What is this malady?

[Baizanator]

What is this ailment? At first I thought it was Southern Bacterial Wilt and then I thought it was Bacterial Canker. There is no brown inside the plant. The leaves wilt but the petrioles and the stem stay green. The plant eventually loses all leaves. It killed my first set very slowly, moving up from the lower branches to the upper branches and is now on my lower branches on my fall plants, which are just beginning to set fruit. Please help me and, if there is anything I can do, please advise.

[carolyn137]

http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=24800

You already have a thread about this same problem here on the first page of the General Discussion Forum, not the Disease and Pest Forum.

Taking up where I left off on the first thread I think it's time for you to contact your local Cooperative Extension and ask them if either Bacterail Wilt and/or Bacterial Canker are commonly found in your area.

And that b'c as I recall, I apologize for not going back and reading the whole thread linked to above, b'c you said that you had some affected plants growing in containers of some kind and if you used artificial mix for those it's hard to see that any soil borne systemic diseases would be at fault.

I know I said something about weeds being a host for both and you asked if it could also be grass clippings since you lived in an apartment and they mowed the lawn every week. No, common grass would not be considered a weed in terms of those two diseases.

IS the picture you show from plants in a container? If it's a sudden collapse of the plant with still green leaves it sure looks like Bacterial Wilt to me.

Did you do the cut stem diagnosis to look for streaming white bacteria in a glass that I shared with you?

Finally, I remember you saying you were doing some kind of study with tomatoes and had a thesis advisor. If so, why couldn't that person help you out with a diagnosis?

[Baizanator]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=24800

You already have a thread about this same problem here on the first page of the General Discussion Forum, not the Disease and Pest Forum.

Taking up where I left off on the first thread I think it's time for you to contact your local Cooperative Extension and ask them if either Bacterail Wilt and/or Bacterial Canker are commonly found in your area.

And that b'c as I recall, I apologize for not going back and reading the whole thread linked to above, b'c you said that you had some affected plants growing in containers of some kind and if you used artificial mix for those it's hard to see that any soil borne systemic diseases would be at fault.

I know I said something about weeds being a host for both and you asked if it could also be grass clippings since you lived in an apartment and they mowed the lawn every week. No, common grass would not be considered a weed in terms of those two diseases.

IS the picture you show from plants in a container? If it's a sudden collapse of the plant with still green leaves it sure looks like Bacterial Wilt to me.

Did you do the cut stem diagnosis to look for streaming white bacteria in a glass that I shared with you?

Finally, I remember you saying you were doing some kind of study with tomatoes and had a thesis advisor. If so, why couldn't that person help you out with a diagnosis?

First of all Dr. Male, I'm sorry to have "burdened" the board with a post on the same topic I was discussing last week.

Secondly, I have not done the white bacteria water test but will do so today. I have not contacted my faculty adviser because he is at a TAMUS Experiment Station in Africa and would, thus, be unable to help me.

Yes the plants are all in the containers and it is an artificial mix.

I am currently in a graduate class being taught by the County Agent as an adjunct instructor, so I will take the affected leaves and ask him.

As for the plants, it's not a sudden collapse. The plants are big and beautiful with only the bottom limbs being affected. If I remove a limb then, in a few days, the sickness will have progressed up the plant to another.

Thanks again, as always.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Baizanator

First of all Dr. Male, I'm sorry to have "burdened" the board with a post on the same topic I was discussing last week.

Secondly, I have not done the white bacteria water test but will do so today. I have not contacted my faculty adviser because he is at a TAMUS Experiment Station in Africa and would, thus, be unable to help me.

Yes the plants are all in the containers and it is an artificial mix.

I am currently in a graduate class being taught by the County Agent as an adjunct instructor, so I will take the affected leaves and ask him.

As for the plants, it's not a sudden collapse. The plants are big and beautiful with only the bottom limbs being affected. If I remove a limb then, in a few days, the sickness will have progressed up the plant to another.

Thanks again, as always.

Please, I'm Carolyn, not Dr. Male.I was Dr. Male when I was working but have signed off on every post I've done about tomatoes since 1982.

And it's not a burden to the Forum, but I seem to be the only one trying to help and those who answer questions in the Disease and Pest Forum can also answer here if they want to.

If you do the streaming test be sure to make a cutting from a stem where there are affected leaves.

Taking leaves to your County Agent I don't think is going to help b'c there are no spots on the leaves. He or she would need to see the whole plants, with your description of how the disease progresses in order to be helpful. See them directly or you could send pictures to the County Agent I would imagine.

I still feel it's a systemic disease but am having some trouble with that since the plants are being grown in artificial mix which should have no pathogens. Chewing insects have been known to transmit, though, from the weed hosts I referred to and also it's been known that plants can be infected via wounds.

