Help identifying spots and yellowing

watson524 · June 25, 2015

Could someone tell me what this is on my leaves? I use drip irrigation in containers tho we've had a lot of rain here in NE PA lately so the leaves getting wet is out of my control. I sprayed copper but then more rains came. Not sure how often I can spray with copper. I did trim off a bunch of leaves and even some lower branches but it seems to keep spreading. It's worst on my biggest plant but I'm seeing it now on the medium sized ones. I got them a few weeks ago from Home Depot and they're potted in Miracle Grow garden soil (non moisture control).

In looking at some pictures online, it looks like bacterial speck to me. I'm not having holes left in the leaves so I think that rules out bacterial spot. The only other thing I was thinking was septoria leaf spot but they don't go to gray spots, they stay black tho some turn to holes. I seem to run into this every year even tho this year I bleach cleaned my containers and cages before planting. So far it's not affecting blossom growth and on my 4 plants I only have one tomato that's about an inch in size and a few where the blossom just dropped and the fruit is starting to grow.

And I don't know if it's relevant but some of the "arms" are curling. So not the main stem and NOT the leaves but the "branches" if you will that the leaves are attached to are curling under on say the bottom half of the plant

thanks!

Lindalana · June 26, 2015

Septoria. Concentric circles.

watson524 · June 26, 2015

What the heck do I do about it to stop it? I've already cut some branches off and put the cutting in sealed bags. And it seems to happen each year even tho I clean the containers well and start with new dirt since this is strictly containers on my deck that I grow in.

b54red · June 26, 2015

I'll tell you how I have gotten it under control and it is very important to start the process before it becomes widespread on your plants or you will lose a lot of foliage. The first time I used this regimen some of my plants had Septoria pretty bad and I ended up with some plants that looked more like palm trees before I got it under control but I did get rid of it. Since then I have been much better about starting as soon as I see it developing so I don't lose too much foliage. Septoria is one difficult thing to eradicate once it gets a good hold on your plants.

I use the diluted bleach spray and then first thing the next morning or next evening follow up with a copper spray. Making sure to hit all sides of the leaves and stems and the mulch under the plant and being sure to spray when the sun is not on the plants with both sprays. You don't have to wait too long after the bleach spray to use another product but it is best to do the bleach spray in the evening and follow up with the copper the next morning very early. You can of course start in the morning if you wish and follow up in the evening.

Next wait about 12 more hours and then remove all the shriveled and diseased leaves. If after 3 or 4 more days you see any new problems repeat the process. It is very important to stay on top of Septoria or it can be devastating especially if you enter a very rainy period with it already started on your plants. If it is occurring during a very rainy period you may need to spray the bleach spray two times in a row before following up with the copper. By that I mean spray the bleach spray one morning very early then clip off the diseased leaves that day and respray that evening with the bleach spray and follow up with a copper spray if the rain lets up enough.

Bill

watson524 · June 26, 2015

I'd love to know where the heck it's coming from since these are all in containers with new soil every year. Geez.

It's tough not to be spraying in sun since these are on the south/east side of the house so sun comes up there but I can get it when it's just coming over the horizon around 5am. How much are you diluting the bleach? I have Clorox kitchen spray, is that too strong?

So far it's the bush goliath with it the most and the top of it looks great and full (tho I've been trimming lower down). My hanging cherry and potted cherry don't seem affected and I have one that's a full size fruit plant in the middle that I can't remember what it is (possibly an early girl bush) but that was smaller when it went in and is growing a bit but nothing crazy right now and only has a bit of a problem on the bottom which I've snipped off.

I sprayed copper yesterday all over and also on the soil. is it too soon to spray with the bleach tonite?

RayR · June 26, 2015

Welcome to the Septoria club.
The spores travel through the air, it doesn't have to originate from spores in your soil that get splashed up.
'Prune infected limbs and spray your copper fungicide and you may control it. You won't eradicate it, control is the best you can do. What kind of copper are you using?

b54red · June 26, 2015

Here is a link for the thread on the bleach spray. I wish they would make a sticky of this thread.

http://tomatoville.com/showthread.ph...t=bleach+spray

Bill

watson524 · June 26, 2015

Bonide Copper fungicide I picked up at the big orange box store. So it's just somewhere in my yard maybe or even more broadly, in the region and I just have to deal? Bummer. I am down to pruning leaf by leaf vs branch so I can retain as much as possible. Oddly, some leaves are just brown on the edges but look ok in the middle.

Thanks for the link on the bleach spray, I'll have a read.

Geez and to think I'm so careful about using my moisture meter and making sure water is even etc etc and this stupid stuff I can't really stop but just have to deal with it.

Are some varieties more resistant than others?

RayR · June 26, 2015

OK, that's a copper soap (Copper Octanoate) fungicide. That's what I'll be using since Septoria has showed up in my garden already this year. I've used it in the past and got good results.

Some varieties appear to have better resistance but there is no immunity to Septoria with tomatoes.

b54red · June 27, 2015

That summer where we had torrential rains all through mid summer the only variety that showed really good resistance to Septoria was Virginia Sweet. It was surrounded by plants that had it really bad but only a few leaves ever got infected even though many infected leaves from the other plants were intertwined with the VS in places. I had two VS plants that year and they both looked so much better than all the others by the end of the rainy spell. Maybe they just happened to be lucky but I doubt it because the two plants were far apart but both were relatively unscathed while all the others looked terrible. I'm sure there are other varieties that have some resistance but I haven't noticed them.

