondering: When you say your problem is with cherry tomatoes, does this mean you successfully grow other types of tomato - or am I reading too much into your words?

imafan26
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Welcome to the forum. I do agree that it does look like blight. There are a couple of things to do. First, if you are planting the tomatoes in the same location, I would move it somewhere else. It is actually too close to the wall and that will limit air circulation. At least move it outward to where there is some space between the wall and the plants. (24-36 inches out). This is going to be true for most plants, but especially plants prone to fungal or bacterial diseases.

Staking or trellising along with pruning will keep the plants neater, conserve space by managing the sprawl, and allow better air circulation. Indeterminate tomatoes should be pruned. Determinate tomatoes not so much. I prefer cages to stakes because I am lazy. I do have some tomato cages but I have to stack them and they are not that wide. I prefer to make cages with concrete reinforcement wire. 24-30 inch diameter cages work best for me. Mostly I have to push the vines back in the cage. I use the 7 foot tall wire. My tomatoes will even top this and go on to be 8-10 ft long. I don't like to continually have to tie tomatoes up and prune so hard. In either case, the lower leaves of the tomatoes are not needed so remove about two feet of the lower leaves just to save some grief later. Watering should be with a gentle soaker not a sprinkler or hose from above. I use the bags that the compost or soil comes in with the white side out around the base of the plant for mulch. It helps retain water, control weeds, and keeps the dirt from splashing back unto the tomato leaves.

Next there are a lot of cherry tomatoes or even larger tomatoes to pick from. If you have a lot of humidity, and and live in a relatively wet place, variety will matter. You may have to choose something that will have disease resistance. I matters if you live in Perth, Canada, it is different from Perth, Australia. It would be a good idea to edit your account and add your location so we will see it whenever you visit.


Mountain Magic, Jasper, Matt's wild cherry have good resistance. Resistance is not immunity. These tomatoes will do better than other tomatoes but they still need an environment that provides lots of air circulation and lower humidity to do their best. Plant at the right time of the year, provide good air circulation and protection from rain, where it rains a lot. I would choose a location that is in full sun and well away from solid walls and fences. Treliss or cage tomatoes and plant so that tomatoes are at least 2-3 feet apart. The leaves of the plants should not be touching each other, or other plants as well. Prune what you don't need off. If you let the tomatoes sprawl, they will need an open space. Choose a variety that is recommended for your climate or check out neighbors that have nice tomatoes and ask them what variety they are growing.

Other merits need to be taken into account. Right now I must grow TYLCV resistant tomatoes. The best ones for me are Charger, Camaro, and Red currant. Red currant grows wild and does sprawl in my yard. I don't have really any disease issues with it even on the ground, but it does spread on open ground and is not near a solid fence or wall. Charger and Camaro are similar. I grow these in cages. They have a very good disease resistant package and even when it rains and humidity is high, they are resistant to downy and powdery mildew. I will see late blight as the plants get older (around 5-6 months old) but as long as the plants are fed and healthy they resist disease for a very long time. I have kept tomatoes for up to 9 months. The Charger I have now was planted in January and has some dying branches and the fruit is smaller, so it is getting to be time to change it. Charger is not heat tolerant. It will drop fruit and fail to set in temperatures above 90 F. (32 C. ), but resumes fruiting when the temperatures start to get milder. Tomatoes are not a beginner crop. It is hard to grow nice tomatoes in the tropics. Actually, most temperate crops are harder to grow than tropical or Asian plants for me unless I pick the right varieties and put in a lot of effort to keep them healthy. It would be better to begin with a plant that is suitable for your climate. BTW, if you grow good tomatoes, you will have to protect them from birds as well as snails.

https://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/NewsArticles/Tomatoes-LB-Resistant.html
https://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/Tables/Tomato_2013.pdf

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applestar
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Looks like you’re getting good advice! Image

Vanisle_BC
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.
Great information; well done imafan!
.... matters if you live in Perth, Canada, it is different from Perth, Australia ......
.... and a lot different from the 'real' Perth:
'Perth (Scottish Gaelic: Peairt) is a city and former royal burgh in central Scotland. There has been a settlement at Perth since prehistoric times.' https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_o ... ,_Scotland

Clemery did say WA. I assumed that would be Western Australia and not a new US state. (Sorry, I couldn't resist having a little fun with that :)). Anyway, agreed that having your un-abbreviated location in your avatar is both helpful and courteous.

Clemery76 I see your climate is 'Mediterranean' - a bit warmer than mine here on Vancouver Island, but not much different, I think. All the tomatoes I've tried have grown well here. Most were vining types trained up strings in a raised bed that's open sided with a high covered roof. I also grow some determinates in cages. For what it's worth, I've raised tomatoes in the same raised bed for about 10 years without disease problems. Also the local birds don't seem to care for them. I hope you find the solution to your problem. Tomatoes are such a rewarding crop.