But I'm going to defer to others who might post here and more importantly your Country Agent who should be the most helpful being in your area and who should know much more about what the possibilities might be.

[Baizanator]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=24800

You already have a thread about this same problem here on the first page of the General Discussion Forum, not the Disease and Pest Forum.

Taking up where I left off on the first thread I think it's time for you to contact your local Cooperative Extension and ask them if either Bacterail Wilt and/or Bacterial Canker are commonly found in your area.

And that b'c as I recall, I apologize for not going back and reading the whole thread linked to above, b'c you said that you had some affected plants growing in containers of some kind and if you used artificial mix for those it's hard to see that any soil borne systemic diseases would be at fault.

I know I said something about weeds being a host for both and you asked if it could also be grass clippings since you lived in an apartment and they mowed the lawn every week. No, common grass would not be considered a weed in terms of those two diseases.

IS the picture you show from plants in a container? If it's a sudden collapse of the plant with still green leaves it sure looks like Bacterial Wilt to me.

Did you do the cut stem diagnosis to look for streaming white bacteria in a glass that I shared with you?

Finally, I remember you saying you were doing some kind of study with tomatoes and had a thesis advisor. If so, why couldn't that person help you out with a diagnosis?

Carolyn,

No white streaming bacteria but illness continues to move up plants. Tops of plants are strong and beautiful but illness slowly creeping up.

[barkeater]

Hasn't it been over 100 degrees for days on end in Texas?

[Baizanator]

It is certainly not the heat. Plants are thriving aside from this.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by Baizanator

It is certainly not the heat. Plants are thriving aside from this.

That's like saying the guy is doing fine except for the bullet hole in his head.

If it were me and I thought is was a disease I would pull up everything and burn it.

In all of these years of growing tomatoes I have never seen what you described.
I have seen roots damaged and stalks damaged to the point the entire plant wilted all at once.
If it were a soil born virus it would effect the main stalk and this would effect the entire plant at once.(I think)
Some diseases start from the top and work their way down like leaf scald on certain plants.
Leaf scald is a virus carried by the glassy winged leaf hopper and is taking out oleander by the thousands.

What you have is a strange symptom indeed.
Instant localized wilting as though the water was cut off to just that area.

Worth

[desertlzbn]

Get a 20x magnifier and look for russet mites, they get my plants every year.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by desertlzbn

Get a 20x magnifier and look for russet mites, they get my plants every year.

Yes some sort of critter moving its way to the top.
I think I will buy a cheap microscope.

Worth

[Garf]

Originally Posted by Worth1

Yes some sort of critter moving its way to the top.
I think I will buy a cheap microscope.

Worth

Cheap Microscope:
http://www.sciplus.com/search.cfm?ut...=0&btnHand.y=0

[Sun City Linda]

I was thinking russet mites also, which I get every year too. But you should be seeing some brown crunchy leaves as they move up the stem.

I'm not so sure it isnt the heat. My plant outs are really struggling in these temps. They look like crap and have some whole branches dying (melting). I dont suppose we would look too great it we spent 12 hours out in these temps!

An EB, or any container does not supply as much protection from temps as the ground. And if you are in an apartment courtyard you probably have lots of concrete surfaces to magnify the heat.

[Baizanator]

There were a few crunchy leaves. I have a miticide. I'll treat and see if that clears it up.

[Baizanator]

I let the plants go for a few days to see how this progressed. After doing so, I'm pretty sure it's Fusarium as the stems have turned brown and the vascular system is drying up.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by Baizanator

I let the plants go for a few days to see how this progressed. After doing so, I'm pretty sure it's Fusarium as the stems have turned brown and the vascular system is drying up.

In one of your first posts you said that these plants were in containers with artificial mix. If so I have some problems with a Dx of Fusarium, which is usually a soil borne systemic disease. It has been reported, but rarely, that Fusarium can be spread by dust, but from your description of where you garden I think that's a long shot.

Stems turning brown is not the only symptom that one should see with Fusarium, nor vascular problems.

Riceke, the picture of the affected foliage shows leaves that are curled over so I haven't seen any indication of Septoria or Early Blight (A. solani) or either Bacterial Speck or Bacterial Spot, which are the four most common foliage diseases, simply b'c I can't see spread out leaves. But if there were spots on the foliage I think that B would have called that to the attention of others. IN addition, the foliage diseases don't cause wilting of leaves.

And I'll bow out on the russet mite discussion b'c I have never seen it and could only comment from what I read online.

I Do know that Russet Mites are quite common in CA, but didn't know they could also be a problem in TX.

I just got finished doing a bunch of bills, leaving the School tax biggie one for next week, so time to go out to the LV and relax a bit.