Bill

RayR · June 27, 2015

Quote:

Originally Posted by b54red

That summer where we had torrential rains all through mid summer the only variety that showed really good resistance to Septoria was Virginia Sweet. It was surrounded by plants that had it really bad but only a few leaves ever got infected even though many infected leaves from the other plants were intertwined with the VS in places. I had two VS plants that year and they both looked so much better than all the others by the end of the rainy spell. Maybe they just happened to be lucky but I doubt it because the two plants were far apart but both were relatively unscathed while all the others looked terrible. I'm sure there are other varieties that have some resistance but I haven't noticed them.

Bill

Bill, Virginia Sweets is one that I've been meaning to try. That would be great if it exhibits better resistance to the Yankee Septoria in my garden as it does down South in your garden. All varieties will get infected sooner or later. There are certain varieties in my garden that are the bellwethers of Septoria. The dwarfs Sophie's Choice and Chocolate Champion are the first to show infection. When they get it I know others will soon follow.

peter piper · June 27, 2015

my sungolds survived septoria last year.they grow so fast they seem to stay ahead of the disease. this year when I noticed it, I sprayed with diconal. the tomatoes look much better now ( 3 weeks of spraying, once a week).

watson524 · July 2, 2015

The extension office got back to me on the pictures I sent and confirmed it's septoria. Apparently it's bad in our area with spores floating around. Now that it has finally stopped raining, I applied the bleach mix and copper spray and trimmed most of the affected leaves off, didn't want to strip them all out, and will just keep an eye on things.

I also have a new issue, mainly on my hanging cherry tomato plant but seeing a bit of it on the other 3: blossom drop. I haven't tested the Nitrogen because of all the rain but will do that this weekend but I suspect it's because of all the rain/humidity and not polinating the flowers, at least on the non hanging one. On the hanging one, there's a LOT of flowers so I suspect it's just dropping the "extras".

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June 26, 2015	#2
Lindalana Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Chicago IL Posts: 857	Septoria. Concentric circles.

June 26, 2015	#3
watson524 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Northeast PA Posts: 5	What the heck do I do about it to stop it? I've already cut some branches off and put the cutting in sealed bags. And it seems to happen each year even tho I clean the containers well and start with new dirt since this is strictly containers on my deck that I grow in.

June 26, 2015	#4
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	I'll tell you how I have gotten it under control and it is very important to start the process before it becomes widespread on your plants or you will lose a lot of foliage. The first time I used this regimen some of my plants had Septoria pretty bad and I ended up with some plants that looked more like palm trees before I got it under control but I did get rid of it. Since then I have been much better about starting as soon as I see it developing so I don't lose too much foliage. Septoria is one difficult thing to eradicate once it gets a good hold on your plants. I use the diluted bleach spray and then first thing the next morning or next evening follow up with a copper spray. Making sure to hit all sides of the leaves and stems and the mulch under the plant and being sure to spray when the sun is not on the plants with both sprays. You don't have to wait too long after the bleach spray to use another product but it is best to do the bleach spray in the evening and follow up with the copper the next morning very early. You can of course start in the morning if you wish and follow up in the evening. Next wait about 12 more hours and then remove all the shriveled and diseased leaves. If after 3 or 4 more days you see any new problems repeat the process. It is very important to stay on top of Septoria or it can be devastating especially if you enter a very rainy period with it already started on your plants. If it is occurring during a very rainy period you may need to spray the bleach spray two times in a row before following up with the copper. By that I mean spray the bleach spray one morning very early then clip off the diseased leaves that day and respray that evening with the bleach spray and follow up with a copper spray if the rain lets up enough. Bill

June 26, 2015	#6
RayR Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cheektowaga, NY Posts: 2,468	Welcome to the Septoria club. The spores travel through the air, it doesn't have to originate from spores in your soil that get splashed up. 'Prune infected limbs and spray your copper fungicide and you may control it. You won't eradicate it, control is the best you can do. What kind of copper are you using?

June 27, 2015	#10
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	That summer where we had torrential rains all through mid summer the only variety that showed really good resistance to Septoria was Virginia Sweet. It was surrounded by plants that had it really bad but only a few leaves ever got infected even though many infected leaves from the other plants were intertwined with the VS in places. I had two VS plants that year and they both looked so much better than all the others by the end of the rainy spell. Maybe they just happened to be lucky but I doubt it because the two plants were far apart but both were relatively unscathed while all the others looked terrible. I'm sure there are other varieties that have some resistance but I haven't noticed them. Bill

June 27, 2015	#12
peter piper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: rhode island Posts: 5	my sungolds survived septoria last year.they grow so fast they seem to stay ahead of the disease. this year when I noticed it, I sprayed with diconal. the tomatoes look much better now ( 3 weeks of spraying, once a week).

July 2, 2015	#13
watson524 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Northeast PA Posts: 5	The extension office got back to me on the pictures I sent and confirmed it's septoria. Apparently it's bad in our area with spores floating around. Now that it has finally stopped raining, I applied the bleach mix and copper spray and trimmed most of the affected leaves off, didn't want to strip them all out, and will just keep an eye on things. I also have a new issue, mainly on my hanging cherry tomato plant but seeing a bit of it on the other 3: blossom drop. I haven't tested the Nitrogen because of all the rain but will do that this weekend but I suspect it's because of all the rain/humidity and not polinating the flowers, at least on the non hanging one. On the hanging one, there's a LOT of flowers so I suspect it's just dropping the "extras".