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Growing Healthy Tomatoes Terry L. Yockey |
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There really is nothing like tomatoes grown in your own garden. Not only do they taste better then store-bought, but you can control what goes on them and when they are picked. Unfortunately, tomatoes aren't just popular with us--they are also a favorite host to umpteen pests and diseases. Here's a few of the more common problems you may find in your tomato patch and how you can avoid them in the future. One problem that often occurs is blossom end rot. The fruits look
normal on the top, but when you go to pick them there is a large, unappetizing
black spot on the blossom end of the tomato. This is not a disease, but
is caused by a lack of calcium in the fruit. One way to avoid this is to
make sure you water and mulch regularly. Even moisture will also help keep
the fruit from splitting. The " |
Growing tomatoes upside down in the
Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter |
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Catfacing is when the fruits are deformed and the blossom ends become scarred and distorted. This can be caused by cool weather during the plant's pollination. The Minnesota Extension Service recommends starting your plants April 1st through the 15th, and setting them out between May 15 through June 1st. If you can't wait until late May to start your tomatoes, you can also try to jumpstart your season by using The two most harmful fungal diseases that attack tomato plants are
fusarium
and verticillim wilt. Infected plants display yellowing and wilting of
the older leaves about midsummer. The yellowing moves up the stem until the
whole plant is dead. Unfortunately, there are no controls which are effective
against either fungus. Instead, gardeners should be proactive and practice crop
rotation and plant only wilt-resistant tomato varieties which are designated by
a VF after the cultivar name. A plastic mulch such as
The Red Mulch Fruits that are allowed to touch the ground can also develop fruit rot
from anthracnose and early and late blight. Sometimes one problem can cause another. If your plants have lost their leaves from a wilt disease and the fruits are exposed to the sunlight, they may develop sunscald. This in turn can set up a secondary invasion by other decay-causing organisms. Covering the exposed fruits with straw or another loose covering may help protect them from the damaging sunlight. Do you have huge, towering tomato plants that don't produce more then a few
tomatoes all season? You may be applying too much nitrogen fertilizer. They do
best with a balanced fertilizer high in phosphorous (the second number in the
formula). A large nitrogen number causes leaf growth at the expense of your
fruit production. Most |
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What can you do with all those green tomatoes still on the plant when the weather starts to cool down? Start by root pruning your tomato plants. About a foot from the base of your plant, make a circle about six inches deep all the way around. This will help get the ripening stage jumpstarted. You should also keep your old bedspread and sheets handy in case an early frost decides to strike. Put them over the plants in the late afternoon and leave them on until the next morning when the temperature is back to above freezing. When it starts frosting regularly, you can still get your green tomatoes to ripen inside. Place the mature green fruit in separate small paper bags with with a banana or an apple. In less then a week you should have fully ripe tomatoes. |
Self-watering containers like the
Tomato Success Kit |
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