Vanisle_BC
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P.S. Clemery - I had tomato late blight once, before adding the roof over my bed but not in the many years since. Also had sunscald in our hottest, sunniest summer. Put a stop to it by protecting the plants with shade cloth. Good luck! Is it now approaching your time to start seedlings indoors?

imafan26
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Thanks for the information about the "real Perth". When I looked up Perth, Canada and Australia showed up but not Scotland. And I did not know that WA meant western Australia either.

People can grow crops in the same place every year if they don't have disease problems. Many diseases are seed or soil borne and some are just spores in the air. If there are issues with diseases that recur, it may not be the best location to start with. Fungal and bacterial diseases hang around a bit. It is best not to plant the same family of plants in a location that has problems since members of the same family usually have the same issues.

My yard is not really big enough to rotate in space. I rotate in time instead. Some things like sweet basil and most tomatoes, I can no longer plant at all. I have tried not planting them for a couple of years but the diseases now are endemic. Downy basil mildew will show up in a couple of weeks after Walmart's plants start looking sick. TYLCV appeared in my yard in 2011. I have also not planted tomatoes for 3 years and still had the same issues. TYLCV has many asymptomatic alternative hosts like peppers, eggplant, and beans. I don't have a true winter to kill everything off, and even if I could get rid of it in my yard, it is widespread on the island. My only choice for both problems are resistant cultivars. I am still waiting for a GMO sweet basil, till then I can only grow Thai basil, lemon, cinnamon, ajaka, African, and holy basil. Obsession was developed by Rutgers as a resistant replacement for sweet basil. It does look similar but it does not taste anything like it.


A cover or hoophouse that can keep out rain helps to keep the leaves dry and can provide shade when the sun is particularly intense.

Vanisle_BC
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Imafan, you sure sorted out my ideas about how easy it must be to grow almost anything in Hawaii. My envy is now tinged with sympathy; can't grow tomatoes or sweet basil? Ouch. But you do have some tasty compensations. Somebody once said "Wherever you go, there you are." I guess wherever you are, you grow what grows.

imafan26
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I can grow tomatoes, but they have to be disease resistant. Charger has been the best one so far in terms of disease resistance. Red currant, I found out by accident is resistant. It grows wild in my yard and is very tiny but also very sweet. I can grow other basils, but sweet basil, I can no longer grow until a GMO sweet basil is developed. Downy mildew has been around for 11 years now and breeding has only developed basil that looks like sweet basil but tastes more like thai basil.

In a 365 day growing zone, there is no winter to kill off pathogens or bad bugs. High heat and humidity means that I can grow most things from zone 9 up. I can grow some zone 8 plants. They all have to be heat resistant to last through summer.

I cannot grow anything that requires winter chill, dahlias will grow and bloom from seed, but the tubers will never wake up by themselves here. On the other hand gladiolus and amaryllis naturalize. Tropical vegetables grow the best in heat and humidity. They don't mind the rain either, but they still have other diseases. Pests and diseases are not going to be killed off by winter so things like corn and tomatoes have to be selected for resistance to disease and heat. Strawberries and corn will depend on day length. I can grow warm season crops almost all year but hairy crops like tomatoes, and cucurbits will have a lot of problems with disease if they are not resistant. Cool season crops will do best starting September-May. I have a lot of plants that pretty much take care of themselves except for occasional pruning and feeding. I hardly water some of them at all. Tropical plants shed only older leaves. They don't really go bare. Gold trees, crepe myrtle and frangipani (plumeria) will shed leaves but none of them are native.

I can grow temperate crops if I choose the right varieties. Some plants like fuschias can be acclimated but it is hard to get them through the first year. Some things are just not worth the space since they don't grow as well for me like bulbing onions, garlic, or carrots. I can grow them with a lot of effort, but they are relatively cheap to buy and not valuable considering the amount of space and opportunity cost of growing something more expensive, tastes and grows much better.

I can grow a lot of things that are more exotic. I like exotic. I wish I could grow peaches, and some of the berries, but there are tropical alternatives and some of the low chill fruit are o.k.

Clemery76
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Sorry for the delay in my response, but thanks everyone for your responses. I am overwhelmed by the helpfulness and positivity of them all.

I am likely going to rip these out and start again, so I'll keep all your tips in mind.

I certainly was surprised by just how large they grow and they definitely got the better of me, so I'll be sure to prune them back a lot harder and more regularly, and change the trellis to a cage style.

I am indeed in Perth Western Australia (the true true Perth! :-P). I am not sure what style of Cherry Tomatoes I bought, but I'll pay more attention next time.

I have planted them in three different locations (even different suburbs), and the previous ones had more air flow. This location is ideal in terms of space at the new house thigh, so will just keep air flow in mind for my next planting.

Fingers crossed I finally nail it this time!

Thanks again! :-)



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