Herbicide Damage or Virus or Something else?

[Christa B.]

A couple of my tomato plants have leaves that are curly and really small/skinny. It mostly seems to be on newer growth (the top half of the plants). The lower leaves appear to be mostly normal. Anybody know what it is? Thanks for any advice.

[ginger2778]

Christa, got a photo?

[Christa B.]

Yes I forgot to add it then edited and added. Thanks!

[ginger2778]

Thanks Christa. Yes, definitely herbicide damage. Bad case too.

[Christa B.]

Thank you for the answer! Do they usually recover when they look this bad or no? I have 15 acres and we rent half of it out to a farmer for planting beans or corn every year, he does use herbicide but I haven't noticed anything like this until this year. We have a good sized chunk of woods that separate our field from our yard. I am using straw to mulch my garden but only a couple of my plants are showing damage like this so it probably wouldn't be the straw right?

[NewWestGardener]

Do you think the straw you are using for mulch has anything to do with it?

I can't tell from just one photo, but it does look similar to my plants, fern-like leaves on new growth. I would post a photo later. I just figured out what happened to mine: the new compost I bought in April, which was mostly manure. I also mixed some in to my potting soil when transplanting my seedlings, and they had distorted and stunted growth. After some research online, I am now convinced that the manure had herbicide in it, which came from hay the animals were fed.

Not all plants are affected the same way. The supertunia I mass planted did not seem to be bothered by it. I had one broccoli plant sitting in a pile of the compost, the thing turned into a huge monster, so I guess the cabage family can put up with it. They say tomatoes, peppers, peas and beans are most susceptible, but no cucumbers. So I planted cukes in the same bed that had the new compost. I just started watering more hoping to flush the residue out.
p.s. not all varieties of tomatoes are affected by it equally either. My Sungold, big beef are fine, but Nectar and Maglia Rosa are all twisted.

[Cole_Robbie]

Did you add manure or compost?

[Christa B.]

Yes the straw crossed my mind. I posted about it right above your post. I did also add Miracle Gro garden soil into some of my planting holes. I have clay soil and ran out of homemade compost so I improvised with what I had. I am not saying that is what caused it but you never know....Thanks!

[Christa B.]

Thanks for all the info! Two of my watermelon plants died a week ago, now I am wondering if herbicide was the culprit.

[Ricky Shaw]

A lot of good info here:

Persistent Herbicide FAQ, US Composting Council

http://compostingcouncil.org/persistent-herbicide-faq/

[loulac]

Ricky Shaw's information comes as a warning. Unfortunately one can't trace the origin of wheat straw used for manure. Some seeds seem to be more vulnerable than others and won't germinate (carrots).
In Christa B 's case I would first suspect herbicide spread on a lawn near by, a whiff of wind is enough to hit your garden. Will your tomato plant recover ? My cristal ball isn't working today !

[Salsacharley]

I had some herbicide damage like that a couple of years ago. Strangely, it was only on 2 plants and they were not side by side. The other plants around them weren't affected. The damaged plants stayed alive but never did very well.

Are those pink blossoms morning glory?

[cwavec]

Did you spray anything yourself? Such as a fungicide or whatnot. I had a similar
situation several years ago when I was spraying copper soap against late blight.
At the same time I was using leaf compost from the municipal pile. My tomatoes
developed that "monkey-fisted" look as in your photo. I immediately thought of
herbicide residue in the compost. However, that turned out not to be the case
as I later found out that I was getting phytotoxicity from the copper soap
(copper octanoate). Now this preparation is actually rather benign and it did stop
the late blight rather well. At the time, the recommended dose was 1 ounce per
gallon of water. That turned out to be too much for young plants, although they
later recovered. The manufacturer has since reduced the recommended dose to
1/2 to 1 oz. per gallon. I am still spraying copper soap regularly without damage
but at a lower concentration.

[greenthumbomaha]

I used several potting mixes, and have damage on some, not all transplants.

A few bagged products I used:

Miracle Grow Potting Mix (yellow bag)

Wal Mart (forgot exact name, brand mentioned in another thread) Organic Potting Mix

Fertilome (red bag) for peppers, no damage

Dr Earth Homemade for peppers, no problems


I am suspicious of the first two, but too many variables exist with neighbors spraying to be conclusive. Some got the damage, some not so I am leaning toward the mix I used after potting up.

- Lisa

[Wi-sunflower]

There was a thread here about 2 years ago about how some of the newer pesticides used on hay fields can damage plants even after it's gone thru the cow.

Another thing tho, you absolutely need to talk to the farmer that you rent to. Especially if you rotate spots and at times plant in areas he had used. Many of the herbicides used on corn and beans (Round-up excluded) are very persistent and have labels saying not to plant vulnerable crops for 18 months to 2 years afterward. Almost ALL vegies are vulnerable crops. It would be good to know what he sprays EVERY year so you can look up the label to be sure there is no restrictions on the next crop.

BTDT,
Carol